OMF Blog
Case Studies
- Thursday 31 January 2008Removing Napoleon
A group of foreign teachers on an outing with their English-speaking minder stopped for lunch at a small-town restaurant. Among the Western pictures in the room was a print of Napoleon. The teachers commented on it, making jokes. The guide asked, what were they laughing about, and was told that Napoleon had been an enemy of England 200 years ago. A few minutes later a waitress came in, climbed unsteadily on a chair and removed the picture.
This illustrates the sincere desire of Chinese to please their guests; the importance of pictures as symbols; that what is no longer seen has ceased to exist; not to laugh at anything because it will be taken as criticism; and sensitivity towards political matters.
What's the point of dinner
An experienced foreign teacher and his wife were invited by a school principal, through a third party, to a meal in an expensive restaurant. No reason other than ‘meeting the boss’ was given, but the teacher surmised that the purpose was to invite him to join their staff. Also present was the school’s English-speaking recruitment agent, and a few new foreign teachers and their wives. Probably they had been told the school wished to welcome them / show them some Chinese culture. They would make up the numbers, and as it is customary to entertain new foreign teachers to a meal, it would kill two birds with one stone.
In China no-one volunteers any information unless it is necessary to get you to do what they want. So if you had been one of the newcomers, how could you learn the hidden background to the meal? For a start you could discreetly ask one of the host party to tell you who the other people were, and their jobs.
The head teacher was the host. A senior woman executive from the company that owned the school sat next to him. You might have noticed that she took no part in the conversation, only picked at the food, and spent half the time on her cell phone. Perhaps she was not fluent in English and was embarrassed to speak it with foreigners. But her presence complimented the guests and indicated there was serious business afoot. With this information you might have hazarded a guess at the purpose of this apparently straightforward social occasion. After the meal, in the car park, you might have seen the agent and the school principal talking business with the teacher.
Be observant for the little things that reveal a lot about life in China, and ask the right questions.
Dressing for television
Some foreigners and their wives were invited to a TV studio, to record a programme about laowai (foreigners) in the city (i.e. “The food is delicious, the people are friendly, and we all like it here”). The presenter had a young woman to interpret for him, and there were a number of Chinese students and others present. In descending order of precedence on the Chinese scale were: the presenter in charge of the proceedings, an old Chinese man of 82 who spoke English, a famous Chinese actor, and a white-haired laowai couple. The actor sat upright in his chair with his knees together, showing dignity and respect for the occasion, and said nothing for a long time unless he was spoken to. The older couple, who were newcomers in an unfamiliar situation, observed him and did the same. An Indian teacher who had been invited, complimented his hosts by wearing a smart Chinese style embroidered jacket.
In contrast, a middle-aged foreigner made himself the centre of attention, talking loudly, upstaging the presenter, joshing with the interpreter girl (a menial in this context), and putting his arm round his (Chinese) wife. Another foreigner, a young man who had turned up in a T-shirt and shorts, sprawled in his chair with his elbow intruding into the space of his neighbour sitting next to him, and was obviously impatient to be interviewed.
Learn how to behave in different situations from the Chinese around you. Patience and modesty are highly valued in China.
When the bus misses you
Two senior foreign teachers waited in the rain at the main road at the usual time for the teachers’ bus to pick them up. For some reason, it drove past them without stopping. One walked back to their apartment block and asked the gatekeeper “Is the bus coming today?” (not “Why didn’t the bus stop for us?”) The gatekeeper phoned the driver, who happened to be his son, and he turned back to collect them. Because Chinese see everything in personal terms, such an event causes loss of face all round and everyone was embarrassed. On getting out of the bus at the college, one of the foreign teachers (not a fluent Chinese speaker) said quietly to the driver in Chinese, “It’s a lot of trouble driving in the rain.” Offering this face-saving excuse to the driver said to him, “I am not angry, and it will not spoil our relationship.”
This would further good relationships with the gatekeeper and the college drivers, significant people in the lives of all foreign teachers. It shows appreciation of Chinese sensitivity to ‘face’, and how to deal with it tactfully, and also that even a simple sentence can turn a bad situation to good account.
Shouting out of character
Bad experiences in connection with language classes are not uncommon in China. A lady in her mid-forties joined a university class which taught Chinese to foreigners. None of the students were beginners, but like many Westerners, her speaking ability was in advance of her reading. She was also unfamiliar with the textbook. The teacher asked her to read a sentence. She only knew one or two of the characters in the sentence, so couldn’t do it. The teacher scolded her at length and kept on asking her to read, until she was reduced to tears. (Incidentally, the classmate sitting next to her should have helped her by whispering the correct words – that would have been quite acceptable).
You may ask yourself, ‘Didn’t the teacher realise that if you don’t know a character you don’t know it and can’t read it? Why did he make her lose face? What was he trying to do?’ Analysis of this and similar situations will give you insight into the mindset of a Chinese teacher and the Chinese educational system.
Examine your feelings about this story. You are convinced that the educational system in which you were brought up, despite some faults, must be superior to one that can produce such an outcome. It’s self-evident. Now you know exactly what most Chinese feel about everything Western.
Last-minute request
A Chinese graduate decided to organise a summer camp, that is, a holiday school for children or students to learn more English. Near the end of the semester, he asked a foreigner with teacher contacts, to get a few foreign teachers for his camp, which would start in two weeks time. He was most surprised to be told that it would be quite impossible. It had not entered his mind that foreign teachers might go home to see their families in the vacation; or that, like Chinese, they lead full, planned lives. Chinese understanding of how Westerners think and live is a blank sheet.