Why 1 Year Became 3! – by Jenny Montgomery (Teaching in Wuhan 2010 –

Present)

Jenny (right) in Shanghai

Back in August 2010, fresh out of university I arrived in Wuhan lost, nervous

and exhausted but excited to have started an adventure. My first weekend in

China is one I will never forget. Walking through the small back streets behind

my apartment, crowds of people staring at me, sun beaming down on me, a

maze of cars on the roads and children roaming the streets without

supervision, I thought to myself why am I here? Now it is 3 years later and I’m

still in Wuhan and loving every moment.

I started teaching almost immediately. My first term was a

rollercoaster of emotion. Having never taught before I naturally felt very

nervous. During the first few months I worked hard to engage my students in

oral English and develop my teaching style. I have worked in 2 schools and

neither provided a textbook so I have had a lot of freedom within the classroom

to be creative with my teaching. I also enjoy how much the students teach me

about China and Chinese culture. I not only share knowledge but learn as much

from the students as they do from me. It is a joy to interact with students both

within class and in a social environment. Watching and listening to their ideas

and opinions while they are on the journey to discovering who they are is a

pleasure and it is amazing to know that I might be contributing to their growth.

At my firsts school there were 4 foreign teachers from the UK,

America, South Africa and Canada. The other teachers were much older than

me and very experienced teachers. As a new teacher, I was very lucky to have

received support from them. Being from different countries and from different

generations I learnt a lot from them about China and teaching English based on

their own experiences over the years. At my current school there are 10 foreign

teachers. It is really great to meet people who are new to the city and have

fresh ideas. Everyone I meet in China has a story and it is definitely a highlight

to share my adventure with them. Each year I have spent in Wuhan my friends

have left at the end of one year to pursue other commitments or dreams.

Making new friends in Wuhan is very easy. There are many foreigners from all

around the world who are generally either studying or teaching. The bars and

clubs are good places to socialise and meet people. When you walk inside some

of the bars, so many different countries are represented by people, flags

hanging from the ceiling or writing on the walls. The culture and feeling of

Wuhan at night is completely different to that of the day. Carts of street food

selling fried rice and noodles until the early hours of the morning, market stalls

selling socks, bracelets or shoes, streams of people queuing outside restaurants

and bright lights coming from the shopping malls scream excitement.

Many people ask me why Wuhan has been my home for 3 years now.

Having visited many cities in China I really enjoy the fact that Wuhan is not a

major tourist city. Many of the locals do not speak English and there is limited

influence from the West compared with other cities. Obviously in the

beginning this was very difficult to adjust to but with time and patience I have

been able to immerse myself into the Chinese way of life. Basic Mandarin is

easy to learn to help you in everyday life and sign or body language is universal

and always fun to use. Although I know the city well, every time I go outside I

see or do something different and there are a phenomenal amount of Kodak

moments. Working in a university means I have a lot of free time. Afternoons

and weekends are spent studying Chinese, visiting some of the scenic areas in

and around the city or simply hanging out with friends in the park. The two

major holidays during Chinese New Year and summer means I have a lot of time

to travel. I have visited many different cities in China and even had a chance to

travel throughout South East Asia. A few trips back to the UK have also been

possible for that taste of western culture I sometimes crave. Teaching English

as a foreign language is a passion I have discovered since living in China and I

will be very sad to leave when the time comes. China is a fascinating country

and I can’t get enough of how much there is still to learn.

Jenny Montgomery