My Life at Renda I learned very quickly that being a teaching assistant (TA)at the University of Iowa would be different from being a teacher at Renmin University._____(46)Eyes staring,mouths open,students examined my big nose,while I was writing my name on the blackboard.At Iowa,when my first classes began,half of my students still hadn’t arrived.When everyone finally found a seat,ringing cellphones and loud yawns (哈欠)interrupted my opening remarks.It is not that American students were disrespectful._____(47)They were,however,far more skeptical than the students I had at Renda.The truth is I couldn’t fault them for their skepticism.Undergraduates at large US universities -especially freshmen and sophomores -often have several classes a semester handled by TAs.In some cases,the TA sets the course content._____(48)Most have good intentions,but very few are as effective as professors.Every teacher has to confront obstacles to learning -no matter what the culture.Students who talk during lectures,students who cheat,students who question the grade they get for a paper or project -dealing with these is all part of the job._____(49)The difference,I think,is that in the US I had to swallow more of my pride._____(50)I had a responsibility to teach them,of course,but I had to do so indirectly -as a guide who himself had a few things to learn from the students.
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