Imitation of words.

If there is one thing I have observed about language, it is that people around you may copy what another one may say.

In the last three weeks I have been back, I have been fairly consistent in my use of words in conversing with others. Particularly in the Cantonese language, being that is my family's main Chinese dialect.

In follow up to this practice, I have observed that they do repeat the words after me. My mother is mandarin educated and fluent in cantonese. However she has been slack in her fluency.

Malaysians have a terrible habit of using up to three different languages in one sentences. Obviously that is not possible when speaking to someone who is not from Malaysia.

Another is the pronunciation of the sounds in the english language to the blend sounds of "_th" or "th_". It was a bit of pain to my ears to hear the pronunciation of words like booth, teeth, them, and many other words where the last  bits have been bitten off.. LOL.

So the moral of this blog entry is, just use common words that people may fairly understand. People will imitate you if it makes sense, or sounds good to them.

UTS Spring Semester 2011 Results are out!

So University of Technology, Sydney has just released their results
for Spring Semester 2011.

So what were my results?

*Drum roll please*....

International Management- Distinction. (75 marks)

Managing Work and People- Credit. (71 marks) It was a difference of 4
marks for to Distinction *sigh* but better than nothing.

So now its back to serious business. Heh.

Parent's impression on teacher's departure.

This post is in continuation to the previous post c(shall add link later), after having a chat with parent, HP.

The parent, HP finally related to me her impression on the departure of the teachers (meaning me and a colleague), and how her son felt about it.

Though I did not bring the topic up, I am guessing from her bringing it up that she wanted to both share and confirm some details.

On my last day of work at the centre, the employer had released a newsletter to parents in regards to my colleague's departure. The newsletter was not written in the most positive light, and it was most fortunate that my colleague did not have the 'opportunity' to read it due to intervention of the other staff.

HP expressed that perhaps the employer was not pleased at my colleague's early departure.
In response, I did not say much, but just merely nodded. But really, what could I say? This was a situation created of a publication in passioned haste.

She then stated that her son asked if his class teacher would leave as well, being that both of us teachers had already left. I could only smile to that.

Guangzhou speaks only Cantonese

HP's son speaks both Cantonese and Mandarin.

Actually, HP speaks to her son mostly in Mandarin, but he is able to speak in snippets and pidgin Cantonese with his peers.

I did ask HP how she learnt Cantonese. She mentioned that she spoke a different dialect from Eastern side of China, and had married into a Cantonese speaking family in the South. Her in laws could only speak Cantonese, and no Mandarin at all.

Mandarin was not pushed as the main language in China until maybe forty years ago. Even News broadcasting in Guangzhou is in Cantonese, and not Mandarin like most parts of China. This created a special situation for that part of the country. Hence the main dialect was Cantonese with not much monetary incentive to learn Mandarin.

The younger generation perhaps are able to converse in Mandarin, but the older folks had no motivation to do so, as with the case of her in laws. To some degree, Guangzhou is like Hong Kong, with Cantonese being both a dialect and a language.

A Chinese Parent's Perspective on Montessori.

Today I met up with a parent, HP, from my previous work place. After dropping her son in school, she came to pick me up for coffee at Roselands Shopping Mall.

I knew she would be asking me lots of stuff about school as well, so I was mentally prepared for that.

Apparently HP is sending her son to a Montessori elementary school nearby in Hurstville as well. The elementary school fees start from 8,000AUD a year, which she deemed fairly affordable and within travel distance.

It would seem that she was quite impressed with the Montessori curriculum after having observed how her son behaved at home, and cleaning up after himself. The significance was more after her in-laws expressed how impressed they were at how he carried himself when she had brought her son to visit the family in China.

I did have to give an explanation on the Montessori curriculum, and how in the normal australian preschool, the curriculum and teaching materials were worlds apart, where at normal preschools, it was not necessarily stressed for children to pack away materials after working with it.

Instead, staff in a normal preschool had to do most of the packing away than the children did. Which basically relegates staff to the position of an overpaid domestic housekeeper.

Being Chinese (from China), she did stressed a lot on academics for her child. Being Chinese (from Malaysia), I understood where she was coming from. Academics is an area where all Chinese, and asians stress a lot on if they are born and brought up in any Asian country. I am not generalizing on this.

She did ask whether there was a reading program, as her son seemed able to read quite a lot of words.

I explained that it was not really a formal 'reading program' (which I think is what she meant), but the Montessori teaching materials did offer that outcome in learning to read and recognize numbers and letters, which may not be as comprehensive in a normal australian preschool.

The school does have an afternoon school readiness, but I think that is just bringing together and reviewing what the children have learnt in the morning; as the morning session is when the classroom teacher over a period of time, gives individual presentations to children on how to form their alphabet and put words together.

Finally, she expressed her views on my and a colleague's departure which I shall share in a different post. (will add link later. Pls remind me).

Seriously Blessed

I Really Am.

As on my resignation at my previous work place on Friday, I've been continuously getting texts from my casual work agency. I did not even call them, but I did reply some of their messages.

Perhaps that's why.

I have yet to accept any shifts, but the temptation is there. Money is always a temptation. Casual work pays even more by the hour.

The whole reason I resigned from my job was I needed some 'me time'.

For now, if I can spare the time (apart from getting actual study) is to only take casual work assignments. I would have happily worked casual for one or two days a week at my previous workplace since I know the routines and all, but I doubt that's gonna happen any time soon.

Sent from my Nokia phone

Two more days to go!

Tomorrow means its two days till my last day!

I can't believe it's almost the end of my term here in the centre.

I won't get to see some of the children tomorrow as Wednesday is their last day of school for the week. Goodbye Zara.

Sadly I had an assignment due today, else I'd have stayed back to have a word with the Supervisor. Oh well.

Sent from my Nokia phone.