Co-sponsored by the Leong Man Way Foundation and the Zhongshan Education Bureau, the group visited the city for a three-and-a-half-week teachers’ seminar at City College of San Francisco, focusing on current and effective methods for teaching English as a foreign language, according to seminar coordinator Louise Louie.

The visitors observed English as a Second Language classes at the college, visited local middle and high schools, and learned about some of the student support programs at CCSF and in the community. They concluded their seminar at CCSF with a presentation of the educational system and educational opportunities in modern China.

Lowell is one of four schools the delegation visited in San Francisco. Louie contacted Lowell by phone and arranged the trip with Chinese teacher Dorothy Ong. “I chose Lowell because of its academic nature,” she said. The group also visited Galileo High School, West Portal Primary School and Newcomer School, according to Zhongshan high school teacher Li Xinnian. “We’re also visiting schools in Las Vegas and Los Angeles,” Xinnian said.

The teachers were deeply grateful for the opportunity to visit. “Lowell is a beautiful school,” Zhongshan middle school teacher Ou Shuming said. “We can feel that the teachers here love their jobs and the students love their teachers.”

Zhongshan middle school principal Chen Huying agrees. “The teachers here are very professional,” she said.

The visiting teachers commented on notable differences between our countries’ educational system. “Students don’t move around in China (to get to other classes) and instead, the teachers move to them,” Li said. “The schools in China are a lot larger. My school has five to six floors.”

There’s also a difference in class size. “In our classes, there are about 50-60 students per class,” Chen said. “Classes here are smaller.”

However, some believe the biggest difference is the students. “Students here are more creative,” Chen said. “They have more hands-on subjects (like ceramics) whereas (in China) we tell (students) to take those classes outside of school.”

Middle school teacher Zhong Rui noted American fashion trends. “Teachers here don't mind their students wearing earrings and having long hair,” she said. “Students in China wear uniforms and have a strict dress code.”

Nonetheless, students from both countries experience the same pressures from school and also the stress of college admissions. “Students (in China) have a lot of pressure,” Li said. “To get into a good university, they have to do well on their exams and take up to nine academic subjects plus extracurricular activities.”

By coming to America, the visiting teachers hope to gain knowledge through their experiences to bring back to their own schools in China. “I hope to improve the English program in my school and tell them about (San Francisco) culture, schools and lifestyle,” Chen said.

Zhong intends to incorporate American teaching styles into her English class back in Zhongshan. “I can arrange classes in a more effective way and have more language activities to practice English orally,” Zhong said. “If (the students) can speak the language, then they’ll know the language.”