Week 13 - Professional and Personal (21/04/12)

Macau Tower.

Our thirteenth week in Hong Kong, has been spent largely in trying to get to grips with life in the Jockey Club Primary School, as Andrew and I began our teaching placement this week. Initially, the routine of a typical school day felt completely foreign, as it is over a year since our last block teaching placement but it did not take long before the estranged familiarities started to kick in.

After our initial introduction to the both the staff and the entire student population through an interview during assembly, Andrew and I immediately felt welcomed and part of the school. Instantly, we were back in the classroom again with the mindset to extract as much information from our teachers about the class, the school policies, the different teaching styles and the available resources, in order to prepare ourselves for the task ahead, so that we could make the most of this placement. In previous teaching periods (in Northern Ireland), the information gathered from these different aspects has been generally the same but I have been intensely challenged this week as I have taught or assisted in lessons, as many things are completely different. The most obvious difference being that every child in the classroom is an English as a Second Language (ESL) learner, which presents many challenges in itself, involving communicational difficulties, as my accent often distorts the sounds of the words leaving the children either confused or in hysterics at my pronunciation. 

Year 4 eager to start some lessons.

At times throughout the week, I have often been frustrated at the lack of attention or motivation to answer during lessons but I am having to continually remind myself that these pupils are learning in a language that is not their mother tongue, which of course would be extremely difficult. Therefore it is my responsibility to provide the children with opportunities of clear understanding and enjoyable learning experiences.This of course is a wonderful professional opportunity to gain experience and to learn strategies and skills that can be implemented in the classrooms in Northern Ireland, as the number of ESL learners continues to grow, in order to provide every child with access to a broad and balanced curriculum. In Northern Ireland the majority of classes, even mobile ones contain interactive boards and other resources, which aim to provide fun and meaningful learning experiences. As Hong Kong exists as one of the leading technologically developed places in the world, I automatically assumed that this would stretch into the primary education sector and even contain a futuristic element but this week’s lessons have been taking place on the chalkboard. Although this presents a challenge in providing opportunities for individual children to engage in interactive lessons or to develop independently, I believe that this will equip me with the experience of focused planning, in order to present adequate opportunities for these skills to be developed, instead of always relying on technology.

Working on some problems.

A few letters received to find out some more information.

This week we also had cause to personally celebrate, as the other Stranmillis students and now close friends, Dani, Sophie, Keith and Dan joined us in Hong Kong to celebrate Sophie’s 21st birthday. Their time here was jammed packed full of amazing things to do, such as travelling to Macau, which is the other administrative region of the people’s Republic of China but which is completely different from Hong Kong, still displaying a vast amount of signs from it’s past, as a former Portuguese colony. During our time together, it has become clear how sharing this amazing experience has united us and the importance of friendship in every aspect of life. Also whilst in Macau, Dan, Andrew, Sophie and I bravely (although some might say foolishly) decided to throw ourselves off the highest bungee jump in the world, a colossal 233 metres. This was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget or regret and just one more opportunity to make the most out of every situation, which thanks to this exchange programme has become my attitude to life. 

Portuguese roots still showing through the streets and buildings.

All strapped in and ready to jump.

To finish off what had already been a great weekend, the six of us decided to make the most of the sun and in true British style, we headed straight to the beach. As we enjoyed the scenic views and the holiday atmosphere that was present at Repulse Bay, it was interesting to see the different reactions of the Stranmillis group to the diverse crowd that gathered there. This particular coast line of Hong Kong Island is known to be extremely concentrated with many tourists or foreign workers, including a vast amount of white people, which we now take completely for granted but which was continuously surprising to the four who are studying in China. Both Andrew and I have been able to witness just how quickly people can become acclimatized to their surroundings and I feel that this is a great quality to have personally developed, as a result of studying and living abroad, as it is important to be able to adapt to any situation or environment that may arise.  

Sun, sea and sand on Repulse Bay.