Comments on: The Meaning of Scotland http://www.tefl.net/alexcase/tesol/the-meaning-of-scotland/ Fri, 09 Jan 2009 09:45:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: chris http://www.tefl.net/alexcase/tesol/the-meaning-of-scotland/#comment-9 chris Sat, 23 Jun 2007 01:19:52 +0000 http://www.tefl.net/blogs/?p=5#comment-9 just did a search on the internet 'what does scotland mean?'. I'm slightly curious as my sister lives there with my 2 sweet but incomprehensible nieces, and my visits up there always made me feel lucky that I live in a more developed country (Vietnam). Anyway, Google offered me a link to a guy asking that very question to the world, and to date he hasn't had a single reply. I think our best hope is to ask your student to dedicate their life to finding out the answer, because with a bit of otaku application and the fact that they said 'STILL dont understand' seems to indicate that they are suprised that they haven't found the answer yet. This is a glimpse of light at the end of the dank depressing glaswegian tunnel... just did a search on the internet ‘what does scotland mean?’. I’m slightly curious as my sister lives there with my 2 sweet but incomprehensible nieces, and my visits up there always made me feel lucky that I live in a more developed country (Vietnam). Anyway, Google offered me a link to a guy asking that very question to the world, and to date he hasn’t had a single reply. I think our best hope is to ask your student to dedicate their life to finding out the answer, because with a bit of otaku application and the fact that they said ‘STILL dont understand’ seems to indicate that they are suprised that they haven’t found the answer yet. This is a glimpse of light at the end of the dank depressing glaswegian tunnel…

]]> By: Darren http://www.tefl.net/alexcase/tesol/the-meaning-of-scotland/#comment-4 Darren Tue, 19 Jun 2007 16:30:56 +0000 http://www.tefl.net/blogs/?p=5#comment-4 Hello Alex. Good points well made, as ever. And as a former TEFL-er in London and Japan, in schools you know well, I empathise with many of your comments. Only a year ago I had a 30-something, upper-middle-class Chinese student in a group in London, who got rather emotional after half an hour of hearing bemused Euros (and even some Japanese!) splutter disbelief at her inability to name some of the world's most well-known and popular figures. (it was a variation of the Inside Out 'Dinner Party' activity, by the way). As for the Japanese themselves, it really is a question of exposure. Their linguistic and geographical 'otherness' means it's not surprising most of them won't know things we take for granted, yet it's a country where a high proportion of folk have interests that broaden their knowledge of the world: whether it's the otaku indie fan who knows his way round the north of England, the girl obsessed with Latin American dance or the football nut who follows the leagues all over Europe. This at least can be refreshing, and helps to counter the staggering ignorance we all face at times. bye for now Darren Hello Alex.
Good points well made, as ever. And as a former TEFL-er in London and Japan, in schools you know well, I empathise with many of your comments.

Only a year ago I had a 30-something, upper-middle-class Chinese student in a group in London, who got rather emotional after half an hour of hearing bemused Euros (and even some Japanese!) splutter disbelief at her inability to name some of the world’s most well-known and popular figures. (it was a variation of the Inside Out ‘Dinner Party’ activity, by the way).

As for the Japanese themselves, it really is a question of exposure. Their linguistic and geographical ‘otherness’ means it’s not surprising most of them won’t know things we take for granted, yet it’s a country where a high proportion of folk have interests that broaden their knowledge of the world: whether it’s the otaku indie fan who knows his way round the north of England, the girl obsessed with Latin American dance or the football nut who follows the leagues all over Europe. This at least can be refreshing, and helps to counter the staggering ignorance we all face at times.

bye for now

Darren

]]>