Please note: The following are some of the questions I asked and selected responses from my students from my 2010 Tort Law Final Exam. A large number of my students have pretty good English language skills and did outstanding on this exam. However, I do have to point out the comments that made me laugh and smile. I understand that English is not their first language but this is suppose to be a course taught completely in English. Anyhow, comments in parentheses are mine.
Please respond to the following statements by writing down TRUE or FALSE. If a statement is false, please correct it to make it TRUE.
“TURE”
(Off to a bad start here...)
Using cases that we studied in class, explain the special standards of care for the young in Canadian and English law. Do you think an objective or mixed subjective/objective test is best? What do you think about the adult activities doctrine?
“The only the thing we have to do when we are deciding whether a child is liable for what he did is to check out the year of his borning”
“The adult should not always keep his eyes on the child,but to leave enough time to make the child fly like a bird.” (Nelly Furtado fan, perhaps?)
“However, the decision is one which need not be made with mathematical certitude.” (Plagiarized, anyone?)
“I think the adult activities doctrine is not fair to everybody, for example, men and women”
What are some of the problems with “The But For Test” in determining causation? How have courts dealt with this problem? Use cases to support your answer! (3 Marks)
“Sorry professor John.I don't know "The But For Test".
“I’m Sorry professor John.I forgot it”
Compare and contrast the decisions in Wagon Mound (No. 1) and Wagon Mound (No. 2). Why do you think they were decided differently?
“Wagon Mound (No. 1) is huangfalar to Wagon Mound (No. 2).” (What does that mean?????)
I am sorry ,professor John.I don’t know what the question means.sorry.
Explain the terms “proximity” and the “reasonable person
“Reasonable person:the man thinking before acting.”
“reasonable person.” means recognized by the society of people with general intellectual.”
“Proximity is the property of being close together.
“reasonable person is that action is taken after thinking. “
Using the headings duty of care, standard of care, causation, remoteness of damage, burden of proof and damages, please give an overview of the course. Remember to use cases to explain!”
“Sorry, Professor John. I’m afraid I can’t totally understand the question. You know there are differences between China and the west. In the process of translation and communication, barriers appear from time to time. Not only can be found in study. But also in living, thinking and so on. So, please forgive me.” (It's cultural differences that prevent her from answering this question
“All of those are tort.The duty of care is essential for example Anns v. Merton;standard of care is happened in some area for example Palsraf v. Long Island;causation is breaking for example Horsely v. Maclaren;remoteness of damage is Childs v. Desormeaux.”
“One day Jackson is take his wolf dog for a walk in the park,it is a very offensive dog.In the park Jackson suddenly want to pee,he hide into the bosk and mistakenly live the dog along.Unfortunately the wolf dog strikes a boy named Obama,Obama’s leg is heavily injury and send into the hospital.In the hospital,the doctor says that Obama should have a operation and stay in hospital for a month,during this time,Obama could not go to school” (Quite the story to illustrate those concepts!!)
“Professor John teach us the course of tort law this semester ,he is a very good professor .The tort law course is very practical in life .From the course I learned that in an case of infringement if you are the plaintiff you could prove the infringer have the duty of care ,for example in an traffic accident the driver don’t obey the traffic rules so his car hit an man who is walking on the sidewalk .In this case the driver has the duty of care ,and basic standard of care is not let his car hit the pedestrian, however, he don’t .Because he had been drunk. Remoteness of damage is the pedestrian’s head injured Causation between the damage and the driver’s duty of care is clear ,the pedestrian have the burden of proof and damage if he ask the driver to take the responsibility.”
“This semester, we start the course Foreign Tort Law from the 8th to 15th week, which is led by Professor John.”
I study the Tort Law this semester which is teached by Professor John. I know some basic about the elements of the Tort Law ,such as duty of care, standard of care, causation, remoteness of damage, burden of proof and damages.
Besides China, name FIVE countries in the world that Professor John has visited.
“While learning about tort law ,he visited Canada, United States, the United Kingdom and other areas around the world”
“China, Canada…”
"Africa"
"South Africa"
"I say Australia because I love this country..."
What instrument does Professor John play in his Chongqing band?
"Professor John play the fingerboard!"
"By the way Avril Lavigne is my favourite Canadian pop singer."
“BTW, the music on the professor’s website is very attractive. I hope professor’s band can hold some concerts in our school.”
"I know Professor John enjoys listening to music and sports and is learning to play badminton and table tennis. You can visit the Three Gorges region, which is a scenic area..." (This goes on and on like it is an invite for me to go there with them...)
What did you think about this course? Do you have any suggestions on how it can be improved? If I could teach a different course next semester, which one would you want to learn about?
“All is best. “
“Through Professor John’s lectures we not only learn useful knowledge,but also improve the ability of thinking.”
“Professor John’s performance is great, somehow we students are not.”
“I LOVE TORT LAW ANA JOHN”
“If teaching are going on outdoor,it should be better. I want to learn natural scenery in different country.”
“It is a very professional course in which I learn a lot about protecting our rights and how to get compensation after damages by others. Tort Law is just made in China,but not completed. There is a long way we have to go in developing this law. So I see a lot of significance in this course. Hope I get enough knowledge of this law”
“Because of our poor English level,we hope Deer professor John can speak slowly.In addition,I think your chinese must be very well,so I want to converse with you in chinese.”
“Professor John is a good teacher and friend to us, and this course is a sucess to us all.”
“suggestions :commncation with each other”
“tort law is a branch of the law which covers civil wrongs, such as defamation and trespassing, among many other
transgressions. Under tort law, if someone suffers a physical, legal, or economic harm, he or she may be entitled to bring suit. If the suit is deemed valid, damages may be awarded to the victim to compensate for his or her troubles. Most tort laws are found in regional, state, and national civil codes, which often spell out limits on damages and the statute of limitations for tort cases.” (It's too late to plagiarize more answers!!!!)
(^_^)
“Students are expected to attend class regularly, prepare for lectures and participate in discussion.” (Thanks for the suggestion!!!)
“Professor John is so cute that we often feel very funny.”
"Please speak to us in Chinese!"
"Please speak to us in Chinese!"
“Professor of Chongqing, the last hope of life...”
“My suggestion just only one,that is tell us some interesting things about your country.”
“I suggest that the teacher should communicate about the course and your country and your life etc. Through this,we can stretghen relationship, and we may have lively atmosphere in the class.”
“I’m very interested in the music.”
“Tell the truth, Even though my English is poor, I fell it very interesting.”
“But there is a little regret that the course is too short. The school department should arrange more lessons for this course so that we could study much further. “
“Professor john ，you are my teacher forever！！！”
"Thank Professor John for teaching us by his whole heart!!!"
"By the way,I think we can play more vedios to help us realize the real judicial system in other countries. I think it will be more interested. (This after 2 out of 8 classes were John Grisham movies!)
"We are very happy for learning the course... Thank you for broad my eye!"
"Professor John's course is very splendid!"
"I hope Professor John's courseware could more detail" (If only I had books or anything from the university here! Dui bu qi!)
"How is Canada system? Are there any warrants to made the justice well done?"
"I think you can learn more Chinese so that if I was not figure out the course in English you can interpret it with Chinese..."
"We are very happy for learning the course... Thank you for broad my eye!"
"Professor John's course is very splendid!"
"I hope Professor John's courseware could more detail" (If only I had books or anything from the university here! Dui bu qi!)
"How is Canada system? Are there any warrants to made the justice well done?"
"I think you can learn more Chinese so that if I was not figure out the course in English you can interpret it with Chinese..."
