Life of Brian

Inspiring Creativity in the Classroom

On 26 December 2008, I presented a workshop on "Inspiring Creativity in the Classroom" to senior studetns in an elite English program at Taipei First Girls High School, the top girls high school in Taiwan.

The program is an adaptation of one I have presented elsewhere to teachers and is comprised of improvisational language structures (which I have adapted from improvisational theatre games), guided imagery, and a demonstration of hypnosis for stress reduction and study skills enhancement (the students had signed parental consent forms for the hypnosis demonstration - the teacher tells me that every single student received parental permission, most enthusastically).

The three-hour workshop was a resounding success.  The teacher (a former university student of mine) tells me the kids got a LOT out of it and couldn't stop talking about the experience for days.

Here's a short video clip:

And . . . some photos . . .

More photos can be found here.

For other educators in Taiwan, I am happy to present this or similar programs by special arrangement for your students or events.  See http://www.briandavidphillips.com for contact details and more information.  If you don't see a specific program that fits your needs, email me and we will design something perfect for you.

All the best,
Brian

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Improv Taiwan 2008

This is a complilation video of students in my Theatre Arts: Acting and Directing class at National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan.  Inspired by Improv Everywhere, the students designed their own "missions" and went out into the real world of Taipei to perform scenes or bits.  The folks around them did not know they were "performing" and helpers used hidden cameras to video the act and the reactions.

All the best,
Brian

Myth and Legend into Film . . .. . . Literature and Film Projects

These are a short film projects in which students were asked to adapt a literary work into a short film. This project was completed by students in my Literature and Film class at National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan, as part of a classroom project.

The Girl Who Changed Her Fate

Candy House

Cupid and Psyche

Little Sparkler Girl

MomoTaro-San

Three Genjias

Three Sons of Fortune

Troy

And now for something completely different . . . not by my students but very kool anyway . . .

Batman Dead End

That's what I've got so far . . . a couple groups still haven't handed in their assignments . . . hopefully they will get them in before the Jan. 16 deadline. After that, have a great Winter Vacation and Happy Chinese New Year!

All the best
Dr. Phillips

NOYB . . .. . . what's your religion?

At the end of one of my lectures at the university, a student came up to me to ask if I wouldn't mind taking a survey on the campus radio station.  I told her to go ahead and fire away and ask her questions.  Well, at the end of the survey, she said she had one final question and that was "What is your religion?"  I looked her straight in the eye and said, "put down NOYB . . . None Of Your Business."  She was taken a bit aback by this as the idea of privacy in terms of religious practice was a bit alien to her.  I then told her that for me my religious beliefs are a private matter and that even if I told her what they were the list of possible choices on her survey didn't have the "correct" choice for me as I'm not Christian, Buddhist, Taoist, Agnostic, Athiest, Muslim, Satanist, or any of the other -ists usually listed for such things.  Most folks here assume that I must be Christian as the default assumption is that any random white person living in this country is probably Christian and that Americans are extremely likely to be Christian and if they are not then they're probably Budhists studying Chinese.  Since I teach a university course in Bible & Literature which I pursued with zeal, the assumption is even more so that I must be Christian (after all, I did attend a church-affiliated university and earned a minor in religion as an undergraduate and I guarantee that I know more about scripture than most of the folks walking around claiming to be Christian).  However, while I was indeed a Christian during most of my formative years and my first vocational choice as a boy was a dream to one day become a preacher and I certainly would have made a pretty damned good one . . . today, I am most definately no longer a Christian . . . that monkey sailed long ago.  I enjoy religious studies, particularly comparative religion.  However, I don't put my relgious views out there when I teach the material nor do I wish others to make assumptions that are erroneous.  So . . . when the question comes up, and it does, quite often, my response is usually NOYB . . . although, once in awhile, I will indeed be honest and open and tell some folks what my views really are . . . but those are usually the folks who don't push it and who are naturally within my comfort zone.  Hint . . . there are no ritual chicken sacrifices but there is a great deal of personal experiential bliss and communion involved (no, not that communion, no flesh-eating cannibalism or blood thirst satiation) . . . n . . . o . . . y . . . b.

Student Film Adaptation Projects . . .. . . past examples

So, my Literature and Film students at the university are now beginning their leg of the original film adaptation of a folk tale, legend, myth, or short short fantasy story.  In order to help them, here are some example videos from students past:

WILDEST DREAMS TRAILER ONE

WILDEST DREAMS TRAILER TWO

WILDEST DREAMS BTS

THE FALL OF FRODO

RUMPLESTILTSKIN

THE GREEK PRINCESS

THE FROG KING

ONE EYE, TWO EYES, AND THREE EYES

Obviously, the current student projects will be even better . . . well, at least more technically savvy given their lead time.  We should see some very interesting bits this year.

Currently, the students should be posting their story choices to the course Facebook page and from there we should begin seeing some interesting work.

All the best,
Brian

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The Changing Language of Conviction

Snarfed from David, who snarfed it from sleightgirl.

Taipei to model English village project on Korea

The joys of the English village . . . Taipei to model English village project on Korea . . .

It will no longer be necessary to go abroad to learn English. In the English villages, people will feel they are in a foreign country. They can watch movies, have fun in shopping malls and enjoy days without any Chinese speaking," said Huang.

While I'm in favor of the general concept, the implementation may need more thought. The English stores in elementary schools may or may not work out. I suspect it will fee more like a gimmick. The English community works if it's a real community and immersive, just like old KGB and CIA "America Town" and "Soviet Village" projects. However, if it's a "tourist" spot for folks to come and gawk, then there will be Chinese spoken quite a bit.

NLP and Language Learning

For those of you in Taiwan . . . on Thursday, March 15, I will be presenting on "Neurolinguistic Programming Techniques for Language Learners: Interdisciplinary Strategies for Affective Links in Learning" at the 2007 International Conference and Workshop on TEFL and Applied Linguistics hosted by Ming Chuan University (at the Taoyuan campus).

My session is in the afternoon from four to five. This is a university sponsored academic international conference.

Conference details should be found at http://www.ae.mcu.edu.tw (bilingual pages).

All the best,
Brian

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Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [phillips@nccu.edu.tw]
Certified Hypnotherapist
President, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com

Sex and English Teaching . . .. . . Hong Kong Tutors Selling Sex Appeal

Uh . . . okay . . . Hong Kong Tutors Selling Sex Appeal . . .

Angela Yiu and Stella Cheng spent weeks meeting with fashion stylists and photographers before deciding on the mini skirts and high heels to wear in their promotion campaign. They're not models peddling perfume or sports cars. They're English tutors who earn good money helping secondary school students pass Hong Kong's grueling exams to get into college. "Their long legs are the most beautiful ones in the tutorial industry," said Ken Ng, head of Modern Education, one of the city's biggest tutoring businesses. "This is our selling point." Sex appeal has become a hot selling point, just as important as teaching ability and knowledge, in Hong Kong's hypercompetitive world of cram schools or "bou zap se" in the local Cantonese dialect. Attractive teachers are marketed like movie stars. Their schools show them off on billboards, full-page newspaper ads and TV screens in railway stations and on buses. Some tutors have their own teams of stylists, fashion designers and photographers, Ng said. They also have personal Web sites, where potential students can see their photos, read their online journals and download video clips of "gag moments" in class. It's just the latest twist in the competition to grab the business of students caught up in Hong Kong's make-or-break exam culture. Youngsters take two college exams during their seven years in secondary school and they have to pass both to get into a university. So hoards of students trek to after-school lectures at tutoring centers. The Census and Statistics Department says a third of secondary school youngsters sought private tutoring in the 2004-05 school year, spending a total of $18.9 million a month 25 percent more than five years earlier. Industry pioneers like Modern Education and King's Glory each have about 10 centers around the city, each offering around 200 lessons a week. All the companies boast of their ability to give youngsters an edge by predicting what questions will be asked in the exams, employing teams of full-time analysts who study patterns from previous exam papers. With competition growing fierce on that front, the tutorial centers in recent years have increasingly focused on promoting their teachers as trendy icons consumable by students. "When our rivals are equally good at predicting the exam questions, we need a new ground to outrun them," Ng said. "And that is the tutor's appearance." Last summer, Ng hired Yiu, who once won a modeling contest, to teach English along with Cheng, described by Ng as "a gorgeous former lawyer." Yiu, who has a business degree, said: "Being a model is not a long-term career. I should plan for the future. I know my good appearance has a market." Indeed, tutoring is one of the most profitable jobs in this Asian city. Top tutors who have more than 4,000 students can earn high salaries. Elaine Chow, an advertising executive, said tutoring businesses are applying a "star-making" promotion technique in which tutors dress fashionably and are given nicknames like "the Godfather of Science," "Brand-A tutor" or the "Queen of English." "In the advertisements, going to tutorial centers is portrayed as a trendy after-school activity more than a chance to acquire knowledge," she said. "This is a twisted tutoring market." Percy Kwok, a former education researcher of the Chinese University of Hong Kong who studied the private tutoring phenomenon in 2003, said tutorial centers closely follow the consumption culture of youths to catch their attention. "They may even expose tutors' private life if necessary," he said. But he added that while tutorial centers have become highly commercial, they provide useful techniques in tackling exams, such as predicting question types. Daytime teachers don't have comparable resources or the time to do that, he said. Tutorial centers will continue, he said, "As long as university certificates and exam results are the best evidence to prove one's competence and guarantee a stable income."

Evidently the kids choose their tutors rather than the parents.

Wildest Dreams . . .. . . coming soon

Check out one of the "trailers" for the upcoming performance of Wildest Dreams, the senior graduation play for my students in the English Department at National Chengchi University to be performed Dec. 14 and Dec. 15 at the university (be there!) . . . the play is about a group of friends who play role playing games (RPGs) to the point of the games becoming their escape from reality . . .

The students have gone all out and created a film that will be used in conjunction with the on-stage drama . . . the characters on stage will "play" the table top game with their fantasy personae manifested within the film. I am the faculty advisor of the play for which I am quite qualified (my doctoral dissertation is in interactive drama (live RPGs), I have advanced degrees in theatre, I deal with reality levels in my hypnosis work, and I played more RPGs than a human really should play).

See the official blog for the play here and the fullsize versions of the trailers here (download links for the mov files are below the embedded player).  Venue information is on the blog.

Koolness.

All the best,
Brian