LONA MANNING
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My Dad at Yonsei University

10/30/2017

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My father, J. McRee "Mac" Elrod, died last summer at age 84. I have always been in awe of the fact that he and my mother spent five years in Korea soon after the end of the Korean war, as very young teaching missionaries. They came with a red-headed baby boy--my brother Mark--and added two more kids while there -- me and my sister Cara. 

When my dad reported for work at Yonsei University on the outskirts of Seoul 60 years ago, the small collection of library books was protected from theft behind a barrier of chicken-wire. The card catalogue, I recall father saying, was ravaged by soldiers taking the cards to line their shoes. In the winter, the ink froze in the inkwells.​
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​My father pioneered the adaptation of Western cataloguing methods for Asian library materials, while still in his early twenties. In fact he was the first Western-trained professional librarian in Korea. He did away with the chicken wire and during his time, the library collection grew from 3,000 to 30,000 volumes...


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Don't Miss the Fanny vs Mary Debates -- coming next week

10/18/2017

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Fanny Price or Mary Crawford — who do you like best?  Is Fanny the sweet heroine of Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park or is she a two-faced wimp?  Is Mary Crawford a charming and misunderstood socialite or is she selfish and immoral? 

​Kyra C Kramer and I take up our pens in defense of these literary frenemies for a no-holds-barred debate, 
held over five days on the internet. Follow along and join the debate in the comments! 
​

​Monday, October 23rd: Just Jane 1813 
Tuesday, October 24th: Diary of an Eccentric 
Wednesday, October 25th: Savvy Verse and Wit
Thursday, October 26th: My Jane Austen Book Club
Friday, October 27th: Austenesque Reviews
​

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Teachers, Students and Hobby Horses

10/1/2017

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   I wrote my "teaching philosophy" a few years ago and stand by it today. Competence in English can only be attained by students who acquire some cultural literacy,* therefore we should not be afraid of introducing Western culture into the classroom.
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   Now it's time for me to add a big caveat. I have read blog posts and articles by teachers who say, in effect, "hell yeah, I indoctrinate my students with my opinions." That really concerns me.
  These same people would probably have very disparaging things to say about the Christian missionaries who went to China in days gone by, sincerely believing that they were saving heathen souls from damnation. But if you are forcing your worldview on your students, what makes you any different from a missionary? The 'fact' that your opinions are right and theirs were wrong?...


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    About the author:

    More about me here. My earlier posts (prior to June 2017) are about my time as a teacher of ESL in China,(just click on "China" in the menu below.) more recent posts focus on my writing, as well as Jane Austen and the long 18th century. Welcome!


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