With the ongoing development in neighbouring countries like Indonesia and The Philippines, English has become a much sort out requirement in prospering nations. NSYSU welcomes students from all over the world every new year. By providing new courses in English, the university will provide an attracting new location for international students.

A recent article in the Tapei Times reported that a selection of universities were ordered to ‘improve their offering in English’. The Ministry of Education discovered that four universities were failing to provide 20 percent of all courses in English. The investigation showed that National Taiwan University offered only 5 percent, National Cheng Kung University averaged 10 percent, National Chiao Tung University averaged 10 to 13 percent while National Tsing Hua University the best of the bunch was still under the 20 percent requirement. The findings showed the four universities ‘were lagging behind international peers in terms of competitiveness’.

‘The key to establishing an English-taught curriculum is systematic training for teachers in English and education’,

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/07/13/2003718592

Dr Steven Wallace has been teaching in Taiwan for more then 17 years. His work history includes positions at Chiao Tung and Tsing Hwa Universities, while also teaching for one year at Chinese Hong Kong University. Dr Wallace’s teaching background is in the medical and engineering fields. He has taught in English throughout his time in Taiwan and conducts workshops on the benefits of teaching courses in English. His workshop at NSYSU demonstrated how by following certain techniques, teachers could dramatically improve their students experiences. While the university itself, the industry, the chosen domain and their own language levels will change significantly. Dr Wallace stressed that when the students are comfortable reading in English and speaking in English they will contribute more.

One only needs to look to the biology teacher based in Urumuqi, China. The teacher attended a workshops in Shanghai and presented her case to Dr Wallace. She took it on herself to change the class to an English class. The students hated the class to begin with, however, the teacher persevered and gradually became so popular the class started a waiting list.

Working alongside non English speaking teachers at universities, Dr Wallace developed four key steps.

1) Teaching is a performance: How changing our voice helps students listen to our lectures

The most important rule when it comes to teaching is to not allow your students to fall asleep. If a student falls asleep you may be doing something wrong. Dr Wallace mentions Dr Richard Feynman, and how his classes in Physics were very popular. His greatness at teaching was referenced in a book by a former student, David L. Goldstein. “Feynman absolutely held the attention of everyone in the room for the entire time he was there”, ‘He was responsible for providing drama and fireworks as well as facts and figures”. Many of Dr Richard Feynman’s lectures and interviews can be found on YouTube. Listening to Dr Feynman it doesn’t take long to be captivated by his voice, he controls the situation with an engaging tone, a volume that is clear and at a speed that isn’t slow or rushed. The below video was recorded in 1973 and even though it’s over 40 years old, it still is relevant today.

Richard Feynman - The World from another point of view

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNhlNSLQAFE

2) How to simplify our language so students can follow us

We don’t speak the words we know but the words our students know. Kindergarten to university we teach in our students capacity. Simple words are the best, we are unlikely to impress a non English speaker with words straight out of the dictionary. Using simple and familiar words to express a point of view will strike more relevance with students than technical or advanced English words. Dr Wallace goes into detail about J. Robert Oppenheimer, who was an expert in his field but couldn’t connect with his students on their level. The workshop touched on one of the greatest, Albert Einstein who used familiarity, while visualizing his answers so that everyone could understand. When asked to ‘discuss the likelihood of producing nuclear energy with alpha particles striking nitrogen nuclei’, Einstein’s response paints a picture, that the audience can easily visualize ‘like shooting sparrows in the dark’,

3) How signposting can help your students follow your lecture

The third technique Dr Wallace referenced was ‘signposting’. This means using phrases or words that give clear instructions. For example, by using firstly, one may connect that to being the most important part or the start of something. This can also be used to help transition into an entirely new topic, ‘now let’s move on to’, or ‘now I’d like to discuss’. This gives clear signposting, that will help students follow.

4) How our confidence helps students appreciate our lectures

Self confidence is believing in yourself. Overcoming a lack of confidence can be shown through positive body language. By using hand gestures, smiling, making eye contact and dressing formally can make you appear confidence. Michael Faraday, was quoted, ‘[Lectures] depend entirely for their value on the manner in which they are given’. It comes down to how the information is given, what is in the content is important, but how it’s presented is crucial. Looking back to Oppenheimer and Einstein who worked hard to simplify their lectures, used words and phrases that relates to the student.

By adapting to Dr Wallace’s mindset towards teaching in English and following the four steps, the obstacles in front of you can appear less intimidating. By implementing these methods in class, to make changes in our voice, simplifying our communication, clearly ‘signposting’ our classes and being a more confident person. Not only would the student benefit immensely but so would the teacher.