h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm just guessing, same as you. I find it irritating. But it can't reach me.

Just one of my favourite examples of the unsuspected viewpoint:

A 24 yr old Vietnamese woman I'd been tutoring for almost a year introduced me to her Vietnamese boyfriend, to whom she'd been engaged before she left Vietnam, who had just arrived yesterday. Not long into the conversation I asked how long it had taken him to get here, meaning the flight or whatever, how many hours in the air. Forty two months, was the reply, along with names of countries and refugee camps. Some people have some strange stories.

I don't know the personal history of this learner. I can't avoid the formation of some impressions as we go along and I early recognised she would never learn much from me because we are on different wavelengths. But other learners read the boards, they don't even need a BBC Membership. Thousands of lurkers. For them I offer my explanations and try to expose what I think might be some reasonable model of conduct. But I also try not to lose sight of the fact that I'm just guessing.

I just don't know how close to the truth your assessment was. Probably as close as mine, but I can never be sure. I do know that on occasions I've found myself hoping that if she ever finds herself manging a classroom all her students behave in it exactly as she has in Ask a q.: challenge every response; jump into every students query, chatter and joke. Shameful of me!