FORTVILLE — In a matter of hours, the teachers in an auditorium in Anshan, China, saw their students learning from a different way of teaching.
Five teachers and administrators from Mt. Vernon Community School Corp. spent 12 days in Anshan teaching ways to engage students and help them learn, from putting students in smaller groups to playing games like Jenga, altered to be educational.
Mt. Vernon schools have a partnership with the schools in Anshan, and as a part of that collaboration, the five staff members, Heather Noesges, Amy Tucker, Nicole Privett, Delinda Deckard and Stacy Muffler, taught different classroom techniques in the hope of enhancing the educational practices in Anshan’s schools.
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The student-teacher relationship is vastly different in China and America, according to a news release. Even young students are taught lecture-style, with class sizes of 45 to 60 students at a time. The American teachers noticed there’s a more rigid separation between students and their instructors, and students refer to them as “teacher” rather than by their names.
The Mt. Vernon staff worked with more than 100 English-speaking fourth- through sixth-grade teachers and their students to demonstrate the power of hands-on teaching and interactivity in the classroom.
The group of Mt. Vernon educators proposed the method of dividing the class into smaller groups and using technology, games, and engaging lessons in order to be able to interact more with each student and fulfill all of the students’ educational needs.
“We showed them a new way that works,” said Muffler, the principal at Fortville Elementary School. “They were surprised by the variations of things we taught, but they could see the learning taking place.”
Teaching the new techniques to the teachers in Anshan’s schools empowered those educators to listen to their intuition, think creatively and be brave in their teaching efforts, Muffler said.
“We hope by offering that support we will continue to empower them,” she said.
The Chinese teachers had some reservations about the classroom practices, namely that they might cause behavioral problems during class time, the teachers said. However, the same behaviors seen in America’s schools are seen in Chinese schools, showing that the use of creative teaching styles does not promote problem behavior, according to a news release.
Eventually, teachers from both schools taught alongside one another, with the Chinese teachers acting as student teachers and putting into action the teaching methods they learned. The teachers were excited and relieved upon knowing a multitude of new ways to teach their students, said Privett, a fifth-grade teacher.
“We got to see the light bulb come on for them,” she said. “The biggest takeaway for us was that we gave them permission to think creatively. They could use their hearts, their brains, and come up with their own ideas.”
It was the first time most of the Chinese teachers had seen the small-group methods of teaching, Muffler said.
More important even than the different classroom practices was the demonstration of how to love students, she said.
“They saw our love of students, and we will continue to teach our students with love and grace,” she said. “It was amazing to see that taking place across the world; their love shined so brightly.”
One way the Chinese teachers and students shared their love with the people in Mt. Vernon schools was by making videos for a student who is fighting a serious illness. The teachers filmed their students — hundreds of children — saying “Fight like Tyler!”
She said she hopes Mt. Vernon schools can continue to share their teaching methods — and their love — with the teachers and students in Anshan, China.
Tucker, Fortville Elementary’s special education teacher, noticed there is no special education program in China schools. She was able to explain how to teach students who are not necessarily on the same path as the rest of the students. This experience gave her a sense of purpose and made her feel as though their work is not done.
That sentiment is one shared among the educators who traveled to China. They hope to visit Anshan, China again and continue to help instruct students and teachers at the primary level and eventually at the middle and high school level.
