And that’s a wrapwith teaching. It’s hard to believe we’re done with the major aspect of our program. Yet, we have so much time left. This week led me to ponder over the true influence and impact I brought to the students at Zhuhai No.9. We’ve discussed as a group how the experiences we give the students will stick with them far longer than some vocabulary list we show them on a computer screen for a few minutes. Consequentially, I’ve sort of directed my lessons lately more towards interactive games that allowed the kids to get up and get moving. Though, even after some successful games, I still wondered how much I really gave the students. I dove down the slippery slope of playing the comparison game. This is not a game I played with my students but with myself. I compared my interactions and relationships with those of my duke engage team members. Mostly involuntarily, I wondered why some of my classes were not nearly as intimate as others, or why I some of my friendships plateaued and didn’t really go anywhere. But, this mentality is foolish. I had to get off of this slope quickly. Its just like being at Duke, where you cannot expect to excel in every aspect. You must contribute your all wherever and whenever you can and try to be content with the results. So, I realized that despite my greatest efforts, I could never become best friends with every seventh-grade student at this school. What I can do is be happy with the great bunch of those that I have become close with. I know that I’ll stay in touch with these kids long after I return to America. I hope to continue to learn about them and see them continue to learn and grow. I just want them to know that I see them not just as students but as people with dreams, and goals, and interests. This may sound dramatic, but I’ve certainly noticed myself stick a little aggressively to the teach role and interact with my students merely as that. I’ve begun to try to take myself less seriously and bring myself down to the same level as them and really see my students as the wonderful individuals they are.
After this weeks reflection topic about service, I concluded that we did make a difference here. The difference I see is that we came and developed relationships with a large number of students. We were somewhat, mentors, big brothers/sisters, teachers, and friends. The kids taught us as we taught them. With half of us knowing basically no Mandarin, we indirectly provided an immersive learning environment for the English language. I have noticed over time how many of these students have gotten immensely more comfortable practicing and speaking with us. This is in part due to them simply getting to know us better. Though, I also must attribute some of this to the Duke students being here every day and allowing the kids to practice both in and outside of the classroom. My host family too has learned so much English. It’s just so apparent to me that conversational practice every day is just so valuable. This is something I feel that schools (including Duke) should incorporate into curriculum.
I am very excited for the next week we have travelling. I think it will be good to temporarily leave the stress of classes and the final performance. Everyone has been operating at an extreme level. Despite all of the diligence and hard work, it is very necessary to press the pause button. So much is on everyone’s plate each day, but I’ve been so impressed with how these people have gotten so much done. Personally, I love living with a group. Therefore, I’ll love this upcoming week of being around everyone all day every day. Though, I know this is not everyone’s wave. My birthday is in a week from today. I can’t help but miss my family and friends even more. Normally I’m not one for homesickness. Though, as a get older and the more time I spend away from home, I have only grown to appreciate what I have back home even more. Regardless of these feelings, it’ll be a once in a lifetime experience to celebrate with this crazy intelligent, supportive, talented, hilarious group of people on the other side of the world.