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Tzipora Rakedzon is an English teacher in GTIIT. She got her bachelor and master degree in English & Linguistics at Haifa University. Later, she received her Ph.D. in Education at Technion. Since 2002, she has been teaching in Technion for nearly 15 years. In the early August, she moved to China and becomes one of the faculty in GTIIT.

Q: Why you choose to become a teacher?

T: I love working with people. Teaching is a calling. When I am in classrooms, I feel I am in the right place. I get positive feedback from students. Teaching makes me feel fulfilled and enjoyable.

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Q£ºWhy do you teach in GTIIT?

T: Primarily because of the exciting partnership of Technion and Shantou. When I heard of this joint program, I expressed my interests in it. So when I was invited to come, I feel excited. Also because I love challenges. I love travelling around. Now my children become older, I can travel a lot, like attending conferences outside Israel. Moreover, I teach Chinese students in Technion, which is a positive experience, and I enjoy it.

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Q: What do you think of GTIIT students?

T: I am impressed. They are serious and hard-working. They try to be more flexible to do new things. And I find their speaking English is improving.

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Q: What is the most glaring problem of GTIIT students and how can they improve it?

T: I think the biggest problem is their listening comprehension, in other words, they might not understand what people are saying in English, though students¡¯ reading and writing skills are quite good. Students can listen to news reports every day. And I suggest that high school teachers should give their students advanced English listening comprehension practices, so that students are better prepared.

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Q: Do you find anything interesting in teaching at GTIIT?

T: Yes. I like the presentations. It is designed to make students speak English in front of students. It is kind of stressful, but useful for them as well. For me, I know Chinese culture better from the topics presented by my students. For example, one student gave a topic of important Chinese companies, like Li Ning, I never heard about it. Another student briefly introduced internet podcasts shows! I find it is interesting.

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Q£ºWhat do you think of the future of GTIIT?

T: I remain positive. GTIIT will be successful because students here are doing well. They like their instructors. I believe students¡¯ number and undergraduate programs will increase in the future.

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Q: What is your impression in Shantou? Do you find anything interesting in downtown?

T: Shantou is a big city. In Israel, no city has this size. Cities in Israel are much smaller. I took a bus to downtown, it was amazing that even after an-hour drive, I was still in Shantou. I am going to explore Shantou this weekend. I will take a bus, hoping to see the city more.

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One thing is funny. My families have been here for two and a half weeks. Every time when they went to downtown, people like to take pictures with them. Passerby even took their pictures secretly! Another funny is, when I went to downtown, I tried to speak a few simple Chinese with the local, and they would expect I know a lot of Chinese vocabulary. Then people would start talking a lot in Chinese! In fact, I just know a few words. (laughs)

Text/ Photo by News and Public Affairs Department