我在中國當教育大使

文/Samantha Marie Hubner 譯/張佳藝

聽起來像是些陳詞濫調，但2016年10月，我初次踏出國門之時，真的從未料到即將置身中國的兩年會給我的生活帶來多大影響。自從我在大學接觸到中文課程以來，到中國去一直是我的愿望。意料之外，我竟在背井離鄉8000英里的一座中國小城找到了我的第二個“家”。是的，這一切實實在在地發生了。

我記得在距阿爾及利亞邊境40公里遠的一家招待所里，正準備徹夜跋涉到撒哈拉沙漠時，我收到了一封來自衢州的電郵。那時我剛畢業一個月，一直以來都在國外生活、工作，享受著可以融入世界各地的機會。據維基百科顯示，衢州是中國浙江省一座小城市，尤因孔子第二故鄉而聞名（從未聽聞的地方很是讓人印象深刻）。但話雖如此，當我第一次踏足衢州時，我并沒有感受到衢州值得期待之處。事實上，這反倒成為我成功轉型的關鍵之一。AYC（安生美國青年教學使者項目）并沒有去畫毫無根據、不切實際的“大餅”，而是竭力使我們擁有開放的思想和樂觀的態度，以迎接隨著在異國他鄉生活而來的種種挑戰。無論落腳何處，生活向中國化轉變無疑是個挑戰。

好客的中國人

外籍教師的中國工作經歷中最重要的內容之一就是社區。起初，你自然會被當地這些外國人吸引。這倒是個寶貴的機會——同他們分享國外生活經歷，發掘與這些本不會有交集或本不相關的人之間的深厚友誼。除此之外，中國文化中的好客特征十分顯著。直至今日，我在中國的任期即將告一段落，但這種文化一直讓我倍感驚訝。我此前曾到中國旅行過，對地道的中國話有一定掌握，于是我和同事很快地與這座城市的許多當地人建立友誼。回想起來，我幾乎無法相信我們在這么短的時間內便成為彼此生活中不可或缺的一部分，也不敢置信當我臨別這個我心愛的堪稱我第二個家的社區時，我竟如此依依不舍。

本文作者（前中）和學生們在一起

我最久最親密的朋友之一是學校里的數學老師。說起來，我作為伴娘參加了他的婚禮！平時，我們幾乎每天都在一起打排球。周末，尤其是在他家親戚來拜訪時，我還常去他公寓里和他們夫婦二人一起下廚。現在，他們和尚未出世的寶寶已經共處五個月了。雖然我將錯過新生命的誕生，但在和朋友們一起為這個美好節點做準備時，我感到無比激動。他和我的其他同事們，也可以稱之為我的兄長們，一直是我在中國期間最堅實的支持。在美國，我是家里三個孩子中最年長的。我以前從沒想過要擁有一位長兄（我承認我享受做同齡人中最大的那一個），但我永遠感激我在這里的七位兄長。我們共進午餐時，我們的其他同事有時會稱呼我們為外教。這七個“小矮人”身高約在5英尺9英寸（約1.78米），我比他們當中的大多數人都要高。這些人是我和中國千絲萬縷聯系中的“冰山一角”，同其他人和事一樣，他們都將成為我今后常回衢州看看的動力。

是教師更是知己

本文作者和其他AYC教育大使在一起

我的中國教育大使經歷的另一亮點就是曾與我共事的優秀學生。作為一名高中教師，我擁有獨特的機會和他們在接受教育的關鍵時期互動。高考是很多學生高中生涯中壓力和焦慮的源頭。考試分數決定學生未來去哪所大學、就讀哪個專業。因此，壓力在他們高中生活的第一個年頭就開始了。我的學生們平時住在學校宿舍，早上6點直到晚上9點半或10點10分都要被“束縛”在教室里。如果沒有課程安排，他們就要做作業，或者為下一批考試做準備。這和我的高中經歷大相徑庭，當初我的學業和運動以及其他課外活動相平衡。但正是由于這種文化差異的強烈敏感性，促使我最終突破傳統外籍教師的角色界限，接受了教育大使的理念。

在學校領導、父母和學生自己的高標準支配下，中國的高中教師和學生一樣兢兢業業。教師必須克服無休止的評分、每日的備課等日常挑戰，以幫助學生達到高考要求。這些要求并不總是能讓教師有額外時間去迎合每位學生的心理健康，但這種健康在生命的這個時期卻是至關重要的，對那些在高三沖刺期背負強壓的學生來說更是如此。作為一名外籍教師，從某種程度上來說，我的責任與同事的不同之處在于我能夠為學生提供對課外時間與注意力的需求，使我成為學生擺脫應試壓力以及從不同角度看世界的窗口，這是其他老師常無法實現的。在這種作用下，我發覺自己所履行的是教育大使的職責，而非僅僅是外籍教師。

受這一角色啟發，我發現自己不僅要成為一名教師，更是要做學生的知己和導師。于是我開始“頭腦風暴”，試圖尋求其他方式，讓自己可以為學校、為社區帶來長久的影響。外籍教師不僅在課程設計上享有很大自由，在學校整體方面也是如此。于我而言，作為學校唯一的外籍教師，我希望自己是平易近人的、赤誠待人的、跨文化自如的。因此，在過去兩年中，我發起了許多社區項目，如為學校圖書館購入英國小說之類的國際圖書。該項目推行“閱讀無國界”全校閱讀活動，旨在激發并點燃學生在閱讀與英語學習方面的熱情，使其學會欣賞并接受不同的思維方式。來自世界各地英語國家的人郵寄來100余部小說，我們定期核對，學生自由閱覽。我還精心策劃了為期一個月的在線筆友項目，將我的800多名學生與通過社交媒體招募的來自世界20多個國家的英語人士聯系起來。雖然我在招募人員和組織項目時付出了很多艱辛，但每當看到學生收到筆友來信后臉上露出溢于言表的喜悅時，我就覺得一切都是值得的。

作為美國國務院的前雇員，我另一個成功的付出是組織了該縣有史以來首次高中模擬聯合國會議。目前，我正在協調我的學生同我母校的中國教授之間的一次交流訪問，借此為學生們搭建討論及對比從高中生活過渡到大學生活的平臺。現在最讓我激動不已的是我正籌備的周末畢業舞會，打算從中讓學生體驗美國高中的生活方式。正如在他們這個年齡時我所做的那樣，學生們將精心打扮，在照相機前留影，在健身房聽音樂。

談及過去兩年對我的深遠影響，我可以滔滔不絕地說下去。這足以說明AYC經歷的價值的確不可估量。作為一個美國人，要在中國找到自己的生活節奏絕非易事。但正是有了這段經歷，我才形成更具社會意識和全球參與意識的人格，這也讓我在返回美國之際，自豪滿懷。［Samantha Marie Hubner（美國），2017—2018年度AYC大使之一，任教于中國浙江省衢州市第一中學］

本文作者與衢州小朋友交流

Cliché as it may sound, when I first moved abroad in October of 2016, I truly had no idea just how much the next two years in China would impact my life. Coming back to China had always been part of my plan ever since I began studying Mandarin in university but I certainly never expected to find a second home in a small Chinese city almost 8,000 miles away from all of my family and friends back in the USA. And yet, that is precisely what happened.

I remember I was in a small hostel about 40 kilometers out from the Algerian border getting ready for an overnight trek into the Sahara when I received my placement email...a city called Quzhou. I had just graduated for all of one month and was living and working abroad ever since,enjoying the opportunity to immerse in other parts of the world. According to Wikipedia, Quzhou was a small city in Zhejiang Province that was most famous for being a recognized hometown of Confucius (pretty impressive for a place I’d never heard of!). But that being said, I didn’t have much of an idea of what to expect of Quzhou when I first arrived. But truth be told, I think that was one of the keys to a successful transition... instead of coming in with illfounded and grandiose expectations, AYC worked to equip us with the open minds and optimistic attitudes necessary to adjust to the challenges of expat life in China. Because no matter where we were going to be living, the transition to life in China was sure to be a challenge.

Extremely Hospitable Chinese

One of the greatest parts about working as a foreign teacher in China is the community. Of course at first, you naturally gravitate toward your fellow foreigners in the area which creates a valuable opportunity for you to discover meaningful relationships with people that perhaps you would not have been able to connect to or relate with, save sharing the experience now of living abroad. Beyond that though, the Chinese culture is extremely hospitable which is something that continues to amaze me even now as my time in China comes to an end. Because I had traveled around China before and already had a decent command of the language, I quickly stumbled into a great deal of lasting friendships with my colleagues as well as many other locals in my city. Thinking back, I can hardly believe how quickly we all became such integral parts of each other’s lives and how difficult it will be for me to move away from the beloved community and home I’ve found here. One of my first and closest friends is a math teacher at my school; in fact, I was a bridesmaid in his wedding! We play volleyball together almost every day and I often go to his apartment to cook with him and his wife on weekends,especially when their other relatives come to visit. Right now, they are about five months along with their first pregnancy. And while I will unfortunately miss out on the birth, I could not be more excited to help my friends now as they prepare for this milestone. He and my other colleagues, turned adoptive “big brothers,” have been such a crucial source of support for me during my time abroad.Back in the US, I’m the oldest of three children. And while I can’t say I ever wanted a big brother (as I admittedly did enjoy being the oldest), I am forever grateful for the seven big brothers I found here. When we eat lunch altogether,our other colleagues sometimes call us the foreign teacher and the seven dwarves because at 5’9/178cm, I tend to tower over most of them! Nonetheless, they are just one example of the many meaningful relationships that are going to be the force that pulls me back to visit Quzhou frequently throughout the rest of my life.

Not only teacher,but a confidants and mentor

One of the other highlights of my time in China as an Educational Ambassador was the incredible students I worked with. As a high school teacher, I had a unique opportunity to interact with students at a very crucial time in their education. The GaoKao, is the source of a great deal of stress and anxiety throughout students’ high school experience. The score of this exam is what determines a student’s prospective university and major. Thus the pressure begins immediately during their first year of high school. My students live in dormitories during the week and have to report to their classrooms from 6:00 A.M. until 9:30-10:10 P.M. every day. If they were not having class,they were either doing homework or studying to prepare for their next set of exams. This greatly deviated from my personal high school experience where my coursework was balanced out by a number of sports and other extracurricular activities. But it was an acute sensitivity of this cultural difference that ended up pushing me to go beyond my traditional role as a foreign teacher and embrace AYC’s idea of an Educational Ambassador.

At the mercy of school leadership, anxious parents, and their own high standards, Chinese high school teachers are worked just as hard as their students. Interminable grading and daily lesson preparation are daily challenges the teachers must overcome to help students meet the demands of the GaoKao, which doesn’t always allow them the extra time to cater to every student’s individual mental health. However this emotional well-being is certainly crucial at this time of life, especially for those students feeling the full force of pressure in their last year of high school preparing for their final attempt of the GaoKao. As a foreign teacher, my responsibilities differed from my colleagues in a way which allowed me to provide the time and attention students needed outside of class that other teachers often could not. By creating a consistent presence in the office, I was able to become an outlet for my students,giving them an opportunity to escape from the pressure of exams and see the world from a different perspective.It was in this capacity that I first began to feel like I was fulfilling my role as an Educational Ambassador and not just a foreign teacher.

Inspired by this role I had found as not only a teacher, butas a confidante and mentor, I began to brainstorm other ways I could create a more lasting impact on my school and community. Foreign teachers are granted a lot of freedom not only in designing their lessons, but also in their overall school presence. And for me, as my school’s only foreign teacher, I wanted to create a clear presence of approachability, authenticity, and cross cultural engagement.

This was what gave way to many community projects over the last two years, including an international book drive of English novels for the school library, which launched a school-wide reading campaign entitled “Reading Without Borders”, aiming to stimulate enthusiasm and passion for not only reading and English, but appreciating and embracing different ways of thinking. In total, people from English-speaking countries all over the world mailed us over 100 novels which are now regularly checked out and read by students. I also orchestrated a month-long online pen pal project connecting my 800+ students with English speakers from over 20 different countries around the world,all recruited using social media. Though an admittedly arduous endeavor to recruit and keep organized, it was so worth it to see my students’ faces lighting up with excitement every time they received a new letter from their pen pal.

Another successful endeavor that is deeply personal to me as a former employee of the US Department of State was organizing the county’s first ever high school Model United Nations conference. And right now, I’m finishing up coordinating an exchange and visit from my alma mater,including my own Chinese professor and current students,to give my students a platform to discuss and compare the transition from high school to university. However what I’m most excited about right now is the small prom I’ve planned to give my students a taste of American high school tradition this coming weekend. I have arranged for students to dress up, have a photo booth, and listen to music in the gym just like I did at their age!

While I could go on and on about the many ways these last two years have profoundly impacted me, suffice it is to say that the worth of the AYC experience is truly immeasurable. By no means was it easy to find my rhythm as an American living in China, but through this experience, I’ve cultivated a more socially aware and globally engaged persona that I am proud to take back to the US with me.[Samantha Marie Hubner (US) is one of our 2016-2017 & 2017-2018 Educational Ambassadors. She teaches in Quzhou No.1 High School, Zhejiang Province, China]