Meet students' needs

I've taught students in the United States, Russia and, now, China. Students are much the same the world over. They are children. You will have some very exceptional students in every class. Nonetheless, most students are average in their IQ. For these students, the difference between doing well and not doing well will largely depend on their teacher (or teachers).

Teachers all over the world need to be aware of their students' needs. For example, in China, students are required to be in class many hours a day. Chinese people take pride in requiring students to work hard. It's not uncommon for students to be in class studying until 10 pm. Too often, many teachers are quite demanding and feel that it is their job to make it even harder for students by putting more pressure of work on them.

I tend to understand students' needs. What they need most from me is something that is going to make the English language exciting and interesting. My goal is to make them fall in love with English while giving them the best learning experience I can. I can do this, first, because I have a passion for teaching, which comes from my own passion for learning. Second, I get them involved in the process of learning.

In my humble opinion, teachers can take their teaching to a higher level by considering what I've shared here and using new ways to teach their students and meet their learning needs.

A TEACHER READER, on China Daily's website

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