Unlocking Opportunities: English Speech Contest and Its Benefits for Students
The reason I didn't go to the English corner yesterday was because I received an invitation to participate in an English speech contest. Initially, I was unaware of the purpose of the invitation, but it turned out that I was invited to be one of the judges. Coincidentally, I also met some of my friends from the English corner at the event.
Participating in the English speech contest was a delightful experience. Towards the end of the event, I was called upon to deliver a few words. I had recorded my remarks, which you can find on YouTube. During my speech, I emphasized the significance of such activities in providing students with opportunities to practice public speaking and overcome their nervousness. Only through practice can one truly develop these skills.
Moreover, engaging in these activities offers a safe environment where there is little at stake. The risks are minimal, perhaps only a few points, unlike real-life business situations where one's job or clients may be at risk. Students can enhance their abilities without endangering anything and have a great time in the process. Personally, I thoroughly enjoy attending such activities and sincerely hope to receive more invitations in the future.
Those who choose not to participate or attend such activities are unaware of what they are missing out on. It's possible that later in life, they may regret having missed the opportunity to improve themselves in a skill that holds significant importance in both business and job settings.
Today I did something different. I got the idea from observing students on campus who found a way to make extra money by selling items. They would place their items on a bench, and others could choose what they wanted and pay for them. The prices were not high, and they relied on the honesty of the person picking up the product, as there was no one monitoring the transactions.
This is where I got the idea from.
My intention was to have fun and engage with students in a new way. However, if they didn't want to pay the small amount of 1 or 2 Yuan required, I would still give them the book. The main goal was to enjoy the experience and not make money.
While doing this, I recorded a video that was quite enjoyable. Many students passed by without responding to my invitation, probably assuming that I was selling something and they weren't interested in purchasing. However, those who stopped to see what it was all about walked away with a free book.
The book I offered was the first volume of my 10-volume collection titled "The World in Your Hands: A Guide to Every Nation." Inside the book, I included a link to the audiobook version.
The title of this post, "My Revenge," is misleading because there is no revenge involved. Instead, I want to discuss a serious issue.
I am an instructor for courses in engineering and English majors, and this semester, I have more than 500 students distributed among 18 different classes. Unfortunately, some students attempt to cheat to get better grades than they deserve. I want to give these students a perspective to consider before going down this path, and hopefully convince them to do the right thing.
My argument is this: my class is easy to pass if you simply try. I give points for effort, not just getting the answers right, so if you complete the homework, you'll receive grades for class performance activities. The final exam is more challenging, but I don't try to trick students. I explain the exam format in advance, so they know what to study. With minimal effort, they can pass the course. Additionally, the passing grade is only 60%, so it's not that high.
Despite these facts, there are always some students who try to cheat. It takes a lot of time to gather evidence and build a case against these students, and many of them will get away with cheating. They may feel smart for fooling the system and passing without studying, but as a teacher, I try to be fair. If I catch someone cheating, I will punish them. However, I'm aware that many cheaters will never get caught.
The main point I want to make is that one day, these students will face a job interview. Most employers won't ask to see their grades, but if they're hiring someone with good English skills, they will conduct the interview in English, and cheating won't be an option.
Another important point is this: How much is your integrity worth? For those who cheat, it's just a few points on a test paper. They lose their integrity and reputation, and may never be trusted again. Trust is difficult to earn, but easy to lose.
I want to share a few points I read some time ago to help illustrate my view and demonstrate how important it is to be honest and have integrity.
► Point 1
► Point 2
Quoting from the article I have read: “I was in the East a few weeks ago, and I visited with a businessman, one of the most inspiring businessmen I have ever met. He told me of an experience he had had some time ago. He was the chief executive officer of a billion-dollar-a-year business. The company manufactured products of various qualities. The first-quality product was in the manufacturer’s name; the second-quality product was in the name of the customer. One of their customers, who did sixty million dollars’ worth of business a year, came to him a while ago and said, “I want a letter from you telling me that the second-grade product is just as good as the first-grade product.”
He replied, “But it isn’t as good.”
The customer said, “But it has the same ingredients.”
“The ingredients aren’t in the same quantity. It is not as good.”
“I want that letter or you’ll lose my business.” A sixty-million-dollar account. And this wonderful man said, “If that is what I have to do to keep your business, I don’t want it.”
Integrity! It exists in the world, but it exists in the hearts and the souls and the minds and the intellects of individuals. It doesn’t exist just in masses of individuals.
► Point 3
I had the experience one day of coming back to Salt Lake City on an airplane after a conference. A young man whom I had never seen sat in the seat in front of me. He recognized me, I suppose, from some of the pictures he had seen. He spoke to me and told me he was returning to his home in Detroit. He had graduated from Brigham Young University and had gone on to another school to get his MBA. He was a junior employee in the department in which he was employed at the Ford Motor Company. He had been chosen by his department head to represent the company at a very important meeting on the west coast. There were many men his senior in the department; they were furious that a junior man would be invited to go to such an important convention. It was a real plum professionally. The department head told one of them why he had chosen this young man. He said, “I know he will not embarrass the company. He won’t go out and get drunk. He’ll go out and take care of himself and represent us properly. That’s why I chose him.” You see, integrity can mean many things in the way of success in our lives.
► Point 4
Now I’d like to share with you a lesson that a young man has taught. This, to me, is one of the most touching lessons of integrity I have ever read. This is the true story of Elam Hill, director of physical education at Sequoia Junior High:
Now I’d like to share with you a lesson that a young man has taught. This, to me, is one of the most touching lessons of integrity I have ever read. This is the true story of Elam Hill, director of physical education at Sequoia Junior High:
Today I saw truth. For a moment I lived and breathed in the great presence of truth and felt its sweetness plunge deep into my soul. I am a coach in a junior high school. I work with five hundred boys each day. This has been my occupation for over twenty years. I enjoy it. Traditionally, I am supposed to be rugged, tough, crusty—yes, even a little severe at times. And yet underneath this exterior, feeling and understanding must exist if the job is to be done.
Today was test day in climbing the rope. We climb from a standing start to a point fifteen feet high. One of my tasks these past few weeks has been to train and teach the boys to negotiate this distance in as few seconds as possible. The school record for the event is 2.1 seconds. It has stood for three years. Today this record was broken. But this is not my story. How this record was broken is the important thing here, as it is so often in many an endeavor in life.
For three years Bobby Palacio, a fourteen-and-a-half-year-old ninth-grade Mexican boy, has trained and pointed and, I suspect, dreamed of breaking this record. It had been his consuming passion. It seemed his whole life depended upon owning this record. In his first of three attempts, Bobby climbed the rope in 2.1 seconds, tying the record. On the second try, the watch stopped at 2.0 seconds flat, a record. But as he descended the rope and the entire class gathered around to check the watch I knew I must ask Bobby a question. There was a slight doubt in my mind whether or not the board at the fifteen-foot height had been touched. If he missed, it was so very, very close, not more than a fraction of an inch, and only Bobby knew the answer.
As he walked toward me, expressionless, I said, “Bobby, did you touch?” If he had said yes, the record he had dreamed of since he was a skinny seventh grader and had worked for almost daily would be his, and he knew I would trust his word. With the class already cheering him for his performance, the slim, brown skinned boy shook his head negatively. And in this simple gesture, I witnessed a moment of greatness.
Coaches do not cry. Only babies cry, they say. But as I reached out to pat this boy on the shoulder, there was a small drop of water in each eye. And it was with effort through a tight throat that I told the class: “This boy has not set a record in the rope climb. No, he has set a much finer record for you and everyone to strive for. He has told the simple truth.” I turned to Bobby and said, “Bobby, I’m proud of you. You have just set a record many athletes never attain. Now, on your last try, I want you to jump a few inches higher on the takeoff. You’re going to break the record.”
After the other boys had finished their next turns and Bobby came up to the rope for his try, a strange stillness came over the gymnasium. Fifty boys and one coach were breathlessly set to help boost Bobby Palacio to a new record. He climbed the rope in 1.9 seconds—a school record, a city record, and perhaps close to a national record for a junior high school boy.
When the bell rang and I walked away, now misty-eyed, from this group of boys, I was thinking, “Bobby, little brown skin with your clear, bright, dark eyes and your straight, trim, lithe body—Bobby, at fourteen you are a better man than I. Thank you for climbing so very, very high today.” [Quoted from the California Teacher’s Journal]
My sister in Law (how Learning English benefit her career)
Learning English can be more important than your university degree. I know that the title of this post can be argued against, but let me share a story, and then you can argue against it if you wish. For example, I am currently in China, holding a teaching job, just because I speak English well. You could say that I would not be here if I did not have a university degree. Okay, granted, but I also would not be here if I did not speak English well.
The story I want to share is about my sister-in-law. When I was living in the USA from 1998 to 2001 to acquire my MBA, we invited my wife's sister to stay with us for a year in the United States. She was in high school at that time, and she came to study in the USA for one year. I am glad we made such an offer because it changed her life for the better. When she was in the USA with us, she took the school year pretty easy, not studying very hard, and her grades were low. However, she did learn English well, and she could easily have lost that year. But when she went back to Brazil, the school system there skipped one year because she was studying in the USA. So in other words, she did not lose that year. Even if she had, it would have been worth it because now she holds a very good job position that she would not have if she did not speak English.
I have a few pictures of her from the time she was with us in the USA that you can see in this post. I am not mentioning her name here, and I don't know the name of the company she is working for now. I just know that she is from Brazil of course, but she is living in USA as the director of the company responsible for the Americas (North America, Central America, and South America),which comes with pretty big responsibilities and an according salary as well.
I don’t talk to her anymore, which makes me very sad. She was like a daughter to me, and we did so many fun things together when we were in the USA. She was usually my companion for many things my own wife (her sister) did not want to do with me. But sadly, all of that went away with my divorce. I did all that I could to prevent the divorce and tried not to lose my family like I did, but that was no use. I had to move on, and now almost 10 years later, I barely speak to my ex-wife's side of the family.
What I am saying is that family should come first, and career should come second because a career will not fulfill us, but family relationships will. I am deviating from the point of this article, but let's come back to it.
Now my sister-in-law has this job because she took one lousy year away just to learn English. Her life is so much better economically because of that, and this is the main message I am trying to convey to my Chinese students. There is so much at stake, and they are losing so much when they put English aside in their careers. I have made other posts about the importance of learning English, but it seems that some still don't get the point. So I hope with this post to drive home how important it can be in anyone's life.
I hope to see my students more engaged in English activities like English Corner and others, and paying more attention to their English language courses so that perhaps one day, many years from now, they will remember a teacher who took the time to ensure they got this message right. And because of that, their lives are so much richer and better than if they had not taken action now to improve their English.
Finding Joy in the Small Moments: The Key to Enjoying Life.
Life can be busy, chaotic, and unpredictable, and it's easy to get caught up in the rush of it all. But in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, it's important to take a step back and appreciate the small moments that make life worth living. Enjoying life isn't just about achieving big goals and milestones, it's about finding joy in the simple things that surround us every day.
Appreciating the small moments in life can be as simple as taking a few moments to enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning (even thou I don’t drink coffee, but you did get the point) or going for a walk in the park on a sunny day. These small moments may seem insignificant, but they can have a profound impact on our overall happiness and well-being.
Since I came here in China in 2018, big part of the reason I enjoy staying here and keep renewing the contract to stay one more year is because I am taking the time to make friends with the students and participate in some innocent activities with the students, like walking in the playground, recording a TikTok video with them or like back in 2018 when I was taking lesson with hip hop, but could not learn anything at all. When we appreciate the small moments in life, we are more likely to feel content and fulfilled, even if our lives aren't exactly how we imagined them to be.
Another way to enjoy life is to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness involves being present in the moment and paying attention to our thoughts, feelings, and surroundings without judgment. By practicing mindfulness, we can learn to savor the small moments in life and fully immerse ourselves in the present moment.
In addition to mindfulness, it's also important to cultivate positive relationships with the people around us.
Finally, enjoying life is about finding balance. It's important to pursue our goals and ambitions, but we also need to take time to relax and recharge. This can mean taking a day off work to do something fun or simply taking a few minutes each day to meditate or practice self-care.
In conclusion, enjoying life is about appreciating the small moments that make life worth living. By building positive relationships, and finding balance, we can find joy and fulfillment in even the most ordinary moments of life. So take a deep breath, look around, and savor the small moments that make life so sweet.
Strategies for Differentiated Instruction in Math: Tips for Teachers
As a math teacher, you know that not all students are created equal when it comes to math skills and abilities. Some students might be naturally gifted at math and breeze through problems with ease, while others might struggle and need more support to understand the concepts being taught. So how do you differentiate your instruction to meet the needs of all your students?
In 2019, I had the opportunity to teach a course on how to teach math at Huzhou University. The topic I wanted to discuss today is differentiated instruction, and I'm excited to share some of the strategies in this blog post.
First, it's important to identify where your students are at in terms of math skills and abilities. You can do this through assessments, observations, and conversations with students. Once you have a good understanding of your students' needs, you can begin to tailor your instruction to meet those needs.
One strategy for differentiating instruction is to use tiered assignments. Tiered assignments offer different levels of complexity for students to choose from based on their skill level. For example, you might provide three different versions of a math problem: one that is more straightforward, one that is moderately challenging, and one that is very difficult. Students can choose which version of the problem they want to tackle based on their level of comfort with the material.
Another strategy is to use flexible grouping. This means grouping students based on their skill level and providing instruction that is targeted to their needs. For example, you might group students who are struggling with a particular concept together and provide additional support and guidance to help them understand the material. Similarly, you might group students who are excelling in a particular area together and provide enrichment activities to challenge them.
Finally, providing students with choices can also help to differentiate instruction. For example, you might give students the option of completing a project or a worksheet to demonstrate their understanding of a concept. This allows students to choose the format that works best for them and can help to increase engagement and motivation.
These are just a few strategies for differentiating instruction in math. By taking the time to identify your students' needs and tailoring your instruction accordingly, you can help to ensure that all your students are able to succeed in math.
Since teaching the course in 2019, I have transformed it into an online training course consisting of four chapters available at:
Each chapter contains comprehensive content and exercises designed to help you become an effective math teacher, including strategies for differentiated instruction. With this online training, you can learn at your own pace and apply what you learn in your own classroom to help your students achieve their full potential in math.
To see other posts like this, on tips how to teach math:
Today, I had a nice reposition class on Saturday, and as I mentioned, it was a good one. I taught a lesson based on stories that we listened to together. Afterwards, I asked questions and fostered discussions related to the story. Today's lesson was about a truck driver who caused an accident because he was driving under the influence of alcohol (he ends up in jail). During my discussion with the students, I asked about their drinking habits while sharing that I have never had a drink in my whole life. To my surprise, I found one student who also never had a drink, which is pretty uncommon, just like me.
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