by Logan Goh
“It took me about four years before I dared to try the stinky tofu, but now I like it.” Hear ye, hear ye, citizens of Taida, there comes to our campus a new English lecturer who enjoys Taiwanese food. Lo and behold, ladies and lads, this interesting chap is our very own Mr. Giles Witton-Davies (朱杰佑)! Upon my arrival at his office, Mr. Witton-Davies welcomed me with a big friendly grin. Judging by his gentle British accent, I could tell in an instant that he hailed from the mighty United Kingdom of lore and legend. And, in fact, he was born in Oxford, the very site of the renowned University, not to mention the cradle of countless ingenious minds throughout history. An Englishman who enjoyed living in Spain Though I should have expected no less, I was still surprised to learn how exceptionally experienced Mr. Witton-Davies is at his profession. He told me he has been an English teacher for more than twenty years, when he found his first job in Italy. He then spent sixteen years in Spain before coming to Taiwan. “I was very young at that time,” he explained, “I was curious to see the world, so I went first to Italy, and then to Spain. I loved Spain so much. The Spanish people have a very happy way of life; they don’t care about money…” Other than his native language, he also has a good command of Spanish due to the long years he spent in Spain. Nonetheless, he has found it particularly difficult to learn Mandarin in Taiwan, partly because whenever he tried to speak Mandarin to the hospitable citizens of our country, they always replied in English! I guess this is something to be proud of, as it shows that more and more Taiwanese nowadays are capable of speaking and understanding English. As for life in Taipei, Mr. Witton-Davies had difficulty adapting to his new environment at first, because Taipei was a little too crowded compared to Spain. Moreover, the people here seem to be working too hard all the time. “I sometimes think they don’t enjoy life enough,” he added. Fortunately, when it comes to Taiwanese food, it was love at first taste. He’s happy to have found so many restaurants for vegetarians in Taiwan. He also praises the scenery in Taiwan as some of the most beautiful that he has ever seen. Revolutionary methods of teaching children English Mr. Witton-Davies specializes in the methodology of teaching children a second language. I therefore asked him if there was one best way of learning English for students of all ages. He suggested that a more effective way would be practicing as much as possible and increasing one’s exposure to English through reading and listening. These methods might sound like a cliché, but useful advice is always more easily said than done. He doesn’t believe that simply repeating sentence patterns is an effective way of learning English. Memorization of grammar rules does no more than kill children’s motivation to learn. “It just doesn’t work,” he emphasized, “Children like to do things with the language. They like to do activities, make things, listen to stories, and play games. In this manner, they’ll learn in a quite natural way.” How I wish I had been taught by Mr. Witton-Davies, so that I wouldn’t have “wasted” all my precious youth memorizing those inhuman rules that I still have trouble playing by even now! English gentlemen aren’t always so gentle I am always curious about other people’s philosophy of life, so I asked Mr. Witton-Davies about his belief of life. He smiled and dwelt upon it for a while. Then he said it would be a profound sympathy and love for the environment. It is like a primitive religion, one which believes in respect for nature and all its creatures. Which is why he would rather ride a bicycle than drive a car. He often goes up Yangmingshan by bike, but don’t be surprised, because Yangmingshan is just five minutes’ ride from Mr. Witton-Davies place in Tienmu. “People in Taiwan are usually very proud of their economic development, but I think they should be even more proud of the beauty of their country,” he said. When asked whether he brought his sons along on his cycling trips, he answered that he used to carry them on his back, but nowadays they have grown a bit too heavy. I then inquired about his sons’ education in Taiwan. Doesn’t he feel that the stressful educational environment in Taiwan plus the chaotic political atmosphere are unsuitable for growing children? He has a different point of view. He thought that kids in Taiwan were quite well behaved, as we don’t have as much trouble with young people committing crimes, taking drugs or fighting as in most western countries. “The idea people here have of an English gentleman is totally wrong,” he told me, chuckling. “Believe me, you might not feel safe walking down the street in England or Spain at night.” Anyhow, he added, he would definitely not send his children to cram schools. “I don’t want to spoil their youth,” he explained. Near the end, he shared a little secret with me: he is currently obsessed with playing the Flamenco Guitar, a kind of Spanish music. He showed me how the music sounded. I felt like dancing when I heard the fast-paced melody. And there you have it, my friends! Line up for his autograph and preorder his CDs while you can, because after his first performance in the upcoming “The Night of DFLL,” you might discover that the new kid in town is not only here to stay, but he’s gonna teach you a thing or two about painting the town red! Personal Information: Name: Giles Witton-Davies Degree: M.A., Univ. of Lancaster Specialties: Speaking proficiency and testingLearners’ errors, correction, and fossilization Teaching Children EnglishTask-based learning a
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The Taida Student Journal has been active since 1995 with an ever-changing roster of student journalists at NTU. Click the above link to read about the authors Archives
May 2024
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