Thomas Crank graduated with his Master’s in Composition and Rhetoric at Missouri State University, and he is now teaching sophomore and post graduate English at East China Institute of Technology in Nanchang, Jiangxi. Below is a letter he sent to the English department describing his first experiences in China.
Hello,
I am finally settled in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, and I am finally teaching. Right now I teach five sections of Sophomore Oral English every week (10 hours). These classes will last 8 weeks, and then I will get new sections of Oral English, including two post graduate sections of Oral English. It surprised me at first that I would be teaching so many hours a week (between 10 and 12), but then I realized that I’m no longer taking graduate work at the same time.
I am glad to be done with training in Beijing. It was so much fun to be in a new country, and Beijing is such an exciting city, but we crammed three graduate courses into four weeks, so that made for long days. The training itself though was invaluable, and I have added to my teaching knowledge, learning some really cool ideas for teaching. I wish I would have implemented some of these in my classes at Missouri State University.
We had a 4.6 earthquake roll through the area. The freshmen had just arrived on campus, so that (literally) shook them up a bit, but there was no damage here, and I think there were no injuries. My fellow teachers and I are fine. Some of the students were too scared to sleep indoors, so many have caught colds.
Monday was the Mid-Autumn Festival, so students and teachers ate mooncakes and watched the moon rise, remembering friends and family.
I have started Chinese lessons, but my understanding is still pretty low. I am really excited to learn though.
The food in China is amazing. I’m sure many already know that, but based on first impressions, and before I came here, I had at least three people tell me the food was awful. I’ve only had two negative experiences, but even those pale in comparison to the quality of the food. My friend Jerry told me, “Thomas, they just don’t have quality spices over there.” I must say I have rarely found meals to be so interesting. Yes, Chinese food is different here, but this kind of different is better. Imagine noodle dishes that don’t need to be drenched in sauce or overladen with meat to be exquisite. Noodles back home seem so plain now. And don’t get me started on numbing peppers! I’ve never had a meal in the States that numbs my mouth while I eat it. Now, I do miss normal pizza. I haven’t seen more than three pepperoni slices the whole time I’ve been here.
-Thomas
We wish Thomas the very best during his time overseas. It is so exciting and encouraging to hear about the global outreach of our alumni.