LIVE, LEARN, & LOVE
Do you take delight in watching
films or listening to pop music? For English learners, movies, songs, and books
are one of the most wonderful sources to explore the language! You can indulge
in your favorite pastime and still learn some expressions, words of wisdom, and
oftentimes good lessons while you’re at it.
#14. The Analects of Confucius
1.
“The failure to cultivate virtue, the
failure to examine and analyze what I have learnt, the inability to move
towards righteousness after being shown the way, the inability to correct my
faults – these are the causes of my grief.”
*”to cultivate virtue” means “to actively
and intentionally try to develop or improve positive character traits such as honesty,
courage, compassion, justice through consistent practice and habituation” This
act of improvement is supposed to continue outside family and/or school
boundaries to make our society a better place for all.
……………………………………………………………………………………….
2.
“I do not expound my teaching to any who are not eager to
learn; I do not help out any one who is not anxious to explain himself;
if, after being shown one corner of a subject, a man cannot go on to discover
the other three, I do not repeat the lesson.”
*To expound something to someone means “to
give someone elaborate and systematic explanation or commentary in detail.”
As well aware, the Analects of Confucius
transcends time and space in teaching people the most fundamental philosophy or
wisdom for living a good life not only as a private individual, but also as a
citizen of a society in harmony with others. The Chinese philosopher Confucius
and his disciples discuss a variety of qualities we need to improve ourselves
and this world we live in.
** Jean’s Small Thoughts:
As a language teacher, I have often
reflected on how I could better support my EFL students in Korea in developing
both their language proficiency and their confidence to speak in class. When I
think back on the Communicative English courses I taught, I realize that I
sometimes imposed my own thoughts on students by completing their sentences
while they were still quietly searching for the right English words to express
themselves. I failed to consider how they might have felt when they were
interrupted during that process. Without being aware of it, I likely raised the
affective filter between my students and myself. Now, recognizing and
regretting my impatience, I remind myself that, as Confucius suggested, I must
first improve myself before trying to cultivate virtues in others.
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