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4.3.6 Interaction with students
The students were accustomed to American teachers because they had one period of English class taught by an American teacher prior to this semester, which positively influenced Lisa’s assimilation into her new role as a teacher. The students liked to greet NESTs with hi or hello. In the beginning of this semester, students were excited and curious to see an American teacher in the office. Though they felt shy to say hello to Lisa, Lisa said hi to them first. Over the course of the semester, Lisa developed good rapport with the students. Lisa indicated that students Mei see her as a friend instead of an authority, which might result in Lisa’s challenge to manage the class. “I like being their friend but it becomes difficult when I need them to cooperate and have no leverage, because I can't.” (Lisa, 11/22/2014)
Lisa also insisted on not speaking Mandarin Chinese to students because she wanted to provide students with more English input. Lisa indicated that “in the beginning I pretended that I couldn't speak Chinese, so now I speak more Chinese, and talk to them more, um yeah I started to love them, like I gonna miss them, and yeah, I more easily forgive them and yeah I mean it's nice to watch their growth.”
(Lisa, 01/13/2014) Considering the students’ levels, sometimes Lisa talked to the students who came into her desk in the office in Mandarin Chinese. But when Lisa was team teaching with Mei, she did not speak Chinese.
4.4 facilitating factors
This section presents the various factors which influence the team teaching between Mei and Lisa.
4.4.1 Language Ability
Both Mei and Lisa indicated the importance of the NEST’s ability to speak Mandarin Chinese in the interviews. Though it is not a requirement for the
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recruitment, Lisa thought it will help the NESTs to accustom themselves to the life in Taiwan and have a better communication with the colleagues and students here. Lisa indicated that,
Speaking Chinese comes in handy, because if there's a point where they [the students] don't understand me, and I have tried, then I can use a little Chinese, and they think it's weird, but I speak Chinese, which probably makes them think, like ‘Maybe one day I’ll be like her when I’m in foreign countries speaking English. (Lisa, 01/13/2014)
Lisa suggested that knowing some basic Mandarin Chinese helps her to teach and communicate with the students. Considering the students’ levels in the school under research, Lisa indicated that limited use of Mandarin Chinese in the classroom could help students understand what the NEST said more easily. Besides teaching at school, Lisa’s knowledge of Mandarin Chinese helped her integrate into the local community and interact with other teachers and residents. She enjoyed interacting with people off campus. For example, she held a thanksgiving party with her
roommates and invited many local English teachers from other schools. She also went to Kinmen community college for aerobics and Qui-Gon class. All of these were possible because of her knowledge of Mandarin Chinese.
Mei also had similar views about NEST’s ability to speak Mandarin Chinese.
She thought that NEST’s basic Mandarin Chinese can help their interaction. As discussed earlier, influenced by her college teacher, Mei felt scared to speak English to foreigners. Mei recalled that “I was scolded by an American teacher because I was late to class. At that moment, I thought that I was doomed to fail this course because the teacher hated me.” (Mei, 2013/09/04) With this bad experience, Mei felt
uncomfortable to communicate with native speakers or use English with them. In order to alleviate Mei’s anxiety to speak English, Lisa sometimes would use some Mandarin Chinese when she was discussing lesson plans with Mei. Mei was
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encouraged by Lisa’s empathy. Being able to speak Mandarin Chinese not only helped Lisa to adjust to the school life in Kinmen, but also help hers to adjust to the life off campus. As Mei said in the interview, “they (NESTs) need to go out for food or something, speaking Chinese can help them, whether at school or for personal life here.” (Mei, 2014/01/15) Being able to speak Mandarin Chinese helped Lisa get accustomed to the life in Taiwan.
On the other hand, the NNEST’s English proficiency should also be considered.
As English teachers, the NNESTs are more than a language instructor. If the
NNESTs themselves cannot speak English confidently, how can students learn to use English from the teachers?
4.4.2 Interaction
In terms of getting accustomed to the team teaching program in Kinmen, both of the participants mentioned the importance of interaction between the NEST and the NNEST. The quality of their interaction makes an impact on the team teaching process. For Lisa, she mentioned that team teaching was much fun because “when there are two personalities, it is that much more interesting for students.” (Lisa, 10/08/2014) Students could observe how the NEST and the NNEST interact and learn from their interaction. As Lisa put it, the NEST can “bring pronunciation, different culture, and different ideas” and the NNEST can “help [us] stay on track, and to keep students in line, like help them run smoothly.” When Lisa was asked about the interaction with Mei, she described their relationship “in class, partners and friends; outside of the class, friends.” (Lisa, 01/13/2014)
For Mei, she also liked the interaction with Lisa. “I think we are pretty good together in the classroom.” (Mei, 10/02/2013) She thought it was because Lisa was friendly and open-minded; they even had language exchange after class. These interactions outside work also helped their teaching in the classroom because they
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developed better rapport and gained more understanding of each other.
4.4.3 Teachers’ personalities and experiences
Both Mei and Lisa shared their views on successful components in team teaching.
For Mei, the teachers’ personalities play an essential role in a successful team teaching relationship. Since the semester under research was their first year to team teach, both Mei and Lisa did not have much experience. Under this circumstance, the two teachers’ amiable personalities became critical to the cooperation. Both of them were willing to talk about the lesson plans with each other before class. They liked to share their ideas with each other and felt free at discussions. They appreciated their counterpart’s friendliness. Mei indicated that she felt fortunate to work with Lisa this year. “I found out that whatever I proposed for the lesson plan, she would always say OK. If the next American teacher is not like Lisa, we’ll probably have a lot of problems.” (Mei, 10/02/2013) As for Lisa, she also felt good about co-teaching with Mei and learned a lot from her.
4.4.4 Support from the other NESTs
Soon after Lisa was placed in the school, she was also assigned to stay at an apartment near school with two fellow NESTs. Over the course of a semester, the three of them developed intimate friendships. They shared what they had
experienced in their classrooms and everything in their stay in Kinmen. Lisa wrote that “I enjoyed spending time on Jinmen with the ETAs and some friends of the school soldier. I feel healthy and in a groove, such that Jinmen feels homey.” (Weekly Reflection Report, 10/24/2013) Lisa received solid emotional support from her roommates.
Every NEST of the Fulbright program was required to attend workshops in the middle of semesters. The workshops not only help to enhance the NESTs’ teaching skills but also provide a platform that allows them to interact with other NESTs,
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experienced teachers and TEFL advisors. They can learn more teaching activities and skills, and share their experiences and consult to others about what problems they had at schools. These components also help the NEST feel connected and supported in Kinmen and have an unforgettable experience in the team teaching program.