Mary Whitsell, from the United States, retired as a tutor with the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) in 2021. Now, she volunteers as an English teacher at the library of Yongcheng Community, in Shounan Subdistrict, Yinzhou District, in Ningbo, a city in east China's Zhejiang Province. Whitsell's approach to teaching has inspired her students to be enthusiastic about learning English. The community-based classroom is filled with laughter — and love. For Whitsell, volunteering as a teacher is her way of repaying the kindness she has received since she settled in Ningbo. She hopes to promote warmth and kindness to people in the community.
Class Full of Fun
"Does anyone know the English words for these insects?" Whitsell says, as she draws images of insects on a board in a classroom in the library. During the past three years, Whitsell has taught English classes — for free — in the community.
Whitsell relocated from the United States to China 12 years ago, after she was hired by UNNC's English Linguistics and Education Center. After she retired, she took a Chinese-language course offered by the university. As she was learning another language, Whitsell began thinking: "Why not teach English to locals; and by doing so, help deepen mutual understanding through language learning?"
A library was established in Yongcheng in early 2022. The library eventually sought volunteers, to serve as the library's "one-day chief" and contribute to the library's daily management. Whitsell visited the library in March that year, and she offered to teach English for free. Two months later, she taught her first English class at the library.
Since May 2022, Whitsell's English class has been held every Wednesday, from 9:30 am to 10:30 am. Whitsell carefully prepares her notes for each lecture. The contents of her lectures involve everyday life. She also likes to teach her students songs in English. Sometimes, the class is arranged outdoors. Whitsell and her students sit in a park; while they enjoy a picnic, Whitsell shares her interesting experiences with her students.
During the past three years, Whitsell has taught approximately 100 students, including young, white-collared workers and retired senior citizens. Yao Hui, one of Whitsell's students, who was born during the 1980s, says, "When we write a test, Mary stands behind us, to check if something goes wrong. I feel like I am back in my school days. After I told my friend I attend such a nice English class in the community, my friend even traveled from Suzhou (a city in east China's Jiangsu Province) to Ningbo to attend our class."
Pan Lulu, a woman born during the 1990s, was among the first group of students to enroll in Whitsell's class. Pan has been impressed by the cordial American teacher since the first lecture. The encouragement she has received from Whitsell has helped her overcome her fear of speaking English. Pan says the students have a contact group, online, so they can easily share Whitsell's teaching materials, and the remarkable experiences they have in their daily lives. "We ask Mary any questions we encounter during our English learning. She replies patiently, every time," Pan adds.
'Great Wall Dream'
Whitsell's curiosity about China began to develop when she was a girl. She was raised in La Puente, a city in California, until she was seven years old. There was a small Chinese restaurant called "The Great Wall" in the city. Whitsell remembers longing to go to that Chinese restaurant as a child, and envying her cousins who frequently ate there and told her how wonderful Chinese food was. It was the Chinese food that sowed the "seed of Great Wall dream" in Whitsell's heart.
While growing up, Whitsell has been to various places in the United States, including Miami and San Francisco, and other countries, including Holland and Japan. Regardless of where she has lived or traveled, Whitsell has looked for Chinese food served in local restaurants. She has made friends with Chinese, many of whom she considers "smart chefs," who can turn seemingly simple ingredients into delicious food.
Since she settled in Ningbo, Whitsell has fulfilled her "Great Wall dream." How? "If only I have known then (at the age of 7) that someday I would live in China and be able to eat real Chinese food whenever I liked," she laughs.
During her interactions with students and residents in recent years, Whitsell has obtained a more dimensional and vivid impression of China, and more specifically, of Ningbo. She wants to share what she has experienced in Ningbo with others.
Whitsell greatly appreciates Ningbo's well developed public transportation system and she relies on it to get around instead of using cars. "Green transport" meets her concept of living an environmentally friendly lifestyle. Whitsell says every time she returns to the US, to visit relatives and friends, she acts like an "envoy" from China. She shares her stories of life in China, to help her relatives and friends understand the changes that have taken place in China. She also invites her relatives and friends to visit China.
Communications
Whitsell's class boosts residents' enthusiasm for learning English. Based on her suggestions, and those of her students, the library in 2024 established an English corner for youth. From 7 pm to 8 pm every Friday, an English class is organized at the corner especially for children and teenagers. Some of Whitsell's students, including Pan, have volunteered to read during the class.
In the past year, several themed activities have been organized in the library to coincide with traditional Chinese festivals, and some Western festivals. Whitsell and other teachers and graduate students from UNNC have been invited to participate. They have communicated with the younger participants, to help them learn about and understand the charms of and differences between Chinese and other cultures. Affected by Whitsell, other international teachers at UNNC have applied to become the library's "one-day chief."
"We are branches of one tree, deeply rooted in the ground; we are branches of one tree, reaching for the sky." This is an excerpt from a song Whitsell has taught her class. "It emphasizes the value of celebrating tradition and history as we look toward the future."
Whitsell says she is grateful to have been given the opportunity to teach in China. Since her retirement, she has charted a new course during her continuous journey in China. "I like being a teacher here. At the beginning, I thought I would do my best to help others. But, in fact, my Chinese students have offered me much more than what I have given them," Whitsell concludes.
Photos from Chen Chaobo
(Women of China English Monthly September 2025)
Editor: Wang Shasha
