True Stories of Changchun Schools: Group Work

Anyone who watched the opening ceremonies for this year's Olympics knows that the Chinese have a flair for spectacle. Anyone who's been reading this blog should know that Chinese schools are a bit quirky. Well, today I got to see those two elements of the culture combined.

One of the schools at which I teach has regular group events. Previously, they had the classes go for a run around Culture Square. Today, I witnessed another event. The students marched out in their classes, carrying flags emblazoned with their class numbers. A bit odd, but nothing major. I figured that they were having another field day, or perhaps this was connected to their Phys Ed program - Chinese P.E. classes being big on low-impact aerobic exercises performed outside.

And that's when the choreography started.

It's hard to describe what I saw. They were moving in sync in time to the music, and judging by their skill they'd been working at this for a while. There was no one leading them, nor could there be as the classes were spread out all over the campus, in front of the school and in back. I had to head upstairs to get a better vantage point as I simply could not believe my eyes. I may have gone to teach class that day, but at that moment it was like I accidentally wandered into rehearsals for Thriller.

Eventually, it ended and everything went back to normal. I taught my classes and went home. Nothing else strange happened all day. You learn to roll with these things, I guess.