I have been at MLIS for over three years. This is currently my fourth year with the company here in Dalian, Liaoning (China). In all the time I have been here I don't think I ever really had to communicate to the parents about how important a field trip, class or tutorial was if the student was truly interested. I guess I had this idea that the parents were really lenient with how or what the students were doing during their free time or class time. Until recently, I had a teacher share with us an expression of plea-"let the students play", I was surprised that students were not allowed to play in sports because the parents said no-wasn't worth the time or money or maybe even both? Surprising, but then it was made clear that the team had really become just that-a team. Context, they started as a club/team that only really played a couple tournaments a year. Now, with a real administrator in charge and well on top-going above and beyond, they are making waves and really inspiring the students to participate more, give more effort and make more of themselves than they thought possible.
It was an interesting observation to have, or situation to experience because it really speaks to the extra curricular changes being made in a society that was very conservative, closed off and academically guided (heavily). China is opening its doors and its mind, more and more each year. With people like Paul Gardner expanding the reality of what is and what could be, MLIS has a bright future-its a long road, but it'll be a bright future.
This is inspired me to also create a "plea"-a "Plea to Let the Students Cook". This is not meant to be a parody or joke, it is pretty funny to think about that at first, "let the kids cook" :p but actually, last year I devised a crazy idea to hold an Iron Chef Competition at the school for all the schools in our system and this year we are bringing it to life-however slow and small the attendance is (anything at the beginning is a win).
So, I just thought I would post and share what I briefly developed and had my TA (Teacher Assistant) help me translate..if you can read the Chinese, please let me know if he did a good job. I back translated it...ugh, can't tell.
Dear Parents,
I am teaching your child in one of the following courses, Food and Nutrition 12; Tourism 12; or they are a TA for one of those courses/in the Foods Club. Regardless of what it is that led them to be recognized for this achievement, the fact is they have done something to deserve this achievement. Your child has gone above and beyond in the demonstration of their cooking skills which is quite uncommon for someone at their age. The reason I am writing to you is because I am making sure you understand that this is a once in a life time opportunity for your child to receive a higher honor than a simple mark on a test, quiz or class final grade. Your child has been invited to participate in a private and soon to be well acknowledged competition here in China. This is organized by the school and involves all campuses from the system. Depending on the outcome our child has the opportunity for further recognition as they will be participating in a real restaurant under professional Chefs from around the globe. This is currently an annual activity as it is a lot of work to set up and design, thus making it more exclusive.
It is not just I pleading this, but the other students and staff involved as they are hoping to have the opportunity to share this experience with your child as well. I urge you to consider that this is an opportunity for you to be apart of as well. We need chaperones, people filming and the support of our school community. For more details or if you have other questions, please contact me as my information is below.
尊敬的家长：
您好！
我是食物营养与安全12、旅游12的老师，您的孩子作为学生或者是老师助理出现在我的课堂之中。不管是什么导致他们取得今天的成就，事实上就是他们做了一些值得被认可和值得取得这些成就的事情。您的孩子在烹饪技巧这方面已经超越了同龄孩子的水平，这个是在他们这个年纪上很少见的。我给您写信的原因是，我要确保您明白，这是一次机会，让您的孩子获得比在考试、测验或班级期末成绩上的简单分数更高的荣誉。您的孩子已经被邀请参加一个私人的活动，这是一个很快就会在中国得到公认的比赛。这是由学校组织的，涉及到所有的校园系统。根据结果，您的孩子有机会获得进一步的认可，因为他们将会有机会接触到来自全球各地的专业厨师以及专业的餐厅。这是一项每年的活动，因为它需要大量的工作来设置和设计，从而使它更具有专业性。
这不仅仅是我的恳求，还有其他的学生和工作人员，他们希望有机会和您的孩子分享这段经历。我劝您考虑一下，这是一个让您孩子与众不同的机会。我们需要家长的认可，拍摄和我们学校社区的支持。如果您有其他问题，请联系我，因为我的信息在下面。
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