Super Education!

As I have mentioned more than a few times, my job here in China isn't too taxing. In fact on most days, it is pretty enjoyable. Awhile back, Steve, one of the Chinese English teachers told me that he had a contact that worked for an English education company and was looking for a foreign teacher. He said it was only for a few hours a week, so I told him I was interested. So I went downtown for a meeting with the director of Super Education, the company. The meeting was like most meetings or business dealings in China. Which means the Chinese were passive aggressive when making requests and concessions, very reluctant to give out necessary information, and egregiously talkative and thus inefficient. Luckily I had been through a few meetings here, so I knew to hold my tongue and not back down on anything important. My job was to work with the staff at a factory to improve their oral English. I was given a book, although I would soon realize it's inadequacy for the course. So, with a not so great book, I headed off to the job (I hope you are picking up on the 'sparse directions and information' theme).
I have been teaching this class for a few weeks now, and it has turned out to be pretty enjoyable and occasionally very interesting. I am working with 5-10 upper level employees at a factory of Modine Manufacturing, which is an American company making heat transfer devices. At this factory they make radiators and some other device for Korean and Chinese car manufacturers. Because all of the people I teach have graduated college, I ditched the middle school level English book halfway through the first course. Essentially, they all just want to practice listening to a native speaker, but I know this is of little benefit, so I do my best to balance my speaking with group discussion. Every class we usually discuss one or two articles I find from the Internet, or go over some idiom lists I give them (which they really like). They are all really kind and respectful, and have even poked fun at me a few times. Considering that they are staying an hour after work to participate in the class, I do my best to make it interesting and engaging. I am also getting a much better understanding of political commentary (much less political satire) programs aren't that popular in China. Because there is only one party, and free press and political dissidence aren't exactly encouraged here, most of the employees share the same opinion on political and social issues. On the other hand, because I have absolutely free reign over subjects in this class, I have been able to gain some of their opinions on some issues deemed too sensitive for the classroom. I was able to weasel my way around the question of whether Taiwan is its own country today by saying that it was a complicated issue and that I needed to know more to make a firm statement, adding, though, that I was taught in the U.S. that it is its own country and kind of leaving it at that. It has been a really nice also to teach mature adults, and be able to discuss some things (romance, relationships, etc.) without getting giggles (well still a few I guess) and to have them interested in things like politics and economics.
This job has also featured one very adventurous aspect, the journey. The factory is all the way on the other side of town (remember: city of 2.5 million), so Super Education has arranged for a car to take me to and from the factory. Private cars, this is the life of a "foreign expert" in Changzhou. My first driver had a sort of menacing scar all the way across one of his cheeks, so as we stopped on the side of a busy street I didn't ask any questions. Well, it was only to give a motorcycle driver we had been following some money. Apparently my driver didn't know the way, so he paid the motorcycle driver to guide us. I admired his resourcefulness. The next week, with the same driver, on the way home, we stopped at an intersection next to a motley looking crew of men standing next to their motorcycles. My driver rolled down the window and handed out a considerable wad of cash to a member of the motley crew. We then continued home. Now, this errand didn't really bother me, except for the small (and crazy) idea that maybe that cash was the ransom from the last unsuspecting foreigner they kidnapped. Luckily, my worst case scenario was wrong at all was fine. Last week, I got a text while teaching that a new driver would be picking me up, and there he was as I left the factory. So far, so good. Well, immediately upon getting in, he started speaking much faster than I can, and with a lot more words than I have written down in my learning Chinese notebook. Eventually, I was able to kind of tell him where I live. So he pumped the Chinese techno up and lit a cigarette. Now, unlike every taxi driver I have encountered, he actually didn't know where my school was, so I gave him turn by turn instructions (luckily I had paid some attention in earlier rides). My real problem here is that the company I am working for arranged this driver, but apparently didn't tell him where he was going. I would generally assume that if a driver is hired to take someone from A to B, he might want to know where B is...but maybe that's a bold assumption. As we are just a short distance from the university, the real adventure begins. Instead of going where I recommended, he opts for a dirt road into a large field. We pass two construction trucks as we head down this road (albeit in the direction of the school) until we reach the end of it at a massive gravel pile where a Caterpillar is loading a dump truck. Needless to say this was not a through route, but rather a large construction site. So we take the uber-bumpy road back and eventually he takes the turns I suggest and we arrive back at the school. So, I wait in anticipation to see what adventures the ride to and from this part time job will bring next week!