Seats and email.

Last EDOL 533 Post

I have used email for a long time but never been a fan of chat rooms or social networking sites. I am in the process of setting up web pages for my various classes at Beijing No. 55 High School and in each class am beginning to discuss whether we should include blogs and a wiki for each class.

Let me share a story that will reveal part of the challenge of dealing with the Chinese educational system mindset regarding the change this entails. As a consequence of this technology class and EDOL 538 which I am sure some of you take I have become really sensitized to alternative ways of doing things. I also saw some fabulous teaching in International School classrooms here in Beijing when I did my Classroom Observations for that class: Students didn't sit in rows but where seated in groups of four at four desks placed together like tables actually designed for that kind of seating. It is not only effective but my students love it.

I started this rearrangement on Friday and did it again today. Well when I went  lunch today, the math teacher who is also one of the Grade 10 homeroom teachers and uses the room where I was 'experimenting'  was ahead of me in the lunch line. She turns around and starts ragging me - in Chinese so all the other Chinese teacher know she is on me - about moving the desks around and that I had better put them back. I am trying to politely ignore her (I am thinking Grrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but just endured it.).  So she starts hammering me more telling everyone, "He doesn't understand Chinese." I knew exactly what she was saying but didn't want confront her.

When I get back to the office, I am telling some of my students who are in the class about this and she just happens to overhear the conversation. She then gets more upset and says she is going to have the school put in writing that the desks in that classroom cannot be moved. Huh! We are talking here about seats and changing seating to help the student.

Ironically this teacher went to the UK and got her Master's. She has lived abroad and yet the idea of change is still absolutely terrifying. She just blocked/blocks it out.  

This has nothing to do directly with communication tools which are supposed to be the point of this particular post but it does indirectly by discussing the societal context here for technological change which is comprehensively covered in Chapter 13 of the text . And it reveals that this society hears endlessly the mantra "peace, harmony and stability" because they want - at least in education - for the 21st Century to stay away.  

I feel better.

PS By the way I will respect her concerns and make sure that after my classes the seats are put back like she likes them. W.