Yang Yu, 14, of Jilin, hasn't adapted (适应) himself to the changes in his classroom since the first day of this term: teachers now hold classes with a computer and screen. "Instead of writing on the blackboard as before, they click the mouse and show us the Power Point (PPT) slides (幻灯片) on the screen. Sometimes, there is not even one word on the blackboard after a whole class," Yang said. "I'm not quite used to the multimedia (多媒体) class."
More and more middle schools in China now use multimedia in class. Teachers put their courses on a computer and show their lessons with a PPT. To make the lessons more interesting, they play animations (动画) and movies.
Hu Wei, an English teacher in Sichuan, thinks multimedia class seems to be more interesting than traditional classes. His students practice their oral English by following music and animations on a computer. "It helps them speak English bravely and actively," Hu says. "Besides, it's also a helpful tool for teachers because showing PPTs saves us more time than writing notes on the blackboard."
However, multimedia class makes things more difficult for students like Liu Yifang, a 15-year-old Beijinger. She can't take all her notes as before. "There are no words on the blackboard, but many on the screen," Liu says. "Besides, my teacher speaks so fast that I can't catch up."
Liu thinks it is not the best way to learn. "For me, I like the old way. I agree that the multimedia is helpful, but so is the blackboard," Liu says. "If teachers can use both tools properly in class, I think that will be really good for everyone."