You can please some of the people all of the time.
You can please all of the people some of the time.
You cannot please all of the people all of the time.
There is no single teaching pedagogy or methodology that fits everyone in every situation.
Some of you have benefited from HE while some have not.
Some of you benefited from ABC day and some did not.
Some of you benefited from English Corner and some did not.
Some of you liked Iron and Silk while some did not.
Some of you have not benefited from HE, ABC Day or English Corner but most of you have.
Some of you do your own work while some copy from others. Some of you have done none of the homework. You only cheat yourself.
I have 700 students fall 2009 which means there should be at least 700 posts on each thread.
Iron and Silk 219 posts
Deng Xioping 356 posts
Trojan Horse 234 posts
ESE at SYSU 640 posts
Mute English 632 posts
English Corner 672 posts
ABC 686 posts
Some of you claim you do not post because I will not accept anything that does not agree with me. You have obviously NOT read your classmates’ posts. Every post is allowed unless it is vulgar or disrespectful.
I give 100% to my teaching responsibilities but many of you do not give 100% to your student responsibilities.
In your future you will reap what you sow today. You must live with the consequences of your actions.
Some of you claim to be afraid of HE class, my emails, and even me. But you are not. You are afraid of something else and to find that something else you only need to look in a mirror. If you have not benefited from HE it is because you decided NOT to benefit from HE!
BELIEVE YOUR OWN LIES!
I laugh when you say there were only a few people at English Corner and they were just talking Chinese so you left. You did not go to the 11-11 English Corner, you just made up a story but I allowed your post so everyone knows you now.
Some of you cut and paste from another web site. You are an IP thief! Check your post for the editor’s comment.
Who is kidding whom? This is a rhetorical question that answers itself. No one is kidding anyone. You are just kidding and cheating yourself.
Frankly speaking,I’ve gained a lot from your class,though as one that never saw more than ten movies a year,it is a bit difficult to go though with the movies mostly lasting langer than one hour.In the beginning,it was a tough homework for me to watch the whole movie without the feeling of eagering to run away,I finally did that with the considering that I’m only one of your student,and not standing for the all,therefor not everything can always accord with my mind.And now,I’m glad that my sight has been widened and my English level has been improved more or less.
I appreciate your effort in teaching us. You are a strict but also good teacher. Sometimes I cannot accomplish the comments in time because of the piles of works, I am very sorry. Your classes give me courage to speaking English, and I like it also. I do not want cheating myself also.
Your assignment for Chinese students is a big arrangement, because a very short comment could cost us a long time, of course, this also shows that the level of my English is not good. I would complain about your too much assignments, but I have completed all. In retrospect, I think I am very grateful to you, because you let me almost daily expose to English according to a large number of comments.
No other teacher is so responsible for students expect Professor Martin. Though I only have two lessons every two weeks, I never feel that the HE is far away from me because I have ABC, English corner and so many comments. Every time I see the email from Professor Martin, I will smile and feel warm for I have so lovely teacher who often remind me of speaking English. In fact no matter whether my English has been improved, I have chance and confidence to speak English. Thank you Professor Martin to tell me that English can be studied so interestingly.
Someday, I said to my friends that I would not write Chinese dairy any more. They asked me why, I answered, because of the English atmosphere in SYS University and the push by our foreign teacher. I know it is a little pain, but I can get more happiness in the end. Every time I see the stacks of emails from you, I feel affected. You are such a responsible teacher I ever met before. I really，really want to say thanks to you.
Time flies very fast.This semester has passed a great part.I remember that at the first lesson Pro.Martin asked us to obey some rules and his serious attitude infected us.At the class of The terminal,as I didn’t finish all the questions in the book ,I was asked to leave the classroom..This is a painful and disgrace moment I have never gone through.But from then on,I try my best to accomplish all the tasks and feel English sincerely.For example,I have changed my mobile phone language in English,go to English corner every Wednesday evening.I think these good habits will gradually form and my oral English will improve day by day.
To be honest, I appreciate your spirit for our English study; I thank you very much in my heart. Yes, I want a foreign teacher to teach us from the beginning of English study and enhance my speaking English and listening English. Formerly my classmates often said that your English was very good and how did you learn it, but I knew my English level was very low and even some fundamental sentences were not spoken fluently, so I often admire someone who can speak English fluently very much. Yes, we don’t cheat anyone but cheat ourselves if we don’t accomplish the assignments very well. But I was very sorry that I copy a little split of paragraph from Internet, which I want to describe the plots of that movie briefly and I don’t want to cheat anyone in my heart. That’s my true words, I am looking forward that you can forgive my mistake this time, I will thank you again！
I remember a Chinese student who studied in Harvard, but was finally forced dismissal because he cheated in the exams. He use a pensile in the exam, when the paper pass down after the teacher had marked the paper, he corrected the answers and told the teacher he had made a mistake in marking his test paper. At first time the teacher believed him and after two or three times, the teacher suspected and finally discovered the student’s cheating.
Before his leaving Harvard, he was very regretful and said : “You can fool some of the people all of the time. You can fool all of the people some of the time. But you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.” We must be responsible to ourselves, it’s our own life, we must live it with loyalty.
When I thought about this topic, I felt some pity. I regretted to complain so many assignments. Because from these assignments, I felt benefit a lot from it. I have never seen those foreign movies so carefully, listened so earnest and have not see the subtitle; I have never thought about these topics on the website so deeply and wrote my thought; I have never listened a foreigner speaking with cathexis… So I thank you professor Martin. You are my first foreign English teacher and I learnt a lot form you. Now, when I think back about the days with you and your homework, I begin to enjoy it.
When I was a child，I wrote my homework just because the teacher told us to do. While I was a middle school student，I also did my homework for my teachers，even in college. But when I decided and began to study postgraduate，I began to know I do everything for myself，not for my teacher or tutor，just because I chose it and I must do it well for my responsibility，not kidding myself. Most students remain insist that they do homework for teacher’s assignment，do experiments for their mentors，not for themselves. So many complaint the experiments are too many，no one to guide them，no one to help them，they just work for their boss. Not to kid yourself，do everything you like，everything worth you to strive，enjoy your responsibility and do it well.
At first,I must appreciate my oral English teacher.I have learned a lot from the class not only the knowledge but some personal behavior logic.We must be responsibility for ourselves.As a student,you should know what is your duty.
“No one is kidding anyone. You are just kidding and cheating yourself”,it is right,so we should think it carefully!
To tell the truth, on one hand, I am sorry to heat Pro. Martin say such things just above. I do not think it is easy for me to take the fact that we should use the word “Kidding” between our teachers and us students. And on the other hand, I am surprised to read the statistics above. I don’t know why some of our classmates did not finish their homework seriously since it was good for us. Whatever, I want to tell our dear teacher: you are one of my best respected teachers though you are so different from my other teachers. Thank you very much for everything you do for us. I don’t want to become an “Unreachable and Unteachable” student in your eyes, so I will try my best to finish your every assignment.
When Pro. Martin told us what some of us students would say in the commons in our class, I found it so unacceptable that I felt shamed for them. As to me, I think Pro. Martin is that kind of persons who always directly point out our motherland’s as well as we Chinese’s drawbacks. Yes, sometimes it was hard for us to accept them with pleasure but we had to acknowledge them after our thoughts. I don’t think there will be any drawback when someone tells us what we Chinese look like in the foreigners’ eyes. I think those who have said vulgar or disrespectful words should think more about themselves. As a postgraduate student in one of Chinese most famous school, we must always keep them in our heart what should we do and what shouldn’t as well as how should we response to others’ disagreements.
“You are afraid of something else and to find that something else you only need to look in a mirror”. I have to say that the sentence give a big shock to me ! Sometimes ,I just like a kid,bucaese I can not to face my donkey acts and I think that I can make a excuse to persuade the others so easy.But it’s feels unwell.Because when I clam down ,and I can understand I’m wrong. Although I can CHEAT people but I cannot cheat myself. The acts which I did just like a hallmark in my whole life and nothing can rub it out.God will know what I had done. So it’s no a secret and I can not distort the truth what was happended. Above all,I learn one thing from this article is that when you do something wrong,the best way to save is owning up to your fault candidly,and let the others’ pardon. Follow that you can straighten up your attitude fastly.
EDITOR’S NOTE:
WITHOUT A SCHEDULE THERE WOULD BE NO CLASSROOM DISCUSSION.
I am very happy now because I just watched your moive”Eat a bowl tea”. It is a funny moive make me to think about something. What’s more, what I want to say is that we are not forced to watch some moive anymore. At the begining of the class, I am a little sick of you pressure that we have to watch the moive. It was first time in my life to be forced to watch a moive. But I am happy now because no pressure anymore, we can watch it any time we want. I think it is the best way to improve our English.
All the time I believe human’s potential is limitless. Why others can finish the homework and we can’t. The reason is that we have already used to the easygoing state and no pressure pulls us to move. So we believe this condition is what we should be. We are postgraduates now and not kids any more. It is time for us consider question as adults and be responsible for what we do. If we spend the time of complaining on doing homework, I think we have already finished the homework. Don’t complain anymore. Complain will not give us anything except negative motion. Just do your thing and go straight.
Study for yourself, maybe that’s the truth. One can not stop learning because the world is changing every moment. And what you learn is for yourself, not for others.
To answer the question: The person who do not do his homework is kidding himself. At the end, the person who get hurt is no one but himself. His heart is not peace, he has no determination to complete his homework and what should be his resbonsibility. So we should not kidding ourselves any more. Otherwise, we will regret one day for what we do today.
All of the articles above I have commentted. Maybe some articles I don’t comment not well .But all is my own view.
EDITOR’S NOTE:
EAT THE ELEPHANT ONE BITE AT A TIME! REFORM ONE CLASS AT A TIME, ONE SCHOOL AT A TIME, ONE CITY AT A TIME, ONE PROVINCE AT A TIME.
First, I must say: thank you! I have learnt something from you class. I know you are a good teacher with a strong sense of responsibility. You hope that we can improve our oral English and have the ability to think independently. You have a high expectation to us. Maybe sometimes, you are very disappointed in us. We can’t finish the homework on time. We don’t pay more attentions to your request. We just take it as a task and don’t enjoy it. It’s well known that Rome wasn’t built in a day. You want to change the situation of studying English in China , you have a long way to go.
Better late than never.Sorry my teacher!Maybe you think i am for completing the final exam to comment. I really never think i have so many experiments to have to do as a postgraduate. I think i should scan my attitude of studying english.You are
right.We are indeedly a Kidding . Learning English is our own thing. We must know this point.Think you my sir.
I do not know why some of us can not finish our homework on time. Maybe they are too busy and maybe they have a bad memory. But I think there are no excuses for us to lay our homework aside. We should make great efforts to finish our homework and get improved from the HE. And we should be responsible for ourselves and for others who love us and support us. Never give up, just do it!
I think it is an issue on attitude. A good attitude, as the teacher has ever said, is when you face the difficulties, you’re not finding an excuse but working hard to overcome it. Only with this attitude, will we benefit from HE, will we improve our English, will we do better in our study and job.
I still think my teacher of spoken English taught me the methods to learn English is the most effectively. I have many English teachers in the progress of learning English, but maybe the most effectively one is my present teacher. His method allows us not only to speak but also to communicate with each other, which I think is most important. So if someone wants to learn English more and deeply, maybe the method should be carried out from now and then.
From the view of a student, I never happened to see so many kinds of homework and they are funny. I know it took Martin lot of time to consider how to bring the good effect of English learning to these Chinese students. And when we don’t care that, it is sad. But I believe most of the students are eager to complete the homework assignment because we really want to improve our English and establish a fundamental basis for our future.
Every man is the son of his own works.This course helps me improve my Self-Discipline. Everyone should work hard, the knowledge which we learn is priceless, it owns ourselves. No one can seize the fruits of our victory. If we are lazy to do such homework, we are cheating ourselves. We students should know what we should do and we should not do as a student. We should know we must have a good attitude to handle our own study. Although my English is poor, but I will work hard to improve it, we can’t make our own bed in which we have to lie in future. Thank you for our professor martin. You are a good teacher.
First I have to say that the homework is so much, although I finish all the homework on time. Because we are not students of English at all, at the same time we have to study the other lessons. In my eyes, at the postgraduate stage, research should be the most important. Now we should put more on professional English rather than communication English. From another angle, the person who didn’t do his homework is not right. The other students can do them, why you can not. Maybe there are a lot of excuses, but this behavior is still bad for you. All of us should have establish a correct study manner.
Frankly speaking, I like the HE class. Though I was very nervous when entered the classroom because I afraid I would be let to go out the classroom, I reaped a lot since I began to attend the HE class. Now I found my oral English is better than before, and I don’t afraid to speak English with others. What’s more, though there are too many homework, we sometimes are tired of this, I found it’s helpful for our writing skills and other facts.
When people fail to complete something that they should have done,they can find a large number of reasons.However,these reasons look more like some excuses.We learn English for ourselves rather than other people.So ,in the course,our action can drectly effect our future.When I realize above-mentioned truth,I never stupidly find a pretext for unfinished work.From now on,stopping to find pretext and cheat ourselves,we should best complete our work.
What the teacher said is very right,I think I have learned a lot from this course.The knowlege that we learn is very useful for our future and we sholdn’t cheat ourself.We should pay an attention to every work.Just do it and try your best.
Well, I have no idea that why a post graduate student could make such stupid lies. Even as a liar or a thief of knowledge they failed in their works. We learn English for ourselves, not for any one else. We apply a master’s degree is because of our pursuit of knowledge, not for 2 more years to play in the campus. What they have done can only make people laugh at their action just as clowns.
What a funny post and what a sad post! We have been at least 22 years old but we always acting like a kids actually. But I don’t think it is the reality . Where is your responsibility and where is your pledge for yourselves? We should think as adults and act as adults ,then we are adults.
To be honest,I am appreciate for your endours in English teaching,and assignment does help me to learn more about foreign culture and oral english.What is more,I belive that In my future I will reap what I sow today.
My dear professor, I must say thank you for all the effort you have made for us. Just as you said I was one of the guys who were afraid of you assignment, you class and you. In the past I usually complained that you give us so much homework to do that I even had no time to take rest. But in my heart I know is just my excuse for my lazy. So when I checked my email, find there is still new email from you, I become happy. I think I can make more progress when someone is push me. I am an adult now; I have to responsible for myself.
There are some reasons why students in the campus have gotten used to plagiarism and kind of take it for granted. It is dangerous to form a habit like that, but on the other hand, we all fully aware of the severity. There do be tons of reasons, which we cannot take for excuses.
It may be painful to give up a habit at the very beginning, but we have no choice.
So,who is Kidding Whom? Everyone is the architect of his own fortune.I do not want to interfere others,it means that in the back of one’s decision there may be his reason,his thrones.Well,let me share some affairs with you:my goal in life was to come to the top.Love, glory, responsibility – these are what I treasure.I love communions,especially speaking English with others heartily.But to be candid with you,not every topics for discussion you gave us could aroused my interesting.Well,I know I have to deal with them,but I had to say some topics really bring joys to me,the other just boring.Usally,I enjoy those interesting topics,leave boring ones aside,untill the deadline.Oh,i have an idea,why not seting a tribune in your website,put on some topics,new interesting or thought provoking,tell us we could share our own opinions about them if we want,one comment,we get one “apple”,maybe we should make 10 comments at least,but there should be about 20 topics,just choose those we like.Please think about it!
Well, it is a good question. In my opinion, no one is kidding anyone, but everyone has this/her own opinion and method to study and work. Everyone should be responsible for his/her own future no matter the performance in such course. What I really learned from this course is the professional attitude to everything I should do; even I have disagreement and other opinions.
To be honest,when I first enter Mr Matin’s class,I felt nervous for his serious.But through exchange with him,I found that he was a man of principles and he was so responsible for his students.Through this period of learning,I feel that I made some progress in both listening and writing.At the beginning,I didn’t understand why Mr Matin asked us to do so many assignment,but I know that he wants us to practice more.So I complete the homework carefully.I sincerely thank Mr Matin.
Who is kidding whom? There is no one you can kid. If you try to kid Mr. Martin or other teacher, I think it is your mistake and you deserve consequences. You will lose the chance to learn knowledge, as well as the integrity and honesty. Be responsible for your duty, never kid and cheat yourself. In the future, we will be hired as employees. If cheat, there will be consequences. So mind your own business.
Though our classmate are reject to enter the classroom because we all not buy the “Holistic ENGLISH WORKBOOK”. So we think that we have a severe teacher. But we are wrong, the method of teaching is very fresh that I never go though. I gradually like study English because in the classroom we could talk about everything we like. The homework is watch film that the Chinese teacher recognize crazy. I think NO pains, no gains.
Today afternoon we just had a disscussion about a movie “Ear a bowl of tea “,and what impressed me most was Martain had comment on why the Ben fail in his marriage and his job ,he said :It’s just that he do everything for others , but not for himself.”
Yes ,I could’t agree more about it .It’a as the same as we learn english ,It’s just we do it for ourselves but not for the teacher or your parents.And Martain really give 100% to his teaching responsibilities .I didn’t see or met a foreigner teacher who can do so well.But he did!And for myself I really get and learn a lot from it .
“If you have not benefited from HE it is because you decided NOT to benefit from HE!” This is the sentence that impressed me most. As professor said, it’s all what we decided to do, it’s our own choice. We are making decisions everyday, just like the kid’s in the film “Coach Carter”, we should be responsible to ourselves. For those who are kidding themselves, they did no harm to anybody but themselves. Be responsible to ourselves like an adult! That’s what professor ask us to do, simple, isn’t it?
who is kidding whom? The answer is obvious ourselvs.we do not have the courage to talk to foreingners,so we failed to improve our oral english,we have no courage to talk to chinese people with english ,so we failed the mission ABC a day and english corner… I can’t help asking what is courage? I think it’s the spirit to face some difficult things or tasks.when all goes to all,it’s a matter of conquering ourselves.Meybe one of the most important thing in our study ,not only english study,is believing ourselves.we should cry out loudly “I can just do it”
I never make up a story about my comments,I don’t want to cheat myself.Though my poor English and the laziness to do the assignment,I think doing such things may do good for my English study,and I would like to say thank you for the pressure and the motive force you gave.
After reading Professor Martin words above, I have been touched deeply, and it is not until now did I understand the true thoughts of Professor Martin completely. And thank you very much for your hard-work and your fulfilling your responsibility as an English teacher. You not only teach us hoe to learn English in a completely new way, but also tell us how to be and the importance of being civilized, believable and you tell us how to be successful in our future lives. Thank you very much!
Matin is really a good teacher.even though I don’t agree some of his opinions. He gave us a lot of assignments to do and without no doubt, it brought a lot of complaints .Because most of the students major in science, we had to do a lot of lab work. We spend most of our time in the scientific experiment and other major courses.If it were not for the assignments ,maybe we will spend less time in learning English. Even though most of us think we were force to do it ,we do have learned something in the holistic English class. “Who is Kidding Whom? ”After a few years, we can find the answer.
In fact,I alway took the homework posting the comments as troubles at the beginning of this term.I am so tired of this.However,I slowly found my writing English was turning better than before.In the past years,when I took an examination,I was always distressed by the writing test.I often spent much time but got low marks.I always looked for solutions.Now I finally know,the best method to improve writing English is more practice.Thank you for your website,threads and your responsibility for us.I will follow your guidance” English is not a subject you study a couple of hours a week…It is something you live 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”to get succeed in writing English.
When the article says: ”No one is kidding anyone. You are just kidding and cheating yourself.”
I totally agree with it. Yes, many times when we are happy for cheat others safely, actually we just cheat and kid ourselves.
Everyone should be responsible for himself/herself, and no one else can or should do this for you. So every time when you do the wrong things, remember to shame for yourself.
Who is kidding whom? I think this question may be only understood by us. Some of us may learn what the teachers and our parents want we are but some of us not. Maybe one day we are not young and became a teacher or a parent we will get it. But now what can shock us, nothing. We need to learn from our own experience not from others’, because something we must go through until we understand.
I think it is quite a good idea to teach English this way, but it may not be such a brilliant idea to ask everyone to comment on every single thread. Sometimes, they just don’t feel like to write any comments. Of course, it is absolutely wrong to copy and paste other people’s work. I think maybe, we can start a separate thread to talk about western movie stars, sports or TV series, which I figure everybody has the intention to say something. So for example, if they don’t want to comment on “Christmas in China”, they can say something about the latest episode of “Grey’s Anatomy” instead. And it is a good way to get familiar with English culture too.