–Things I learned in rural Sichuan–
With the Olympics this month, I feel it is appropriate to talk about sports, specifically basketball—a sport that I knew exactly nothing about a year ago. Sadly, it took moving to rural Sichuan, where I taught tenth grade English, for me to learn about this all- American sport. Basketball is by far the most popular sport in Bazhong, Sichuan–followed by ping-pong, then badminton, then soccer.
Before I arrived, I was supremely ignorant. I didn’t know the name of a single player or team, national or international, save for Yao Ming and Michael Jordan. Nor did I know the rules of the game. I quickly realized some working knowledge was necessary in order to work it into my lessons to keep my students, especially the boys, interested. Even the students who couldn’t speak one line of English knew the names of famous NBA players and teams. By the end of the first week of teaching I too knew LeBron James and Kobe Bryant and the Lakers and the Rockets.
Luckily Alexandra, the other American there with me, was much more knowledgeable. She played varsity basketball in high school. This soon proved to be fortuitous. Watching basketball on TV was a huge pastime for both genders and all ages, and the NBA was their favorite league.
At first I thought it was a fluke that only boys crowded the courts day after day, but it soon became clear that only boys played. PE might as well be called recess. The boys played basketball, the girls watched. Sometimes they hit a badminton bird back and forth languidly. The more athletic girls played ping-pong. Most of the time they were spectators on the sidelines rather than participants. This mentality might seem like no big deal when it comes to sports, but what if it carries over to other facets of these young women’s lives? What if they believe that it isn’t their place in life to hold a position of power, whether that be in the government, the boardroom or academia?
Organized sports–outside of PE and pick-up games–simply didn’t exist. Students have class from before the sun rises to well after the sun sets. Having both played on school teams, neither of us could imagine our high school experiences without the opportunity to learn about teamwork, dedication and discipline through sports, not to mention the chance to just be outside and focused in a different way. Having to sit at a desk listening to lectures all day can be mind-numbingly miserable.
One day during our normal Friday canteen lunch with students we broached the topic of basketball with some girls. Were girls simply not interested in playing? They quickly shook their heads, explaining girls simply don’t play basketball even though they’d like to. Then one of them asked us, would we teach them? That is how I finally learned the basics.
We brought basketballs and Alexandra taught me dribbling, shooting and basic rules. We immediately garnered the attention of everyone who passed by. Some of our boy students joined. Then some of the high school seniors dropped by too. Everyone was beyond impressed with Alexandra’s skills. Some whispered that they couldn’t compare to Americans. Clearly girls could play basketball too.
That Saturday we started our very own girls’ team to teach the girls the basics of the game. On the first day, some of the girls dressed as though they were going on a date. However, they soon ditched their three-inch heels for tennis shoes and we got sweaty, competitive and tough. These girls had the drive and the desire to play basketball, but they just never had been given the opportunity. At one practice, we were elated to have boys join in. We hope that this partnership and collaboration will also transcend beyond the basketball court. In a place where gender roles are highly socialized, I hope both boys and girls realize they don’t have to stick to the narrow confines of societal norms and expectations. Girls can indeed play basketball, as we demonstrated, and boys can cook if they want.
As I sat on my couch in Massachusetts, the state where basketball was invented way back in 1891, watching the Chinese women basketball team play against Australia’s team (something I would never have bothered to watch before going to Bazhong) I am reminded of my students and everything I have learned from them. Superficially, I learned about basketball, but in reality I learned so much more. I hope that my students back in rural Bazhong, both boys and girls, will sometimes ditch their books for an afternoon and shoot a few hoops together.
奥运会正在进行中，我觉得这是谈论体育的好时机，尤其是篮球，这项体育我在一年以前完全不懂。但是，它渐渐流传到了四川乡下，我在这里教初中英语，使我有机会在这里了解这项美国运动。篮球现在是四川巴中最流行的体育运动，随后是乒乓球，然后是羽毛球和足球。 在我来这里之前，我非常无知，除了姚明和迈克尔杰克逊之外，不认识国内或国际的其他任何球星或球队。我甚至不知道游戏规则。很快，我意识到我需要增长一些知识，来使我讲的课更有趣，尤其是对男孩子们。有些说不出一句完整英语的学生们都知道著名NBA球星和球队的名字。教书一周以后，我也知道了勒布朗詹姆斯和科比布莱恩特，湖人队和火箭队。 幸运的是，与我一起的另一个美国人亚历山大懂得很多关于篮球的事情。她上高中时代表学校打篮球。很快，我发现这很偶然。通过电视看篮球比赛是不分性别、各个年龄段人群的主要休闲方式，NBA是他们的最爱。 一开始我以为，每天只有男生占满整个篮球场，这只是偶然，但很快我发现的确只有男生打篮球。这里的体育教育也许并不规范。男生打篮球，女生观看。有时女生们把羽毛球无力地打来打去。比较喜欢运动的女生打乒乓球。大多数时间她们是旁边的观众，而不是参加者。这种在体育上的精力也许不算什么大事情，但是如果她们生活中的其他部分也如此，会怎样呢？如果她们认为在生命中，她们没有权利去争取一个重要的地位，或在政府机关、会议室又或在教育机构，那会怎样？ 除了体育教育课或自发的游戏以外，有组织的体育活动是不存在的。学生从天亮以前到天黑以后都在上课。我们两人都参加过学校体育队，我们不能想象从没有体育的高中经历中如何能学到集体精神、专注力和条理性，暂不提能有机会专注于除学业以外的一项活动。整天坐在书桌前听讲座是多么痛苦的事情，大脑都会僵化。 一次，在每周五与学生一起的惯例午餐中，我们对一些女生提出了一起打篮球的建议。那些女生仅仅只是不感兴趣吗？她们都很快就摇头，解释说女生们即使喜欢，也不会打篮球。其中一人问我们可不可以教她们。就这样，我终于学会了篮球的基本要领。 我们买了篮球，亚历山大教我如何运球、投篮和基本规则。我们瞬间就引起了所有路人的注意。一些男生加入了我们。然后一些高三的学生也走过来。所有人都对亚历山大的技巧感到惊讶。有些人窃窃私语，说他们没办法跟美国人比，其他人说她有上帝一般的手。很明显的，女生也可以打篮球。 那个星期六我们创办了我们自己的女子篮球队，教女生们如何打篮球。第一天，有一些女生穿得就像要去约会。然而，她们很快以网球鞋取代了三英寸的高跟鞋，我们流汗，我们变得有竞争力、强健。这些女生有打篮球的动力和希望，但她们以前从来没有这样的机会。
有一次练习，让我们很得意的是有男生加入。我们希望这种交流与合作可以扩展到篮球场以外。在一个男女责任分化明显的社会，我希望男生女生们都能意识到他们不必局限于狭隘的社会规则和期望。女生们也能打篮球，像我们证明的这样，如果他们喜欢，男生们也可以做饭。 篮球于1891年在麻州被发明，当我坐在麻州家里的沙发上，观看中国女子篮球队与澳大利亚队的比赛，我想起了我的学生们以及我在他们身上学到的一切。表面上看来，我学会了如何打篮球，但实际上我学到的远远不止这些。我希望我在巴中的学生们，不管男生还是女生，会时不时地在某个下午放下他们的书本，在一起投几次篮。