This article provides guidelines and suggestions for instructing adult learners from China. My experience as generalised belowinvolved learners in the Chinese master’s degree programmes or short one- to two-week executive programmes. Such learners are potentially a lucrative source of revenue for NUS when we consider the size of the Chinese market and the speed at which this market yearns for new knowledge, especially Western concepts and ideas. In this article, I have organised the various myths about educating learners from China and their corresponding facts.

Myth: The preparation work is overwhelming.

Facts: As the instructor is teaching topics in his/her area of expertise, it is often a simple matter of translating existing slides and notes.Furthermore, there are many graduate students from China who will be glad to assist in the translation work. I did not find the preparation work more demanding than teaching a new course in English. In fact, I undertook the task of translation myself. With modern pen-based Chinese writing software (e.g. Penpower Technology™) that recognises handwriting, it is easy to edit and translate what you have written into Microsoft Word documents or PowerPoint presentations.

Myth: The instructor must be extremely proficient in Chinese.

Facts: A working knowledge will suffice in most cases. An instructor who can read the local Chinese newspaperswith ease will be linguistically adequate for the job. Given that simplified Chinese is used in both China and Singapore, the local instructor should not have any problems. However, asmany Chinese books in Singapore are publishedor translated in Taiwan which use the more complicated traditional Chinese characters, an instructor who knows both versions willhave an advantage. The class is usually very diverse, with Chinese learners from different regions speaking different Mandarin intonations and dialects. Therefore, learners are usually quite empathetic if the instructor does not speak perfect Mandarin.

Figure 1. Teaching a class of Chinese learners.

Myth: The instructor must be the most knowledgeable person on the topics.

Facts: While the instructor should have up-to-date knowledge of the topics he is teaching, he should also be prepared to accept that his learners may have more practical experience. After all, these learners are usually experienced working executives who are aware of the intricacies of doing business in China. It is difficult for any instructor who has never worked in China to comprehend the subtleties of the system. Therefore, the instructor should strive to add value to learners’ experience by bridging concepts with practice. Since the instructor’s forte lies in theoretical models and frameworks, he/she should demonstrate how these ideas can be applied to or solve existing problems. For example, in BMC5507 “Accounting and Financial Management” (Semester 2, AY 2004/2005), teaching the management of bad debts in basic accounting to students in Western countries is easier as they are used to the concept of credit. However, this concept is not well understood in China. Throughout China’s history, it is common for individuals to own large cash holdings at home or make cash transactions, thus making China known as a cash economy. Only in recent years has credit management become a major focus of the Chinese government and businesses. Therefore, the instructor who is accustomed to jumpstart a lecture on bad debts may need to take a step back and explain the notion of credit to a class of Chinese learners.

Myth: Chinese learners are passive and silent learners.

Facts: Like most Asians, Chinese learners are shy to a certain extent. However, with the right instruction techniques, many Chinese learners are actually quite vocal and creative in their answers. In my class, I make use of real-life business case studies that describe real companies facing issues or problems. For example, to set up a discussion on how Western concepts can be applied in China, I used case studies that describe the experiences of North American companies operating in China. A good strategy is to first let learners read the case studies individually and then discuss what they have read in groups. Finally, asking learners to present their answers on transparencies in front of the class is a good way to get everyone in the class to participate.

In summary, it is not an immense task to teach Chinese learners as long as the instructor employs time-tested teaching technique with a good sense of cultural sensitivity.