Week 14 - Good Morning Vietnam! (Cultural Blog)

I remember watching a Top Gear special a couple of years ago with total fascination as Clarkson, Hammond and May travelled through Vietnam on motorbikes in their new tailor-made suits and being amazed at the spectacular scenery, in particular Ha Long Bay. Remembering the programme, and knowing I had some spare time during Easter here in Hong Kong, I was determined to book a trip to Hanoi – so we arrived in the north of Vietnam last Tuesday! 

Despite all its faults -- traffic, pollution, and dirty streets -- I loved visiting Hanoi. 

The first thing I noticed in Vietnam when I got into the taxi at the airport was that the traffic was absolutely crazy with people beeping their horns every few seconds! Our tour guide told us that there are approximately 4 million scooters in Hanoi which gives you a sense of what the traffic must be like around the city. Combine this with few traffic lights or pedestrian crossings and you soon realise that it is a free-for-all for on the roads. As a pedestrian, when crossing the road, it is very much a case of trying to walk slowly and carefully to avoid the cars and hoping that the motorbikes avoid you!

After living in Hong Kong where everything is spotlessly clean, in contrast the streets of Hanoi are quite dirty and it isn’t unusual to see piles of rubbish lying at the roadside in the bustling streets amid vendors, shoppers and traffic. Also a lot of families sit outside their shops and eat dinner together at night time in a really relaxed and peaceful atmosphere which I liked.

Vietnam is renowned in Asia, for its good food and it didn’t disappoint especially as meals are so cheap compared to back home or in Hong Kong with a substantial meal costing only £3. The main traditional dish in Vietnam is called ‘Pho Bo’ which is basically noodles and beef in a soup that is really tasty. There was also a buffet breakfast in the morning at our hotel which needless to say, made getting up that little bit easier, especially as I hadn’t eaten a good cooked breakfast since I left Northern Ireland!

Before I came to Vietnam I considered getting a tailored suit especially after hearing how cheap they were. So on the first day, when I was walking around the shops alongside Allen, Simon and Rachel (who as usual was hounding us to buy stuff!) we finally gave in and couldn’t resist the temptation to splash the cash! I got measured up for a tailored grey suit with matching shirt and tie and now look a thousand dollars (or in their currency a million!)

Whilst the buzz of hanoi was something i wouldn’t have missed, the highlight of my trip to Vietnam was the day trips to Ha Long Bay and Tam Coc. 

Ha Long Bay is a spectacular limestone maze which has over 3,000 karst limestone structures, although our tour guide told us that locals claim there are only 1,969 in memory of Ho Chi Minh, the late President. The day trip to Ha Long Bay was totally amazing. I absolutely loved visiting the floating fishing village and kayaking in among the giant karsts and through the caves. The atmosphere was so serene and peaceful and the kayaking was the definitely my favourite part of the trip.

Another fantastic trip was to Tam Coc where we got to visit some Buddhist Temples (although they all appear very similar once you have seen one or two)! A particular highlight was when a group of us went on bikes through the Vietnamese countryside and had great fun cycling through the small villages and country roads. This was followed by the opportunity to “unwind and relax” as we were rowed down the Ngo Dong River among the paddy fields and caves which was surprisingly every bit as stunning as Ha Long Bay.

I had a fantastic week and really enjoyed my time in Vietnam.  The sights, the history and the contrasts I discovered during my short stay, will entice me back to Vietnam again to visit other parts of the country, especially Ho Chi Minh City in the south where I may get another tailored suit on the way!

Only 3 and half weeks left in Hong Kong now before I fly out to Australia! This week it will be heads down to work hard and complete my remaining assignments, before I start back in Jockey Club Primary School next Tuesday.

Until next time...

Joi Gin (Goodbye)

Michael

Week 13 - First Week of School Placement! (Professional Blog)

This week I began my placement in Jockey Club Primary School teaching Grade 5 and 6 classes.  Although I had prepared well, to be honest it has been quite a challenging and different experience to the placements I have had in the past. It took a little bit of time to adjust to teaching students who only use English as a second language. The teaching approach and style in my lessons therefore is more formal than it would be back home with the focus mainly on comprehension skills, language skills, vocabulary and grammar instead of a more cross-curricular approach which I am used to in the Northern Ireland Curriculum where English for example would be taught alongside history or geography.

I have become very aware that with some teaching periods lasting only thirty-five minutes it is quite hard to get a full lesson completed with the class. Back home when we are teaching we are encouraged to begin with an introduction in our lesson to “set the scene.” However, due to the time constraints, it is a matter of getting started straight into the lesson, after a brief introduction, and getting the content covered quickly with the students.

A particular difficulty of having some single periods is that the time constraint makes it challenging as a class teacher, to ensure that all the children are following and achieving the success criteria of the lesson. In both my classes there are one or two pupils who are not familiar with or confident in using English and I have found it demanding to keep them engaged and focused throughout the lesson. With classes of 32 students it is difficult to spend time individually with children who need more help and encouragement. Obviously this links back to the need for differentiation, which as I mentioned in my blog last week, doesn’t seem to be as fundamental in the Hong Kong education system as it is back in Northern Ireland.

I have detected in my English lessons that the students don’t seem as confident or willing to interact and participate in teacher-led class discussion compared to my previous experiences back in Northern Ireland as the students seems to be more shy and afraid of giving a wrong answer. To overcome this, I have tried to integrate as much partner and group work as possible into my lessons so that the students, in particular the weaker pupils, are interacting and practising their English with one another instead of just listening or responding to the teacher.  The overall English ability of the class is very good; however, there is a noticeable and distinct difference in motivation between the higher and lesser ability students.  Often when you ask a weaker student a question or if you try to interact with them they will ask their friend (who is better at English) for help in Cantonese. I feel that trying to break down this barrier and instilling some confidence and motivating the weaker students to learn English will be one of my biggest challenges in the remaining weeks.

During the week we were also asked to do an English activity each afternoon with the Grade 3 students because soon they will have to complete their TSA (Territory-Wide System Assessment Tests) English test. This basically involves a formal oral test where the children are shown a picture and they have to answer questions about it, using sentences and developing their answers as much as possible. I was extremely surprised by the use of vocabulary, thinking skills and confidence which some of the children displayed at such a young age. So much so that I think their answers would be just as good as any student of the same age back home!

The pupils seem very excited to have some guests in the school and the head of the Parent Teacher Association appears very keen for the student teachers to visit some of the children’s homes and participate in some organised trips with the pupils providing them with opportunities to improve their English. Overall it has been a really interesting first week and I am looking forward to the two weeks of teaching placement again after Easter despite the increase in workload!

Outside of school this week we managed to meet up with Claire Annett and Clare Beacom who came into Hong Kong to visit for the weekend. It was nice to be able to catch up and hear all about their personal experiences in China and it seems as if they are also having a great time. Hearing them talk about China makes it sound very different to Hong Kong, so much so, that I am tempted to go and visit them. Depending on my workload over Easter and how much I can complete of my remaining assignments I hope to maybe get the opportunity to go to Guangzhou for a few days and see what it is like for myself!

Tomorrow evening we are flying out to Vietnam to stay in Hanoi and hopefully visit Ha Long Bay which I am particularly looking forward to. I will be updating you on our travels in my blog next week.

Until next time...

Joi Gin (Goodbye)

Michael

Week 12 - School Observation and First Assignment Complete! (Professional Blog)

This week I had the opportunity to go into Jockey Club Primary School to observe an English lesson with the Grade 5 class with whom I will be working. There are 32 pupils in the class and the overall ability of the class is generally very good. I was particularly surprised by how well-spoken and confident the students were in their use of the English language. The range of ability differs however, from those students who are fluent in their English skills to some who have only recently moved to Hong Kong from Mainland China and as a result have very little experience using English.  The catchment area of the school is a mix between children who come from very well off backgrounds and those from poorer backgrounds which predictably has an effect on how fluent the children are in English. 

Surprisingly, teachers in Hong Kong do not differentiate the lessons and instead teach to the 'average' of the class which is a big contrast to the way we have been trained back home. There is a big emphasis on teachers back in Northern Ireland to take into account the needs of every individual within the classroom, not only the needs of lower ability pupils or those with special educational needs but the higher ability children (who are often overlooked) also need to be challenegd and stimulated so that they do not lose interest and become disengaged. Consequently when I am planning my lessons I still intend to carefully consider how to help both the weaker and the stronger students in developing their English skills. Particular attention will have to be paid to the oral skills of the weaker students because the class teacher told me that they naturally try to avoid speaking English as they lack confidence in answering questions in front of their peers. My class teacher also explained that when teaching an English lesson the key is to ensure that you get every child actively involved and make certain that you provide opportunities for the students to practice their English speaking skills as much as possible. When I was observing the lesson, I noticed the teacher had a small area on the board where the class was divided into specific areas and as she was asking questions or trying to get the students involved she kept a tally. With a class of 32, this meant that the teacher knew that everyone in the class was participating in and contributing to the lesson. I thought this was a good way of monitoring input from the pupils because sometimes it can be an easy option for teachers to just let the stronger pupils answer the questions and forget about the weaker pupils who are not engaged in the lesson.

During this week I also completed my first assignment which was a validity analysis of an assessment tool that we created as a group. I particularly enjoyed this module and feel that it was extremely relevant and beneficial in my professional development since assessment is at the heart of being a modern teacher. In the old days, teachers taught and central examination authorities assessed. Teachers did not really have to know about or become involved in the assessment process.  All that was required was to be able to mimic public examinations so that students experienced school assessment as preparation for exams. Nowadays however, teachers are obligated to collect evidence and exercise interpretive judgement about student learning.  Having completed this module, I now feel much more competent in designing, administering, selecting and interpreting assessments properly. I am confident that I can design my own assessments and understand how to create a ‘valid’ and useful assessment tool which will benefit both the teacher and students in evaluating and improving their effectiveness and learning respectively. 

On Saturday the international students went on an organised trip to Cheung Chau (meaning ‘Long Island’ in English) which is one of the surrounding islands near to Hong Kong (a half-hour boat journey). Traditionally the island was a fishing village and there are still fishing fleets working from the harbour. However in recent years the island has become a major tourist attraction, offering a mixture of sandy swimming beaches, seafood cafes, and traditional Chinese culture. At Cheung Chau we shared some lovely seafood and I managed to force myself to try some fresh octopus, crab and fried squid! After going for a hike last week I decided this time to relax and try to get a bit of a tan at the beach!

The weather in the past week has been amazing with temperatures hitting 30°C and not a cloud in the sky. Unfortunately, the humidity is starting to pick up and it is now very warm at night time requiring the air conditioning to be put on in my room as I am finding it difficult to get to sleep. The international students gathered together last night again for another barbeque because a lot of students are beginning to go travelling as classes have finished and only assignments need to be completed. I also had to go into Central a couple of times this week to get my visa for Vietnam as we are going to Hanoi next week. This is something I am really to looking forward to and I will keep you updated about the trip.

Following my visit to Jockey Club Primary School, I am starting my teaching placement there this week so I will let you know how I get on in my next blog.

Until next time...

Joi Gin (Goodbye)

Michael

Week 11 - The unseen side of Hong Kong and my first school visit (Cultural/Professional Blog)

Clearwater Bay.

If you know Hong Kong only as a metropolis of concrete canyons and neon signs, the notion of hiking here might seem as ludicrous as sunbathing at the North Pole or skiing in the Sahara. Yet, Hong Kong is actually, believe it or not, an excellent place for hiking. What many people do not know is that the city lies in a territory that's about three-quarters countryside, with rugged hills, islands and islets.

Tuomas and I with some of the local students who we went on the hike with.

To be honest I’m not big into hiking when I am back home in Northern Ireland but after enjoying a few days of fantastic weather, I decided I would use the opportunity to see a different side to Hong Kong. Yesterday Tuomas (a fellow International student from Finland) and I joined some local students and went to Sai Kung for a 12km hike to see Hong Kong’s most varied – and finest - countryside. It was great to get out of the city and see a completely different region which few people associate with Hong Kong. I never imagined Hong Kong would have such beautiful, isolated beaches and untouched nature. After thoroughly enjoying the trail I now understand why hiking is one of the most popular past times among the locals.

There were some great beaches along the way.

A rickety bridge across the river.

This week I also visited Jockey Club Primary School where I will be doing my teaching practice. The reason it is called Jockey Club Primary School is because ‘The Hong Kong Jockey Club’ (a not-for-profit organisation which donates its surplus funds to community and charitable projects) helped fund the building of the primary school.

Firstly, we were taken on a tour of the school which is attended by approximately 500 pupils and has 3 classes of around 25 pupils per year group.  The facilities within the school are very modern as it was only recently opened in 2002; the layout of the school is also drastically different compared to schools back in Northern Ireland and in typical Hong Kong fashion it consists of 7 floors!

I was introduced to the teacher with whom I will be working on my school placement. She was very friendly and welcoming and with her experience, I know I will learn a lot from her. I received my timetable and found out that I will be teaching English to grade 5 and 6 classes. I also have discovered that in contrast to primary schools back home in Northern Ireland, the primary schools here in Hong Kong are actually run more like Secondary schools. Instead of teaching one class the whole curriculum for a year like we do back home, primary school teachers teach their specialist subject to different classes within the school – just like a secondary school. It definitely will be a different and challenging experience teaching English to the local children. The teachers in the school seem happy to have us as it will give the pupils more practice and opportunities to improve their English oral skills. I realise that this teaching placement will be completely different from my previous experiences and I am slightly apprehensive about how much English the pupils can understand and if this will have an effect on my lessons. However, on the other hand, with the amount of EAL children increasing in primary schools back in Northern Ireland,  I feel this experience will hopefully be invaluable and will help me develop more skills as a teacher in working with children who are not fluent in English.

Enjoying a good barbeque!

As I mentioned earlier, we have had some absolutely fantastic weather this week. On Friday, after playing football in the morning for a couple of hours, a few of the International students decided to go to Clearwater Bay beach and have a barbeque. It was nice to go to the beach and have some fun, especially after being on campus for most of the week! On Saturday a group of us also went into Stanley where we walked through the markets and generally just relaxed! Stanley did not remind me at all of being in Asia.  Actually if anyone had asked me where I was, I would have thought I was in a European seaside tourist destination!

This week I have to push on with my assignments, the first of which is due Tuesday week. I am also going into Jockey Club Primary School again to meet my teacher and observe a few lessons with the classes I am going to be working with. Hopefully this will give me a good idea of what sort of level the pupils are at in their English and I will be able to plan and prepare my lessons accordingly... so I will let you know how that goes in my blog next week.

Until next time...

Joi Gin (Goodbye)

Michael