Joe was a brave man coming to help out this bunch of teachers, who were completely tied in knots. The activity starts with a pair of teachers, each with a bit of string. They tie the ends of one piece of string to one teacher's wrists (like hand-cuffs) and do the same with their partner, though the partner's string must loop round the first person's string, so they are interlocked. It's one of these activities you have to DO, not SAY. The aim is simple - they must separate. In this group I don't think Anna (in light pink) even knows where her own hands are any more!
While Xiao Liao and Sue were running the first workshop this morning, Hou Wanxia and I sat in the TDC, reflecting on the training experience. When the Simao Teachers' College and local Education Bureau leaders came to visit yesterday afternoon the trainees gave some very open and moving feedback.
Joy, who had just given a model Chinese lesson (the focus of the Team Leader-Trainer practical to follow) shared how she felt about the training. She said that when she arrived for registration last Sunday and saw that foreigners were involved with the training, she was so disappointed. Joy said it was like being dropped into icy water. She was shocked and in disbelief that we could deliver a course, not only to teachers but to Chinese school leaders. Within a day, she added, she was engrossed with our activities, the materials and our training ways. Having Wanxia and Xiao Liao here, working as a team and having the support of the training centre has made this one of the most enjoyable trainings I've done.
I've still managed to make lots of notes in the book, however, for how to improve it next time. Our main drive over the coming months is to translate as many of the materials as possible into Chinese, so that we can continue to reach out to teachers and leaders, regardless of English (or our Chinese) language skills.
Joy, who had just given a model Chinese lesson (the focus of the Team Leader-Trainer practical to follow) shared how she felt about the training. She said that when she arrived for registration last Sunday and saw that foreigners were involved with the training, she was so disappointed. Joy said it was like being dropped into icy water. She was shocked and in disbelief that we could deliver a course, not only to teachers but to Chinese school leaders. Within a day, she added, she was engrossed with our activities, the materials and our training ways. Having Wanxia and Xiao Liao here, working as a team and having the support of the training centre has made this one of the most enjoyable trainings I've done.
I've still managed to make lots of notes in the book, however, for how to improve it next time. Our main drive over the coming months is to translate as many of the materials as possible into Chinese, so that we can continue to reach out to teachers and leaders, regardless of English (or our Chinese) language skills.
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