Staff Writer
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| Apex Staff in front of the Great Wall. |
Apex staff Beth Elder, Maria Knall, Leila Moog, Michael Muse, Mary Taylor, and Ashley White traveled to China, along with N.C. State professor Bob Moog, to teach English and build relationships with Chinese schools during the summer of 2012. They departed from Raleigh-Durham International Airport en route to Detroit, where they took a 15 hour flight to Shanghai. After a few stops at the Bund and the Shanghai Museum, the group of teachers traveled to XiaoShan School #6 to teach for the next 12 days.
At first, Elder’s attitude was slightly dampened. She explained how the climate wasn’t too comfortable at first due to excessive heat and it took some getting used to. “The high school was very hot and humid and the air conditioner wasn’t working too well. Plus there were much longer walks from the parking lot to the classrooms,” she said. Elder wasn’t used to it. It was different; however, between the food and the sight-seeing, everything started to brighten up and Elder and everyone else began to enjoy their stay in China.
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| The staff tried multiple different foods, such as shrimp with eyes still attached. |
The food they consumed was diverse and interesting. “Sometimes I didn’t even know what I was eating,” said Knall. A few dishes, such as shrimp, were served with the eyes intact. Eating food that was staring back was a new experience for some in the group. They had rice on the side with every meal and most of them used chop sticks. “They were a little challenging to use for some people at first, but by the second half of our trip most of us got the hang of them,” said Elder. They also had some memorable experiences while seeing some of China’s finest venues. Some of these places included Buddhist temples, the Beijing Silk Market, and the Forbidden City, which the two men of the group visited. Bob and Leila Moog stayed an extra week than the rest of the staff. They went to see the legendary Terracotta Army. “It was cool because all 8,000 of the soldiers were all uniquely crafted,” said Leila Moog. “Actually seeing the Great Wall of China in person was spectacular,” said Knall.
Despite the short stay, the teachers were really able to bond with their students. “Some of them still send me emails asking me how I’m doing,” said Elder. She didn’t anticipate how much she would bond with these kids. The American teachers had more flexibility with their lesson plans and often sang songs and played games to help the Chinese students speak English. “The kids really seemed to love the Hokey Pokey,” said Leila Moog. “That was their favorite song to sing.” Also, the group of teachers spent a good amount of time with the two groups of kids. Most of the teachers had three 45 minute periods with each group every day including Saturday and Sunday.
Although the Chinese students had studied English since the third grade, they weren’t fluent in the language; but, they still understood some phrases and could write English well when they had sufficient time. Each class had a teacher assistant from nearby Zhejiang University who translated when necessary. Interestingly enough, the students were very curious and inquisitive about American culture. The teachers would constantly receive questions about what school was like in the United States or what American children did for fun. Elder then explained to the kids how it was common for American girls to walk up to each other and give one another a hug. “Girls and boys even hug each other if they are close friends.” Elder told them how it was a pretty casual thing. This created mass chaos among the children. The girls thought it would be funny to start hugging all the boys and then the boys started freaking out and the staff was very confused. It was a little out of the ordinary for everyone. However, it made for some great laughs for the teachers and in the end, there were smiles on everyone’s faces. “It was all in good fun,” said Elder.
The trip went above and beyond Elder’s expectations and all the teachers really savored their three-week experience, seeing the sights and teaching in China. “The depth of friendship was really amazing and it was an awesome trip,” said Elder.
