Abstract
Chapter 3 analyses the hanzi teaching implemented by the group of Chinese teachers in their Australian schools. It reveals the impact of hanzi on these teachers as ‘cultured persons’ and clarifies the ‘root’ status of hanzi in Chinese culture. This chapter investigates these teachers’ understandings and practices of teacher-student ‘关系’ (guanxi: relationship) in this cross-cultural setting. It further examines cultural dynamics—whether there is evidence demonstrating these teachers experienced a cultural shift during their teaching practice. The research findings support the argument that these teachers experienced a ‘when in Rome do as the Romans do’ type of cultural adaption after living in Australia for a period of time. However, it would appear that some of their cultural adaptations occurred more as a survival strategy. In this context, the notion of ‘cultural dynamics’ was more akin to superficial mimicry, rather than evidence that the teachers had surrendered their own culture.
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Notes
- 1.
Respect or Zunzhong refers to “paying more attention or giv[ing] high regard to someone in a higher status occupation or senior at age” (Zhang and Liu 2016, n.p.). The modern meaning of Zunzhong is comparable with English ‘respect’ but is still mainly associated with social status and/or age. Zunzhong often refers to the ‘right’ or compliant attitude people, who are younger and/or with lower social status, demonstrate towards people who are their senior in age or social status.
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Han, J. (2020). The Human-Human Dimension of Culture: Chinese Teachers in Relation to Australian Students. In: Theorising Culture. Palgrave Studies in Teaching and Learning Chinese. Palgrave Pivot, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23880-3_4
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