Thanks for your observations.

Well, where I work is a new uni made up of students from all over the China - and they are all freshmen. Everything is new for them .. new city, new friends... the lot.

My classes are great compared with what you've said of yours however, I've heard that my colleagues have kids who sleep, read other books and send text messages etc whilst in class. There hasn't been any fighting though.

The students who are enthusiastic and motivated are the ones who WANT to be there, who see value in learning English and others are there because their parents see value in it and want their kids to have it better than they did. I met a student who is studying economics who would love to be a fireman. As you say too, student's motivation will be adversely affected if they are behind in their skills and knowledge. And there is always "face" which they shoot themselves in the foot with a lot.

I've felt frustrated and angry over the small infringements I've experienced. Some of that anger and frustration I put down to that I want to reach and motivate my students, and some of it I can see is me feeling ineffective and not respected which are persistent complaints I've had about my own worth since childhood. I have had to own my feeling because the kids are simply acting out their own feelings of inadequacy. We are not meant to take it pesonally. It's their stuff and we react to it like its about us.

We, I believe, can only do so much. Teaching English - anything really, is like doing the Tango .. it takes two - commitment on the part of the teacher and the student.

At the beginning of this semester, I wrote what my commitment to myself about teaching English was on the board which was simply to be and inspiring teacher and then for homework, I got my students to write me a paragraph on what their commitment to themselves was to learning English. That was 6 classes of 30 students each. They all gave me their commitments; I typed them up and handed them back and we pasted them in their main resource book. I can remind them of their commitment and they can see it anytime. It works well for all concerned most of the time.

I've been upfront with my classes and so have the other foreign teachers here. We take the resisting ones aside for a chat, with someone to interpret if needs be. We don't make them wrong but we do say we want them to think over what their commitment is - to consider that if it isn't great that they are wasting their parents money and being dishonest with them and themselves. We put the responsibility squarley on their shoulders because in the end, after all the blame has been laid, it's the students choice how his attitude is. And the same can be said for us as teachers.

The criteria of exams here is that everyone passes although that is changing. What we do have available along with the marking system is an assessment of attendance, attitude and homework. This assessment give the mark some reality.

So, my opinion is that you can't change them and you can't save them from themselves- only they can do that for themselves ... all you can do is be a great teacher, which I'm sure you are. Keep plugging away at the stuff you'd like to see take a new direction for the benefit of all but do it from not being attached to an outcome. Attachment and expectations can be a huge source of discontent and anger which usually comes into the classroom with you.

I wish you well.

Rosalind