Laowei not welcome

[ShaQuaNew]

It can be interesting to watch a new laowai in China.

[amberjack1234]

It can be interesting to watch a new laowai in China.

I suppose that it can now that I think about it more. We Americans are full of ourselves aren't we. Right is right and wring is wrong. China is just behind in these matters and I long to see the day that they catch up and they will. In the meantime perhaps they need a nudge in the right direction ever now and then by an ole laowai.

 

Larry

[knloregon]

Interesting observations.

 

In my family (party members) they never would use their influence over issues of their children's education. My niece, (the one who I have referred to here as the brilliant one) ---- got not bad, but not great test scores coming out of HS.

 

Her father, a Vice Chief of a major Guangdong city certainly could have used his influence to gain her acceptance into a very good college, but instead, forced his own daughter to repeat her senior year in HS.

 

I'm not so naive as to assume that her father doesn't use his influence in any of a number of ways behind the scenes, but to curry favor in the form of favorable college admissions for his daughter is still be too obvious for many career members in the CCP.

 

After her second year as a senior, she became an intellectual force to be reckoned with---and was at the top of admissions testing.

 

Not in America, of course, where Bush Jr. never could have made Yale on his own...

[b.c]

Interesting observations.

 

In my family (party members) they never would use their influence over issues of their children's education. My niece, (the one who I have referred to here as the brilliant one) ---- got not bad, but not great test scores coming out of HS.

 

Her father, a Vice Chief of a major Guangdong city certainly could have used his influence to gain her acceptance into a very good college, but instead, forced his own daughter to repeat her senior year in HS.

 

I'm not so naive as to assume that her father doesn't use his influence in any of a number of ways behind the scenes, but to curry favor in the form of favorable college admissions for his daughter is still be too obvious for many career members in the CCP.

 

After her second year as a senior, she became an intellectual force to be reckoned with---and was at the top of admissions testing.

 

Not in America, of course, where Bush Jr. never could have made Yale on his own...

 

My wife had the opposite experience. She was the top English student in her high school class. The top student was to get admittance into the leading foreign language university (cant remember the name but it was in Beijing). Well, the person that got the ride was the #3 english student who also happened to be the daughter of a top level sichuan province official.

 

At that time, my wife's dad was a low to mid level official in their county. There was nothing they could do about it. But the interesting thing is, 1 year later he was appointed director of Land and Housing bureau in their county, which is a pretty good gig. So maybe it worked out ok.

Edited December 10, 2009 by bcco (see edit history)

[ShaQuaNew]

 

In my family (party members) they never would use their influence over issues of their children's education.

 

If true, then why be a "party member" to begin with?

[chilton747]

What I didn't do was lay into them. I was assertive, but polite. I was insistent, but I shut up and listened when any of them tried to speak. I spoke of the teachers long hours and high classroom population. I spoke of the teachers pay. I gave them their excuses for not being able to do a good job as educators. Then I asked them to do better. I told them that this is my son and I am worried and I need their help. I told them that if they felt that teaching was too much of a burden, then they should think about other careers. I asked them to be teachers that students can look back on after their education is over and be able to say that these teachers were helpful. I gave them the ammo to save face, but at the same time forced them to look inwards at themselves to find the problem and the solution to it.

 

I did tell them I would be watching. I told them I would be talking to other parents and students. I told them that I and my son were customers and that our money must be spent on value. I told them I had every right to take my money elsewhere. I told them I had every right to let others know what to expect for their son and daughters at this school. I told them that they alone would determine our next step.

 

I thanked them for listening and for their time.

 

It's not cannonballs...it's heart...I love my family. I love my son.

 

 

Larry I assume you spoke English to them and they understood every word you were saying?

[amberjack1234]

Interesting observations.

 

In my family (party members) they never would use their influence over issues of their children's education. My niece, (the one who I have referred to here as the brilliant one) ---- got not bad, but not great test scores coming out of HS.

 

Her father, a Vice Chief of a major Guangdong city certainly could have used his influence to gain her acceptance into a very good college, but instead, forced his own daughter to repeat her senior year in HS.

 

I'm not so naive as to assume that her father doesn't use his influence in any of a number of ways behind the scenes, but to curry favor in the form of favorable college admissions for his daughter is still be too obvious for many career members in the CCP.

 

After her second year as a senior, she became an intellectual force to be reckoned with---and was at the top of admissions testing.

 

Not in America, of course, where Bush Jr. never could have made Yale on his own...

Kim that is interesting and I would hope that these 3 boys parents will see it that was too. I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt and see what happens. I will talk to them nicely about the situation and explain that it has been going on all this school year and the school refuses to do anything about it. Of course his father and grandparents are reluctant to do so but I am not. The parents may not know that their boys are conducting themselves this manner. We'll see.

 

Larry

Edited December 10, 2009 by amberjack1234 (see edit history)

[knloregon]

Larry,

 

Sometimes being a foreigner has a slight advantage, don't you think?... in that at least, you draw more attention.. (that plus in issues of policy, they can't really throw you in jail if you speak up)---deportation, maybe...

 

As in the case of sister's husband, its a fish bowl within the party for things like how you promote or give preference to family. Bro-in-law is definitely the kind of guy reaching for the next rung up the ladder (a ladder he is already high upon)---so he's not inclined to make the stupid mistake of favoring his daughter for college admissions, when those around him (and who may be in competition with him----are not).

 

bcco cites an example where the party member DID cash in his influence for a family member... but did he pay a price for it in the party structure?

 

Maybe the leverage here is that the Party members who's sons are misbehaving .... the last thing IN THE WORLD they want is bright lights on their kid's behavior ----by a Westerner... the kind of thing that gets noticed at higher levels....

[chengdu4me]

Well, they can throw you in jail, they can deport you, they can just put your ass in a re-education camp and forget about you for the next few years...but...one thing you learn by living here rather than visiting, the local police are about as energetic and ambitious as a State of California DMV employee. It was a calculated risk. It is more advantageous for them to try to negotiate a solution that to get all Deputy Dawg on you. It wouldn't look good to anyone to have an altercation at the gates of a school. Perception is more important than substance. The smart thing for them to do is to resolve the issue without having to fill out all that paperwork. They did exactly that.

 

As far as them understanding English, yes they did. The Principal did and spoke very good English, the English teacher the same. The Science teacher needed to have interpretations by the Principal for him to understand the conversation. But I got my point across effectively enough.

[amberjack1234]

Larry,

 

Sometimes being a foreigner has a slight advantage, don't you think?... in that at least, you draw more attention.. (that plus in issues of policy, they can't really throw you in jail if you speak up)---deportation, maybe...

 

As in the case of sister's husband, its a fish bowl within the party for things like how you promote or give preference to family. Bro-in-law is definitely the kind of guy reaching for the next rung up the ladder (a ladder he is already high upon)---so he's not inclined to make the stupid mistake of favoring his daughter for college admissions, when those around him (and who may be in competition with him----are not).

 

bcco cites an example where the party member DID cash in his influence for a family member... but did he pay a price for it in the party structure?

 

Maybe the leverage here is that the Party members who's sons are misbehaving .... the last thing IN THE WORLD they want is bright lights on their kid's behavior ----by a Westerner... the kind of thing that gets noticed at higher levels....

Kim I feel sure that being a foreigner (especially an American foreigner)had a bearing on his Larry's issues with them and I was, at the, time I was there kind of counting on that. I will take up my nephew defense when I return. I know that it is just kids but there is no excuse for this kind of behavior. If it continues these boys will grow up thinking that this is the way that they can get things done.

 

Good luck to you Larry. Have you seen any results such as the teachers attitude towards him in school etc or is it too soon.

 

Larry

Edited December 11, 2009 by amberjack1234 (see edit history)

[chengdu4me]

Larry,

 

His study habits are improving, although I suspect it has more to do with getting his privileges back than actually wanting a good education. Whatever his motivation is, I'll take it. Short of beating him half to death, this is really about the end, not the means. Whatever his motivations, his weekly exam scores are improving a bit, so we have a long way to go, but we are going in the right direction.

 

I can't say what his teachers are doing/not doing because I'm not in his classes, but he he tells me that he does ask questions now.

[Carl]

While I was in college, I took a geography class about the history and relationship of the US and Asia called "The Pacific Rim." It was based on a documentery by the same title the professor had a hand in making. In the class we had students from China (Mainland and Taiwan), Korea, Japan, Phillippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. It was the first time I had any sort of social interactions I had with a large gorup of Asians since being stationed in Korea in the early 80's. It was also when I really began to get interested in Asian women, but since I was still married to my second wife (a fat bitch), I didn't go to the next level where I ould have really gotten to know any of them

 

These students would have been a wealth of inofrmation if they would have spoke up in class, but it was us American kids who were debating and questioning the instructor. Even when we broke into groups I had to remind the Asians that they were the experts in the area and I really wanted their inputs, but even then it was hard to get them to open it.

 

The professor said it was because they had been indoctrinated since day one that the instructor talked and the student listened and it was hard for them to break that habit.

 

Maybe because your son is beginning to ask questions it is forcing teachers to actually teach instead or repeating the material.

[amberjack1234]

Larry that is good to hear, any way you can get him to do. If he gets it he will look back on this one day when he is a young man and you will be his hero. On the downside sometimes you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. Motivation is the true incentive. If you can motivate him to learn rather than using punish but for the time being I understand what you are doing is probably the only way for the short term. As you and he go along work on the motivation.

 

Larry