The Two Foreign Teachers Have Arrived at Our School£¡

By Premier Wang

On the morning of March 2nd, 2010, Tuesday, two foreign teachers, Oliver and Andrew from UK, were standing on the platform in front of the new teaching building. They introduced themselves to the teachers and students of No. 2 Middle School, Pingliang,Gansu Province.

Like most people in our school, I will remember the exciting moment forever as this is the first time we have had native English speakers in our school. Being a key school of our city, with a history of more than half a century, our school should have had foreign teachers earlier.

Since I heard that foreign teachers would be invited to work at our school, I have been looking forward to meeting them as soon as possible. The moment I thought of their arrival this term, I became more and more excited during the holiday. Now my dream has come true and they have set foot on our campus.

Oliver and Andrew have made a good first impression. They like teaching and they are eager to work and most importantly, they are responsible in their jobs. Immediately after meeting Mr. Wang Zhongzheng in Xi'an, they asked him when they would start work.

Both of them spent hours studying their curriculum, timetables and teaching plans, asking for help from their Chinese assistants and colleagues whenever they had some questions.

I was told that they gave their first lessons wonderfully on Tuesday afternoon. I am also glad to hear that they thought the students were better at English than they had expected. This is a good beginning, isn't it? As the proverb goes, well begun, half done.

Improving our listening, comprehension and oral English with the help of Oliver and Andrew is one thing, but at the same time I believe another more important thing is that we should learn from them the customs, culture and civilization of the west.

We should learn to be punctual, friendly and warm to others; be equal to everyone, democratic, independent and be devoted to our duties, as most westerners are.

I love getting along with westerners very much because I used to be taught by two foreign teachers at SISU. One of my teachers was a lady from Scotland called Betty and the other was a gentleman from Michigan, USA called Mac. I had an unforgettable experience during my time at SISU. Once I was being tested on my oral English, having a free talk with Betty. I coughed and sneezed frequently because of a bad cold. After sneezing violently I had a running nose. I was so embarrassed that I did not know what to do about it. Betty saw this and handed me her handkerchief. With a smile she said "Keep it, it is a gift." At that very moment I realized how considerate, thoughtful and helpful most westerners are. From that moment on, I have had a dream to some day travel abroad and stay in an English speaking country for some time, even for one day to communicate with native speakers face to face.

Being a teacher of English for 28 years, I have many suggestions. I hope that both Chinese teachers and foreign teachers participate in some after-school activities together, such as, dining out, climbing Mount Kongtong and having a cup of tea or coffee together.

 I recommend that Adrew and Oliver give classes to the students in Senior Three if possible .I propose that Andrew and Oliver arrange an English corner for teachers as the original time for students does not suit most teachers.

I don't think Andrew and Oliver will mind me sitting in on their classes as I can learn their teaching methods and techniques.

I am willing to show our foreign friends around our city and give them as much help as necessary. I am sure Andrew and Oliver will have a good time at our school. I wish them good luck in PingLiang.