- Key personnel
 Richard Dudley
I have been teaching English in Hangzhou for 3 years, with a range of students from kindergarten kids up to businessmen. My major experience has been in training students towards the IELTS speaking test which to me is one of the most worthwhile of the exams for English (though I'm not a big fan of exams generally!).
Before I came to Hangzhou I was an electronics hardware designer working mainly on consumer products such as mp4 players and PDAs. However I found it a little dispiriting that I'd be designing products that customers didn't really want or were incompletely specified. So I decided to change my career and become a teacher in order to spend more time with people rather than technology. I still collect gadgets in my spare time though!
I feel its important to have a sound teaching philosophy in order to be effective as a teacher. Many aspects of teaching are mysterious to me, even though I've studied quite a lot of psychology and philosophy. My philosophy of teaching could be summed up as 'radical constructionist' by which I accept the evidence of some (not really the mainstream) branches of neuroscience and cognitive science that 'all knowledge is self-knowledge'. That is to say, we all construct what we know, using largely subconscious mental processes- this constructional process applies equally to what we perceive with our eyes (consensus reality) to what we feel, hear and smell. It also applies to linguistic knowledge, by which we construct meanings for words and expressions. I take on board most of the conclusions of the 'Lexical Approach' to learning as set out by Michael Lewis in his eponymous book where he de-emphasises the teaching of grammar and vocabulary. Other influences come from Hubert Dreyfus, Donald Hoffman, Gordon Globus, Walter Freeman and Francisco Varela. I've been putting this constructivist paradigm to use in developing 'Build it!' with Will as a dialogue approach to language learning, a style that in part is inspired by Michel Thomas.
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 Linda Fogarty (Lindi)
Hello everyone! My name is Lindi and I hail from Georgia, USA. I came to China nearly 6 years ago, as a "one year adventure" and
then somehow ended up staying. My friends back home have long ago stopped asking me when I'm coming back.
Learning Chinese for me has been an ongoing adventure ¨C just like living here. I didn't want to learn it at first because
I had spent several years in and after college studying French. Starting over with a new language didn't appeal to me at all.
But given of few months of misunderstandings and language frustrations, ("What? You can't understand my sign language for
"give me a haircut ¨C just a little off the ends?") I decided to learn "survival Chinese". But then once I started, it was
easier to keep going, and before I knew it, French was long forgotten and Chinese was taking over my brain. So if you're just
starting out, don't worry, it'll probably happen to you too!
Besides my work at studypond.com, I also teach music and Chinese at Shanghai Community International Schools,
where I've been for 3 years. Enough about my work, I also have a life ¨C I think! ¨C which includes a love for travel,
different forms of keeping in shape (like hiking, aerobics, yoga, etc), reading, and hanging out.
I hope you enjoy our website, and hope to get to know some of you through our connections at studypond.com.
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 James Kahrs
Hey all! My name is James Kahrs and I am from Athens Georgia. I graduated from Miami of Ohio in December of 2005. While
there I was able to experience a lot. I majored in Anthropology and Latin American Studies. After graduating I was an
Archaeologist in the USA for almost a year and a half. While working as an Archaeologist in America I took and completed
a TEFL course; Teaching English As A Foreign language. I have wanted to live in China for the past few years and finally I
got out here and love every minute of it. Im starting to learn Mandarin now, its better late than never. I will be learning
with you through the lessons. I make lessons based on what I need to survive day to day life here in beautiful China.
There is nothing in America that I cannot get here in terms of my interests. There is good music everywhere you turn.
There are live bands you can catch every night. There are art gallerys and museums as well as a variety of restaurants
to suit all of your taste buds. I love to bike, which is good because you do a lot of it in China. I love hanging out
with friends and meeting new people. Everyone is really nice and helpful over here which makes for less of a culture shock.
I know that studypond will help you as much as it is helping me. If you ever make it over here, bring a camera because
your going to want to take a lot of pictures!
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 Neo Wei
Hello all! This is Neo, nice to meet you all here!
I am from Xi'An, the capital of the first Empire of China¡ªQin Dynasty (Not Qing, which is the last dynasty of China. Kind of interesting, only one letter's difference between the first and last dynasty). That is the city where you can find the great Terra-Cotta Warriors, the Bell and Drum Tower, or get a ring ride with your bicycle on the city wall!
After a master study in Hangzhou, major in Science, I became a Math/Science/Language teacher in Shanghai. Working in an international school is an excellent experience which I get to know the western part of the world much better with a close look. Same time, it is a responsibility and an honor to share, introduce this ancient, beautiful language and culture to the world! At least read the instructions yourself next time you got something "Made in China."
Life in Shanghai is exciting. You wouldn't stop getting surprises here. I wish the website will be helpful for you, try it right now!
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 Yong Xu (Will)
As a native Chinese, I have a passion for Chinese literature, the profound culture and long history, and the people who live there.
And it is these people who also continue to enrich the heritage of Chinese lanugage and life on a daily basis.
My passion has inspired me to overcome many obstacles in the building of this website.
I've always believed that if people can communicate better and understand each other better, we will have a better world,
and the Earth will last longer too. And this site allows me to make a contribution to my belief. I hope it can
be a very helpful source in your endeavor of mastering a new language, communicating with different people and embracing
different cultures and ideas.
Before co-founding studypond.com, I was a coder in the dark empire ruled by William Gates III (not directly for Microsoft though).
I enjoy making 0 1 sequences and watching them do their magic on the computer.
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