D - The English Corner Mafia

Almost every Chinese university is blessed with a variety of clubs known as "English Corner". English Corner consists of university students and ambitious locals (who may not be attending the school) that want to practice their English. The idea is that people can come and speak in an informal environment. All you do at an English Corner is just chat. Many universities in China consider this to be a formal part of a foreign teacher's job. Thus, English Corner responsibilities are written into the work contract and the teacher is obligated to go to English Corner every week. For C and I however, there is no such stipulation. All and any English Corner visits are from the goodness of our hearts as we take pity on the under-Englished masses of China.

Or at least that's how it seemed until this week. Then we met the English Corner Mafia. Last semester, C and I had avoided English Corner. You see, teaching students here can be mentally exhausting. You spend 90 minutes trying to rip English from the mouths of students who are too shy or too english-inept. Consider an analogy for Oral English: I get the mental picture of a dentist, putting his feet on a patient's chest, while trying to yank out a particularly stubborn molar that needs extraction. There are of course, successes when we get students talking and have some brief satisfaction, but more often we keep our pliers handy. Silence is truly golden.

Despite such frustrations, we did go to an English Corner last Fall. Essentially students (usually at least 10-15 per teacher, sometimes more) gather around the foreign English teachers in a massive huddle and they ask the same questions over and over again. Where are you from? What do you think of China? Why did you choose Dalian? How do you think of Taiwan? Do you love NBA? Who is your favorite NBA player? Do you like Yao Ming? And on and on it goes. Of course we try to ask students questions as well, but that often creates awkward silences for the students that lack English ability and they are inevitably interrupted by some English star who wants to move on to a discussion of Western movies.

For the first 30 minutes or so, I greatly enjoyed English Corner. It was a good time to get to know the students and learn about their backgrounds. After awhile I found it to be a drag. C had a better time although she shares my frustrations. She has a strong sense of obligation, so she returned to English Corner the next several weeks until the end of the year. Now in the second semester, we received an email from the English Corner coordinator inviting us back. C went the first week, and she was swarmed because there were only two foreign teachers there. She was the only white teacher though, the other was our friend M who is a Chinese-American that teaches here. Needless to say that a 20-something girl with blonde hair and blue eyes was more of a sensation than a 60-something Chinese man.

Well, this week on Wednesday night we were invited out to dinner by our friends from Canada, L and T. So C decided to give English Corner a raincheck. She even sent text messages to students telling her she couldn't make it. We went out and had a nice dinner at our favorite local Chinese place ("The One with the Blue Steps"). We returned and within about 20 minutes there was a knock at the door. I opened it and there were two Chinese students who wanted to come in. One of them was A, who C had gotten to know last year at English Corner. They came in and described the pitiable conditions of that night's Corner. Only 3 foreign teachers came and they *GASP* only stayed for about an hour, and then they left. C usually gets roped in to staying for 2 or 3 hours! The students wanted to make sure that C had not permanently forsaken the Corner. They were incredibly emphatic that she come next week and practically bullied her into it. I was personally appalled. C said that they are "a little needy". I'll say! "WHY DIDN'T YOU COME? WILL YOU COME AGAIN? PLEASE COME NEXT WEEK." Believe it or not, it's not our moral duty to go to English Corner. But that wasn't all. About an hour later, a different student called C to again confirm she would come next week. Then this girl tried to keep her on the phone to practice her English.

You know, it's really a shame how things work out. In class, students are very shy and don't take chances to learn English. Then at English Corner, people are almost rabid in their desire to learn and practice. It's ironic and a little sad that the people who most want to learn never seem to be in our classes. But I also think it was inappropriate how the students stalked us to try and ensure C would be at English Corner next week. Of course such pressure is always wrapped politely in China but it felt like extortion to me. I'm sure the next time we need a student's help they will say..."Of course, but someday....I may ask you to do me a favor...."

And the favor will inevitably involve English Corner.

I love Yao Ming