Sean McNally from Britain teaches Chinese children how to learn English through paintings. Many students in China have trouble learning English and using it in their daily lives. [Photo/China Daily]

A few days ago I was conducting a seminar for Chinese primary, middle and high schools English teachers. A couple of the questions I posed were: "Why did you select teaching as a career? and What is the most important quality that should be acquired by a teacher?"I was surprised by the responses I received.

As to the first question, their responses indicated that most didn't select teaching as a profession. The majority thought it was just a job that could provide a steady income with long winter and summer holidays.

Few chose it motivated by its prestige and its respectable status in Chinese society. The rest were driven to teaching by the nature of their majors and the careers that were available for those majors.

When I expressed my belief that teaching is a passion not a career, they argued that one can't feel passion toward a job that is full of disappointments. When I asked them to elaborate, they mentioned the fact that most students resent being forced to attend classes. They added that they felt disappointed seeing the lack of appreciation from students for their efforts.

Discussing the issue with some of the foreign teachers here and abroad, I discovered that they are equally divided regarding the question: "Is teaching a career or a passion?" Those who believed it is a career argued that most teachers don't like their jobs and ended up there because of their majors or the availability of jobs in the market.

They also mentioned the fact that most teachers feel burned out after few years due to work overload and the endless efforts they have to make to satisfy the needs of students and keep their teaching positions.

Those who believed that teaching is a passion insisted that teachers need to be passionate enough about their jobs to be able to transcend all common obstacles in the profession to guide their students toward the path of the acquisition of knowledge. Otherwise, they would not be able to stand the heat, which may lead them to quit or, worse, fall victim to mental anguish.

They said students nowadays are so intelligent that they can sense the attitudes of teachers toward their careers. They need to see that teachers are enthusiastic about enjoying the experience in order to be receptive to their teaching.

As for the second question, I was perplexed to discover that they believed that the acquisition of knowledge is what distinguishes an excellent teacher from a common one.