First, please tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
Wei and Elijah in California during a Spring Break Trip
Hello everyone! I am Wei Tang, an educational explorer from Shanghai, China. I am also a mother of a 3-year-old boy. For the first 30 years of my life, I never left China because I had to take care of my elderly grandparents. In 2016, with the passing of my grandparents, I decided to see the world. This journey around the world completely changed my thinking. In the UK, I was amazed by the history behind the afternoon tea etiquette. In the tea ceremony experience in Japan, I realized the preciousness of “Ichigo Ichie”. The passion of Spanish Flamenco and the tranquility of the Blue Mosque in Turkey were a wonderful contrast. And the smiles everywhere on the streets of Thailand made me understand that happiness can be so simple. Every country I visit is like reading a three-dimensional cultural encyclopedia, which makes me truly appreciate the diversity of the world. In the end, I chose to stay in the U.S. because it is like a small United Nations, bringing together people from all over the world. Later, I majored in Global Studies and Education while studying at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB).
What inspired you to want to teach Chinese to young learners?
I have been passionate about teaching since I was young, but due to family reasons, I did not immediately embark on the path of education after graduation. My study experience at UCSB aroused my strong interest in cross-cultural education, especially how to enable students from different backgrounds to better understand and appreciate diverse cultures. Discussions with classmates from different backgrounds in class often spark surprising connections. However, after becoming a mother, I rethought my career direction. I have experienced the power that language brings to people. I hope to not only teach my own children Chinese, but also help more young learners get in touch with this beautiful language. Chinese is not just about Chinese characters and pronunciation, but also about thousands of years of history, culture and way of thinking. I hope that my language class is a place where students can truly feel the charm of Chinese through stories, music, festivals and even food.
Wei first arrived in the U.S. at Wall Street.
You have been participating in an internship at the Chinese Immersion School here in Eugene. Can you describe your experience there? What have you been doing?
This internship experience at the Chinese Immersion School has given me a lot of new insights into education. Beyond what I learned in my graduate classes, actual experience with young students gave me more intuitive insight. I originally thought that teaching was about passing on knowledge to students, but every day here refreshes my thinking. I remember the first time I walked into the classroom, the lively atmosphere made me both surprised and nervous. The teaching method here is completely different from the traditional Chinese teaching method. In China, the teacher is the leader, teaching continuously, and the students listen carefully. There are many activities in the classroom here in the U.S. Watching the children speaking Chinese naturally in a game, I suddenly realized that language is not taught, but grown in real communication. This reminds me of the process of my own child when learning to speak. No one deliberately taught him grammar, but he mastered the language naturally in daily life. What touched me most was seeing those non-Chinese students expressing themselves in Chinese. A little girl blurted out “I like to eat bao” during a role-play. At that moment, I felt the sense of accomplishment of being a teacher. This made me understand that the most important thing in language teaching is not to correct pronunciation or grammar, but to protect the learners’ enthusiasm for expression. When I was helping to design teaching activities, I often thought if this was my child learning Chinese, how would I want him to learn? This idea changed all my assumptions about teaching. I began to focus on creating real communication situations, allowing students to use language naturally when expressing their real ideas. This internship experience made me rethink the meaning of being an educator. I am no longer just a transmitter of knowledge, but also a companion in the students’ language development journey. Every day I see students make breakthroughs in a relaxed and happy atmosphere.
Elijah waiting for Wei after class
What do you hope to do after you graduate this Summer? What would be your dream job in 5 or 10 years?
After graduation this summer, I hope to be a teacher in a Chinese immersion school or bilingual program in the United States. My short-term goal is to gain more experience in the classroom and explore how to make language learning more vivid and closer to students’ interests. In 5 to 10 years, my dream is to design a Chinese course that integrates cultural experiences, such as combining traditional Chinese festivals, calligraphy, and even food making, so that students can learn the language in a real situation. It would be even better if I could open a “Chinese storytelling” or a parent-child Chinese club!
What is a fun fact about yourself that others may not know?
Actually, I wasn’t very good at cooking at first. But since I had a child, I began to study cooking seriously, especially Chinese food. I hope that my son will remember “the taste of home” when he grows up. Food has become a unique link between my cultural memory and future expectations. Those seemingly ordinary home-cooked dishes are cultural codes for me. It is the cultural anchor I created for my child, so that he can instantly find a sense of belonging through taste no matter where he is in the future. Perhaps just like language, the taste of food is also a mother tongue that does not need to be translated, and it defines the concept of “home” in the most direct and profound way. Now I am integrating this understanding of food and culture into teaching. Because I believe that real language education should also be like the taste of home, natural and friendly, with the warmth of life, so that people can remember the emotions and stories contained in it while learning skills.