Collections of Professor Dr David Ngin Sian Pau

Who is more important is the question in such experience. As far as my experience is concern, teaching English seems an arduous task for Chinese because it needs self motivation, self created lesson plans and syllabus design suitable for pupils. Without considering what you did in the classroom, the teacher could be fired because of something else happened at the same time while you were in the class. In this case, should the teacher go away without completing the term of contract signed by both the parties? As much as possible, the teacher should give explanation exactly as it can be then can the administrator will be able to solve the problem without asking the teacher to leave the job immediately. This is Chinese boss’ practice. Many a time, foreign teachers used to be treated in the same way wherever I worked in China in the past and it seems that the best solution for this type of problems is being able to give answers to their judgement without any reservation. Many English teachers from the west, other Asian countries and native English speaking countries faced the same problem and they thought everything was based only on the school administrators’ decision so, most of them left their job as soon as they were judged. I would like to claim that foreign English teachers also have the right to defence themselves that the local people would know foreign teachers have the same dignity as the administrator and students from high class do.

4.7.Which Curriculum To Follow

Theory and practice provide useful information in designing a curriculum. Curriculum leaders should consider; learning theories, learning styles and learners' unique ways of processing information, brain research and inquiry-based learning, blended means of delivery and presentation, and alternative assessments when setting standards and lesson plans for teachers. Curriculum and instruction complement one another. It is recommended to design the new English curriculum following a constructivist, brain-based approach to learning and instruction while catering to the needs of diverse learners. The principles underlying the choice of tasks (a) relate to learners' prior experiences, (b) encourage problem-based inquiry and higher order critical thinking skills, such as analyzing, comparing, generalizing, predicting and hypothesizing, (c) provide meaningful real-world authentic content for student reflection, self-evaluation and peer assessment, and (d) focus on the process as on-going. Inquiry and problem-based learning supports teachers in accommodating all learners.

Curriculum which aims at the following items is recommended in general. These activities correspond with the following objectives and the sole purpose of the revised English curriculum should motivate students to:

    * follow detailed instructions or directions from others in order to test their
      accuracy.
    * become self-reliant, confident, independent readers, having time in class for
      sustained silent reading.
    * experience a classroom environment that encourages writing.
    * express and communicate reactions to reading experiences.