Registration
on Tina's Journal (China), 25/Oct/2009 10:18, 34 days ago
The second TLT course is underway. 31 teachers from two different counties, this time Zhenyuan and Jingdong, arrived yesterday to register for the week long course. The content is the same as the previous course, although this time there is more translation into Chinese. Some of the ideas and concepts will be new to them, so it is essential that these ideas are explained in Chinese. Some of the participants I have met previously on some of the school visits I made last term to the two counties. It is nice to see some of them again. We have a new trainer on the course, Miss Liao, who I have done some co-teaching with before. It is really nice to know that she is interested in the training. The only other teacher in the college involved in the TDC (Teacher Development Centre) is Hou Wan Xia who will soon be made leader of the department. Hou Wan Xia and Lesley have developed the training in the college over the past 5 years. However, once the VSO volunteers leave, it will be totally in the hands of the college. Therefore, to know that other teachers are getting involved, gives some reassurance that the training will be sustained in the future. I would like to be in a position to stay here and help continue the development of the TDC. However, this is not to be and my life is going into a different direction.On another note, I met an interesting couple this week who were passing through Simao on their travels around the world. I was walking across on the campus last Thursday and noticed two'Westerners' looking a bit lost. I approached and asked if they were OK or needed any help. Fabrice and Margot, a French couple, left Paris last June to set off on their travels. They amazingly hitchhiked all the way from Paris to Istanbul. They decided they didn't want to hitchhike through Asia. They arrived in Simao by bus from Laos. They only spent two nights here and they were looked after by'us foreigners'! I was a bit envious to hear what they were doing. Their plans are to travel for the next few years and they just live their life going with the flow, living in the moment with very few possessions. Sounds like they know what living is all about to me :-)