"Good Morning! Let's sing a song! You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy, when skies are gray! You'll never know how much I love you, so please don't take my sunshine away!"

Thus I begin my kindergarten English classes here in Zhuhai, China.

Where?

Zhuhai, pronounced "jew-hi," is on the coast of the South China Sea, about an hour ferry ride from Hong Kong. I'm here for seven weeks as one of 25 English teachers from Thailand, Wales, Scotland, England, Canada, and the United States, hired to teach at the Zhuhai International Peace Club's first English immersion program.The school is called "Gateway Language Village."

This program and the Peace Club's normal summer classes are in session simultaneously. My typical day consists of waking by 8 a.m., leading two kindergarten classes from 8:30 a.m. until 12 p.m., heading out to lunch with the other foreign teachers, then an hour-and-a-half of private Chinese lessons, returning to the Peace club to prepare for next class and check my e-mail. Before dinner I go for a jog around Zhuhai, and then eat with friends.

In the evening, I may head out to the Gateway Language Village(GLV) to take part in the nightly activities, such as singing English karaoke songs like "Right Here Waiting" or "Greatest Love of All," or discussions in English. On the weekends, I may head over to Shenzhen to see a good friend of mine.

Otherwise, all of us young teachers and teaching assistants head to the Chinese discos and request classic music like Mikey's Thriller.

There are several thousand English teachers currently in China. Most are here for a short time, some are here to stay. Some are in large cities, and the more adventurous ones venture into the countryside where hot water may be too much to expect. Most of us in Zhuhai are here for the summer and are in our 20s, although a good handful of us who are middle-aged teachers and teenage assistants. The demand for native English-speaking teachers is quite high. Most year - long programs provide roundtrip airfare, Chinese tutors, room, board, monthly salary, and a traveling stipend.

China is ablaze for learning English. To many Chinese people, learning English means heading over to England, Canada, and the U.S., to start a new and better life. Most Chinese schools begin teaching English in primary grades. An estimated 300 million Chinese people - equivalent to the entire U.S. population - are learning English. To graduate from high school and enter into college, the students must take a standardized exam - and written English is an important part of this. Thus, amidst the furor to do well on this high-pressure exam, oral English is thrown by the way-side. As a result, many Chinese people have excellent written English skills, but cannot hold a conversation with a native English speaker.

The summer program here in Zhuhai was started with the goal of encouraging spoken English rather than written. The Peace Club was founded by Ping Hong - whose first name means "peace" - several years ago as a center for learning English from native speakers.

Ping believes: "Language is a bridge to connect people," and he envisions the ideal teaching environment to be one where the students and teachers have become friends and enjoy free exchange of ideas - all in English of course. Ping was first hooked on English when he saw westerners in his hometown as a boy. Later he received a full scholarship to Purdue University where he studied international relations.

He founded the Peace Club after recognizing the poor communication abilities of his own peers. Ping hired friend Gordon Kerr as the director of foreign teachers for the summer programs. Kerr, originally from Scotland, has been in and out of China for the past 12 years, mostly in the field of publishing. He was also chairman of UNICEF for a period of time.

Quite committed to his work, Kerr has brought his son, wife and daughter along to help with the summer English program as well - in fact, they've decided to buy an apartment here.

If you wish to comment on the above article send an e-mail message to me at info@glvchina.com or call Gateway Language Village, Zhuhai 0756-2291934
Website: www.glvchina.com