As a teacher of journalism and English, Joseph Bosco didn't expect that sometimes he also had to teach dating skills.

But when the president of the students' union, a handsome guy in his senior year, one day approached him hoping to know "how to ask a girl out," the former American journalist and writer now teaching at Beijing Foreign Studies University, felt obliged to answer the young man's urgent call.

"Due to pressure from schools, parents and society in general, Chinese students don't have as much fun as American students. They should have more social activities like parties, dances and football games," said Bosco.

So what did he teach about the dating skills? Bosco gave no details, simply saying he encouraged the young man to learn to deal with rejection and learn from experience.

MORAL LEADER

China celebrated Teachers' Day on Sunday and Daniel A. Bell, a Canadian professor of philosophy teaching at Tsinghua University in Beijing, has been always enjoying the gifts he got from students each year.

Of all the flowers, books, tea, and a special kind of chilli from Hunan Province. "I think I enjoyed the chilli most!" Bell said.

The professor has found that Chinese students are talented, curious and hardworking, and it's a pleasure to engage with them.

However, neither the gifts nor respect is easily won here. It didn't take long before the Canadian found that teachers are supposed to be moral leaders, not just transmitters of academic knowledge in China.

He said if he was ever tempted to do anything wrong, he thought about his students and that restrained him.

"Nothing would make me unhappier than to lose the respect of my students!" he said.

Outside of class, Bell enjoys more the non-academic moments --sharing meals and drinking beer with his students. He said it was important for him to establish relationships with students that will outlast their period of graduate study.

TO ASK OR NOT TO ASK

Statistics show the government hired more than 20,000 foreign educational experts nationwide in 2003. Currently, tens of thousands of foreign teachers are teaching in Chinese schools and kindergartens.

For some time, Li Bingshuang found it very difficult to understand what her American teacher was really thinking. "She constantly encouraged me to raise as many questions as possible in class, but when I came to her with some questions after class, she simply refused to answer," said the 23-year-old English major from Beijing Language and Culture University.

At first, Li thought the teacher was "cold."

"But later I realized that the teacher did not mean to be cold. Her private time should be respected."

"Foreign teachers let us think differently. They said there are no standard answers for their questions. My mind can be liberated at lectures by foreign teachers," Li said.

Chinese students don't participate much in class at first, but just sit and listen, observes Joseph Bosco. "It seems that they are so used to memorizing everything."

"But later when they feel comfortable with you, when they realize that professors won't laugh or get angry at their mistakes, they start to speak their minds in class," said Bosco.

CULTURAL SHOCK

A Canadian woman teaching English oral conversation classes at Beijing Language and Culture University was much impressed by the way of her students asked about her age.

"My students were curious and really wanted to know my age but knew better than to ask. So they asked if I knew what my Chinese zodiac sign was, as a means of figuring out my age. I caught on, but I thought that was pretty smart and subtle," recalled the teacher, who asked not to be identified.

Generally, westerners are surprised by how casually some Chinese ask their age, which they consider rude.

"Foreigners who come to China to teach are not in it for the money because Japan or Republic of Korea are much more lucrative options. For many foreign teachers, coming to China is a financial sacrifice," she observed.

"In general, the respect and the interaction with the students are what make my teaching experiences so much more enjoyable here."

But there are also some not-so-pleasant memories.

One day she got a student volunteer to come up to the front of the class to demonstrate how to conduct a general English conversation, which the students were then going to practise together.

One of the first rules when engaged in a conversation in English is to make eye contact and look into the speaker's eyes.

She instructed the student volunteer to look into her eyes, but the student wouldn't, or couldn't, because he found it "too scary" looking into a Caucasian's blue-green eyes, she recalled.

Other problems include cell phones ringing during class, students talking while the teacher is talking but then clamming up when it's time for group discussion, handing in homework on scrap paper, cheating and plagiarizing.

Nevertheless, she said she liked teaching in China and enjoyed meeting her students at every class.

Joseph Bosco agrees with her.

"I enjoyed teaching here," said the American, who is busy preparing a new class called Shakespeare Today, which will be offered to students next semester.

Editor: Wing