Shandong University

An inside view of what is happening in our classrooms and around campus.

Rick is leaving the Buthane teaching building.  He is wearing a hat and green coat.

The tree-lined streets on our campus create a beautiful shady scene.

This is one entrance to the student cafeteria.  Many students carry these thermoses, especially during the winter months.  Most Chinese drink hot water year round.  They believe cold water is bad for your health.  I suppose I will die young.

We like to see the kind campus street sweepers.  These men and women must be close to retirement.  The yellow cart holds the collected trash and their unique brooms. 

My students were outside on a lovely spring day practicing for their Reader’s Theater.

This type of exercise is so “outside the box” from their normal read, memorize, and recite style of learning.

Notice the masks that one student made for the different characters in “The Little Red Hen”.

This group chose a tall boy to be Little Red Riding Hood.  The class roared with laughter.  He was an instant hit!

These happy students opted to wear their class T-shirts on performance day.

I was pleasantly surprised that these two shy boys would bring stuffed animals as props.  Some students were thrown from their comfort zones with this assignment and survived.

Rick’s students brought a guitar and asked him to sing and play.  They vigorously applauded every song.

We were among nine professors who attended the opera performances of these talented music students.  They were MARVELOUS!!  Then, we were pulled to the stage for photos with the performers.  It was our privilege.  Of course, this happened the only time we came to a concert casually dressed.

The SDU Medical School freshmen performed a special talent show.  We had several students there.  The dancing boys group was an audience favorite.  It is especially thrilling to see our shy students (which is most of them) on a stage.

It was so much fun to see our students outside the classroom in such a setting.  They had practiced for weeks and we enjoyed every performance.

Some of our students performed with this SDU choir.  They sang pieces in Chinese, Japanese, and English.   Wow!  What an outstanding group of disciplined singers.  This was one of the best performances we had seen in China. 

Doc Talk at the medical campus.  This is an informal hour where any student can come and practice speaking English.  Older students organize the event and choose discussion topics.  We were like celebrities when we arrived.  Everyone wanted to be in our groups.  I had a few students who talked in Rick’s group and vice versa.  They are very curious about us and wanted to know so much more then we’ve told them in class.  Truthfully, it is a great ego trip to be so in demand and well loved by these terrific students.

Word has spread that Rick plays the guitar.  We sang together and the students roared with applause.  I couldn’t believe the number of phones pointed in our direction as we sang (off key, I’m sure) and the students smiled with delight.  Sometimes we do feel like rock stars.  Fear not, reality always hits hard.