Teacher Profile
Classroom In Nature
Methodical and gentle are the words that often come to mind when we think of Ms . Du . However , there is so much more that lies beneath the surface . “ She encourages us to let our minds run free and embrace new experiences ,” said Grade 7 student Zhang Xinyue . “ When it was snowing last winter , she took us outside to watch the snowfall and told us to write about it . Together with my friends , I started to feel that there is warmth even in the seemingly bleak loneliness of winter . It was from that moment that I started to think about and appreciate the little things in life .”
It has always been Du Jinghui ’ s mission to teach children through experiencing the real world . “ Teaching Chinese is not just about teaching grammar rules or the nuts and bolts of the language . Instead , our language is part of who we are , connecting us with life and literature . To demonstrate this to the students , I rely on the great outdoors to teach and get the students to contemplate language . When they come face-to-face with the wonders of nature , students can understand fully what I have been teaching , making them more sensitive to and aware of the role that linguistic expression plays in our lives .”
Ms . Du believes that teaching Chinese should reach the very heights of nature itself , as another Du – the famous poet Du Fu – wrote : “ Sensing the moment / Flowers shed tears ; Hating the separation / Birds are fearful at heart .” “ Teaching Chinese ,” said Ms . Du , “ should provide space for feelings , so students learn more about themselves and how to express themselves to the world .”
Palace , nature itself forms an unforgettable backdrop to her teaching and gives students a deeper meaning of the literature they study .
Keystone has provided the environment for Ms . Du ’ s “ teach by doing ” approach to thrive . On a recent school trip to Shaanxi , Ms . Du ’ s students visited the Qiao Family Courtyard and Mount Wutai . After their visit , Ms . Du asked , “ Why is the grand and imposing Qiao Family Courtyard now nothing more than a collection of empty rooms but its temples are still flourishing ?” Is it the spiritual or the material ? God or Mammon ? What is it that humans have craved for the most throughout history ? It seems to us that the answer is already very clear .
Starting With The Child
These answers , seemingly at Ms . Du ’ s fingertips , are actually the result of experience that has accumulated over the years . “ Every child is different , with their own thoughts and skills ,” said Ms . Du . “ As a teacher , you always need to consider the students and their specific needs . What they need from you is always the starting point for the teacher to reach out to the student , so that you can teach them . This is always one of the hardest things for a teacher to achieve .”
In her 26 years as a middle school teacher , Ms . Du has learnt inside out all the texts relating to literature courses . Whenever Ms . Du talks about this , she mixes the ancient , with all its references and classical allusions , with the modern , with its latest research and teaching developments .
Over the years , nature has figured prominently in Ms . Du ’ s teaching ; whether it is springtime bike rides with students to the blossom-filled Yuyuantan Park or reading Zhang Ruoxu ’ s “ A Moonlit Night on the Spring River ” under the light of the full Mid-Autumn moon at the Summer
Last year , in an attempt to bring together the curriculum ’ s required reading needs of the students , Ms . Du became the driving force in redesigning the Chinese curriculum for Grade 9 . In this curriculum , Ms . Du has included the writer Lu Xun , the classic work The Three Kingdoms , and debates about
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