Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Cultural Differences: Final Copy

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12 comments:

Aileen said...

Different education methods between Canada and China

When I visited my daughter’s classroom in Vancouver at first time, I was astonished by their desks’ arrangement. All students’ desks and chairs were arranged two circles; the teacher’s desk was in the centers.

All the children sat on one big carpet listening to the teacher’s lecture. When the teacher provided questions and asked who want to answer the question, some students raised their hands highly and even stood up to make themselves outstanding. The teacher just smiled and did not care students’ behavior – standing up or sitting down. Some students chatted and ardently debated some important issues they thought. The atmosphere was very active and all the students looked very free and happy from their faces.

However, you will never see the above active and magical scene in Chinese classroom. I participated several classes when my daughter was in Grade 1 and 2. All of the desks and chairs were orderly arranged 6 lines; each line included 6 rows, just like a square. The teacher’s desk was at the front of the classroom.

All the pupils sat down quietly and straightly. If someone talked at the class, the teacher would stop his/her lecture and blame him/her. When the teacher needed to ask somebody to answer questions, the pupils only raised their hand straightly and their elbows could not be allowed to leave the surface of their desks. If some naughty boys were exciting to stand up or raise their hands highly, then the teacher would criticize them strictly. All the students seemed very docile in classroom, however, it violated children’ lively and naughty essentiality.

As parents, I really appreciate the Canadian active atmosphere and education methods, which can inspire children’s creativity and free jocund spirit. Thankfully, we are luck to choose to come to the native and free land.

—300 words; final version

April 25, 2008 at 9:20 PM
Jeongsook said...

Keeping to the left

During forty years of my life, I always kept to the left side of the sidewalk when I walked down the street. It was a result of my childhood education. When I first went to school, they lined us up in straight rows and stood at attention.

The first month of the school year was about learning the school rules. One of the most important rules was staying in the left side of the side walk. The slogan hung on the walls, even though we had to patch it on the left breast.

When we broke the rule, the teacher gave a sound rating and a cane. The result of the study training in my young age, it was accustomed to me automatically like a robot. Even after my family immigrated to Canada, I am still walking on the left side. Even though my brain wants to follow the different rules of Canada, my body doesn’t listen to me . I almost bumped into other people coming from the other side, many times.

Whenever I walk on the street with my kids, they talk to me, “Mom! Keep on the right side of the street.” Then, I can do that with deep concentration, but it happens again for me when I am alone. It looks like a habit, but it can be big trouble in unexpected situations. Therefore I have to my habit even by using force. (244 words)

April 28, 2008 at 9:11 PM
yuwin said...

The special night

The last night of the year is very important to us to celebrate and welcome the New Year. There are many things to do in that night like having a big dinner with family, cleaning the house, waiting the first minute of the new year. Everybody is busy and excited.

First, we have a splendid dinner with whole family, and usually we have 12 dishes for the dinner at least. Three of the most important dishes are fish, white and green vegetable, and ten mix vegetable. They are lucky dishes. For example, fish and remain are homonyms in Chinese. We do not eat fish because we hope we could keep many good things in next year. This is the most important dinner which we have been expecting every year.

After the abundant dinner, we start to clean the house and throw out all the garbage because we have to throw out all the bad things of the year . We also have to hide the shape tools like knife, scissors, and needle because we will not use and see those tools in the first day of the new year. Every one is busy after dinner.

Finally, the first minute of the next year coming, we turn on all the lights and open all the windows to welcome god of the spring could come to our house. We always take an egg to check if the god of the spring has come already. It shows the god of the spring is coming when the egg stand up. How excited we are!

Having a abundant dinner, cleaning the house, and waiting a new year are very important things to do at the last night of the year. We start to celebrate the New Year from this night. It is a different culture with Canada. I think we gain more lucky and fun in that night.
318 words

April 29, 2008 at 5:46 AM
lisa said...

Totally Different Chinese New Year In my village, the first day of Chinese New Year, everyone gets up very early and wears new clothes to celebrate it. The children koutou( knee down) to the parents and grandparents and say, “ whish you health and thanks for your raising.” It also means respect them. Usually the elders give the youngers money we call “ yasui” money, and it means the children are growing up. Also the elders say some encouraged words to the youngers.After breakfast, the youngers go out to say “ Happy New Year ” and koutou to the elders of the whole village’s . It will take them about half day to do that, and it is a hard work.My husband village’s culture for Chinese New Year is totally different from my village even we are in the same county of China. On the fist day of Chinese New Year, in the morning, they do not get up very early because if you get up very early, you would work hard and no time to rest in the whole year. That means your life is bitter. It is unbelievable.When they get up, the elders usually do not wear new clothes as they do not want to be old. But the children wear new clothes from underwear to coats . That implies the children will have new lives. It is foolish.The children also do not koutou to the elders as that means they would die in this year, but they koutou to their ancestors to show their respect and recall.The most terrible thing is that they stay at home at the whole day and do not go out any more. I can not stand it. You can see how different the culture in different places.300words

April 29, 2008 at 11:09 AM
lisa said...

Totally Different Chinese New Year In my village, the first day of Chinese New Year, everyone gets up very early and wears new clothes to celebrate it. The children koutou( knee down) to the parents and grandparents and say, “ whish you health and thanks for your raising.” It also means respect them. Usually the elders give the youngers money we call “ yasui” money, and it means the children are growing up. Also the elders say some encouraged words to the youngers.After breakfast, the youngers go out to say “ Happy New Year ” and koutou to the elders of the whole village’s . It will take them about half day to do that, and it is a hard work.My husband village’s culture for Chinese New Year is totally different from my village even we are in the same county of China. On the fist day of Chinese New Year, in the morning, they do not get up very early because if you get up very early, you would work hard and no time to rest in the whole year. That means your life is bitter. It is unbelievable.When they get up, the elders usually do not wear new clothes as they do not want to be old. But the children wear new clothes from underwear to coats . That implies the children will have new lives. It is foolish.The children also do not koutou to the elders as that means they would die in this year, but they koutou to their ancestors to show their respect and recall.The most terrible thing is that they stay at home at the whole day and do not go out any more. I can not stand it. You can see how different the culture in different places.300words

April 29, 2008 at 11:09 AM
Renee said...

Christmas Party

Last year, I participated in the Christmas Party organized by the company that my husband is working for. The party is like annual party before Chinese New Year in China. However, the difference is the company in China is not used to invite employees’ family member. Certainly, this is not the only difference.

When I first stepped into the banqueting hall, I feel like I was in casino. Many people were playing poker and blackjack. My husband explained, “This is one of the traditions of the company. It is a simulated casino. Everyone is playing fake money. ” “ Quite a big difference from China.” I replied. Actually, in China, every department of the company as a unit usually organizes some singing, dancing and comic dialogue. We enjoy these performances while we are eating.

While Mr. Smith, the host, was announcing, “Enjoy your dinner”, I was observing the environment. The dinner was a buffet dinner, which almost all food was cold except meat and soup. In China, we were used to have warm food to eat, so I ate little and drank a lot of hot tea instead at that night.

Everything was new and curious for me. I like this feeling. Canada as a multicultural country, we have enough space to keep on our own culture and meanwhile to experience the others’ different splendid cultural.

(Final Version; 226 words)

April 29, 2008 at 1:11 PM
teresa said...

Do I Need to…

The first time I learn how to fuel my car is in Canada. Before that, I had been driving for ten years in Taiwan, but I had never fueled my car by myself. What I did was just sitting on my driving seat, and the free fueling service is always there.

In Canada, there’s no caddy in golf course. It is different from in Taiwan where the player has to hire a caddy by golf course regulation. Here I, myself, have to carry the golf equipment to go through the eighteen holes in four hours.

One day, I asked my Canadian girl friend, “Where do you live now?”
She replied,” I moved to live with my parents.”
“That’s better. You don’t need to pay the rent and you can save more money.”
“I pay the rent.” She says normally. She works at a college, single, 26 years old. What she says recalled me that when I was at her age, the same situation as her, living with my parents, I didn’t pay the rent. Furthermore, both my parents and I didn’t think anything about the rent. That I live with them free is naturally because it’s my home and the rent is not accepted for such kind of relationship in my culture.

The above three things shocked me a little bit. The questions arose in my mind: “Do I need fuel service, if I can do it?” ”Do I need a caddy, if I can use a cart?” “Do I need to pay the rent to my parents, if I have already worked?” and then” What’s the difference between here and there?” I was considering.

Finally, the words surfaces in my mind ”Do it by yourself.” In other words, I think there is more independent spirits—to be independent and to be treated independent—in western culture.

--310 words

April 29, 2008 at 2:11 PM
Shadow Shu--Beatirce said...

Maybe He was Right

“Your marriage is free marriage or arranged marriage?” when I talked with Indian women, I was often asked this question. For people like me, an arranged marriage is like an antique displayed in the museum.

Mr .Bhuwania was my Indian buyer; I attended his son’s wedding in Bangalore. Before the wedding, Mr. Bhuwania and his wife went to Delhi and accepted a girl there to become their daughter in law. Their son and the girl met once as the only date they had; then they got married.

“What is the standard to pick your daughter in law?” I wondered, “Don’t you think it is too dangerous to bet your son’s happiness on a girl that you barely knew?” I asked Mr. Bhuwania.

“I knew her family and she was raised in a big, reputable family. It means she is well educated about housework and she knows how to deal with other people”, he answered me happily.

“But how could you know whether your son will like her? He doesn’t even know her hobbies.” I was still confused, “What if they are not happy in future?”

“Only god knows that. That is why they need to learn how to respect each other and compromise in their life before they get married. I observed her family, especially her mother, they all behaved properly, and so I could tell they know how to train her.” He looked at me and smiled, “No one can guarantee they will be happy in future even in a free marriage. You think you know this person now, like his hobby or whatever, are you sure you will be happy with him forever?”

I immediately thought my husband and me –the couple who could argue for anything: what to eat; when to sleep; where to spend the holidays… Maybe he was right.

April 29, 2008 at 2:27 PM
Unknown said...

Independent, Bravo!

“My son is moving out!” a friend of mine back at my native country, mentioned sadly on the phone. The day she refused to face, has come. Parents like to keep their children in their nests; no matter their children are 13, or 30. This is what I grew up with, it is my cultural.

In Canada, cultural understandings are different. From the newspapers, TV, and some people I have met, it is reversed. Parents here are happy to see their kids take a lift whenever they are planning to. Some cases are, even though the parents were not sure about their children’s outcome, they watched them leave, not worried.

In my college year, it was almost a revolution that I moved out to live around the campus and worked part-time to support myself. It was a shame to my parents that I left and fed myself, especially which I was still at the school. This is still happening in the country I come from.

In the other hand--I heard from my English teacher--his son who is a college student, lives around the neighborhood independently. And his daughter is traveling all over the world. These even rarely happen in my old culture lately. What are these living examples--so exciting!

This will be a new experience to me for which I will be happily indulged in. Children will have their own episodes to explore, and parents will have more time and space for themselves. Everybody will get more chances and freedom to surf their own sky. This Canadian experience certainly will create a whole new aspect for me.

Word count-272

April 29, 2008 at 3:32 PM
Mavis said...

Keeping Speed Or Braking

I hoped I had never driven in China when I took the road test for driving license in Canada. It should be much easier to pass the test if I was a new driver. The traffic rules in China are very different with in Canada.

When I drive to approach an intersection where the light is green in my direction, I need to keep speed to pass through the intersection in Canada; however, I have to brake to reduce the speed to pass through it slowly in China. It would make me look crazy if I pass through an intersection in regular driving speed.

In my mind, keeping be aware to the environment and slowly passing through an intersection is a safer maneuver than keeping speed. Nevertheless, my coach told me keeping the road traffic fluent is one of the Canada traffic principles. I would make the driver behind me confused and cause a collision if I braking suddenly.

I have had more than ten years driving experience before I came to Canada. Usually, I respond on road conditions Automatically. In Canada, I have to remind myself “ No break----, no break----,” to change my driving habit. However, it is hard to remove a habit which has been formed in ten years practice. In my first road test, the examer wrote a note on my test sheet: “ There are unnecessary brakings.”

I believe I have changed my habit now. But I am not confident to drive in China any more.

-----259 words

April 29, 2008 at 7:37 PM
Brad said...

A rant & cultural difference Kenny Kwangho LEE 39820

I like wine, but wine of Canada’s liquor store are too expensive for me. One of the ways to have a low priced wine is ordering to the winery shop in a unit of pack; 30 bottles.

When I order a pack of wine, I have to pay half of the price as deposit and chose a kind grape juice among various grapes. When fermentations are finished, one and half month later, I visit the winery shop to taste and bottle wine by myself and bring it home after payment of remaining money. I ordered wine to the same winery shop regularly because the owner is very kind, humorous, and generous old man.

One day I received a letter from the owner of the winery shop to look after two receipts of certain date, which was one year ago. Of cause I couldn’t find the receipt because I didn’t keep any receipt at home as a habit in Korea. I visit to the shop and explained to the owner that I didn’t keep any receipt at all. But he told me that there is no record of my payment in his documents too and request to pay them.

Finally I paid that amount to him because I don’t know the traditional practice of Canada and I don’t want to quarrel with old man.
Anyway it is impossible to such a request in Korea. I understand that the habit to keeping receipt is required in Canada and it is necessary to change the goods which has defect later on.

Posted by kenny lee at 4/30/2008 10:59:00 AM 0 comments

April 30, 2008 at 1:12 PM
Ken J said...

Mahjong are Chinese’s Poker Game

It is a common game for Chinese to play the Mahjong. Mostly it needs four peoples to join the game. It may consider as gambling but we treat it like a social game like Bridge. It’s unusual to see any Caucasian playing Mahjong, but it is the favorite game of Chinese although there are a lot of all the Asian faces in casino everywhere.

When I was 7 years old, my grandmother taught me playing Mahjong game because they need extra person to make it four persons. It’s a noisy game when we push and pull the Mahjong after each game and reestablish the mahjong to a square castle. Four persons will make sure the Mahjong will have equal chance of show up on the table. What I played in Taiwan, we got 16’s Mahjong instead of other Chinese playing is 13’s Mahjong. The rules are much simplified, but more difficult to ‘WHO”. “WHO” is the only way to win. You win and you must call out ”WHO”, then you collect you chips by calculating how many “TAI” you got. The more “TAI” you got, the more money you win.

I had put my son in test of playing Mahjong as a method of learning Chinese. You have to overcome the barrier of knowing about 7 Chinese Characters which might look the same for the people who never learn Chinese. It is easy to learn mahjong for just look them as an icon. “East 東””West西” “South南” “North北”, “Red China中" "Green Fortune發” “White board回”, some mahjong already have small English mark on “east” as E, and you can distinguish then by different colors too. Once you overcome the learning of these seven Characters, you are half way to play Mahjong. The sibling will discuss all the family matters on the table. The winner has to buy us some good foods and drinks. If some friends get together, it will be a good place to exchange information of job market and other useful messages.

It is a good thing to do and share the joy of winning when family and friends hardly get together in recent days. It also reminds me of my grandmother who share a good game and good moments in my youth.
Words counts: 386

May 2, 2008 at 12:27 PM

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