Class [Marsha]

The classes have been going well. Most of the students are participating with encouragement. I still have to do a military "voluntarism" some of the time. But more and more they seem to be enjoying expressing their thoughts. Sometimes when I ask them to compare what I am describing to the Chinese system, they seem hesitant. But they are getting better. I have been giving "GSU presents" to them on a random variable schedule. They seem to get a kick out of that. At least they giggle. The magnetic clips and the mugs intrigued them the most.

I tried showing a video in class on negotiating style of an American with an Asian supplier, but I did not have it on DVD. It was on the Internet, and I could bring it up on my computer at the apartment on campus, but not on the classroom computer. That was disappointing. It was an interactive video and I am sure it would have generated more discussion than normal. Luckily I did have another DVD but it wasn't quite as good as that one. As another teacher told me before I left, when teaching overseas always have multiple backups. Well this time, my backup system wasn't perfect. The second video was OK but not as good.

The campus where we live is called Dong Feng. It is in the center of the city. The surrounding area is a typical Chinese city. However, we teach on the Long Dong campus which is in the suburbs. There is more space and greenery. They share the space with several campuses, but there are fences between the campuses. The air is somewhat cleaner and it is definitely prettier.
Here are some pictures of the classroom building and from the balcony of the classroom building .












Classroom building.




























View from classroom balcony.