1. Read the tips for travelling teachers and comment on taboos existing in different countries. Helpful Notes for Travelling Teachers

China

Students may not maintain steady eye contact with you when you are talking to them. Try to be respectful of the culture by not holding eye contact with a single student for too long.

Make sure to begin and end your classes on time, even if there are students looking for help with homework.

Try to avoid putting your hand near your mouth or biting your fingernails. This is considered rude.

Never wave someone over with your finger. Wave them over with a hand and fingers pointed down.

If your students give you gifts, know that it is customary not to open it in front of them.

The student / teacher relationship is generally formal in nature. You may think that your Chinese students are unhappy or disliking your class because they don't smile as much as other students.

France

Avoid discussions of jobs, and financial success or wealth. This is often considered the greatest taboo in France.

Avoid talking about immigration.

The American sign for OK (making a circle with finger and thumb), which teachers often use to show that a student has done something correctly or perfectly means “nothing” in France.

Maintaining eye contact is not customary between strangers. If you hold eye contact with someone on the street or in a store you are suggesting you want a relationship with them. Refusing eye contact, however, suggests that you think you are of a higher status than the other person.

Students will cover their mouth with their hands to gesture that they have made a mistake.

Germany

It is considered very rude to be even a few minutes late.

Never chew gum in public or in class.

The American sign for OK (making a circle with finger and thumb), which teachers often use to show that a student has done something correctly or perfectly refers to female private body parts in Germany.

Avoid discussing how much money people earn. If you are dining out with others, it is considered rude to start your meal before everyone has received theirs.

It is considered bad luck to wish a German person a Happy Birthday before the actual date.

Japan

Teachers should not touch their students (e.g. hand on shoulder, high five).

Take steps not to say or do something that would cause a single student to feel embarrassed. Japanese people are more likely to feel ashamed and insulted rather than innocently embarrassed.

The American sign for OK, which teachers often use to show that a student has done something correctly or perfectly means “money” in Japan.

Be discrete about blowing your nose in the classroom.

Avoid discussing World War II.

Mexico

Avoid discussing pollution.

Avoid discussing illegal immigration.

Avoid discussing religion.

Don't make comparisons between Mexico and the U.S.

Avoid discussing sexuality.

It is considered very rude to take the Lord's name in vain in Mexico. If you are the type of person to use a form of the phrase, “Oh my God,” in your everyday conversation, you may want to practise eliminating it from your vocabulary.

It is considered rude for men to keep their hands in their pocket.

It is helpful to be aware of the taboo in Mexico for young people to live alone or with a girlfriend / boyfriend before getting married.

Mexican people tend to stand very close to one another when engaged in a conversation. It is considered rude to move further away.