I have had 4 years experience interviewing and placing foreign teachers to teach in China universities and schools as I was retained by a language center and placement agency (teacher and student placement) in Hong Kong after I retired from the international financial industry.
I know how chaotic Chinese management is!!! If the person in charge is not around, not the smallest decision can be made. Employee of the school usually are not friendly, responsible, caring, knowledgeable of what's going on, etc.
I am really tempted to name the school located on Shenshan Lu where I had an appointment with an American Taiwanese teacher. The lady there knew nothing and did not care to answer any questions. The headmaster and owner is always hiding. A good friend of mine, a Chinese lady who has lived in Canada for 13 years, taught there for a few sessions and was greeted with grudges from the owner that she had not put in more time beyond what she was supposed to put in. She was so fed up that she quit, but securing the pay became a nightmare.
1) No one knows exactly what's going on?
2) Low intake of students means students of varying levels being pooled together in one class.
3) High intake of students means the optimal class size is broken. Reports of 10 students being put in one class were recorded.
4) If you go to the right school, chances are you will be taught by qualified foreign teachers. Otherwise, you will be taught by foreign teachers who are not trained teachers. Some cannot talk properly and carry with them heavy accent. Many of these backpackers come from very low social background in their own country so you know too well what to expect. They are not stable as well.
5) These foreign teachers are not necessarily from native English speaker countries. Many are from Italy, Germany, Denmark, Holland, Africa, etc. You name it.
6) Teaching assistants often make incorrect interpretation of what the foriegn teachers say. (I experienced this myself and found myself in an awkward situation. If I let the class know that there is a problem with the teaching assistant, I will upset the teaching assisstant. If I don't correct the teaching assistant, I am doing a disservice to the students. I don't want to make enemies out of these unqualified teaching assistants.)
7) If you have a Chinese face, you will normally not be accepted even though you are a great teacher. The students simply blindly believe in the magic of a white face.
[This post entry was originally posted in a Yangshuo English Schools Alumni Forum:-
http://yangshuoalumni.uu1001.com]
I know how chaotic Chinese management is!!! If the person in charge is not around, not the smallest decision can be made. Employee of the school usually are not friendly, responsible, caring, knowledgeable of what's going on, etc.
I am really tempted to name the school located on Shenshan Lu where I had an appointment with an American Taiwanese teacher. The lady there knew nothing and did not care to answer any questions. The headmaster and owner is always hiding. A good friend of mine, a Chinese lady who has lived in Canada for 13 years, taught there for a few sessions and was greeted with grudges from the owner that she had not put in more time beyond what she was supposed to put in. She was so fed up that she quit, but securing the pay became a nightmare.
1) No one knows exactly what's going on?
2) Low intake of students means students of varying levels being pooled together in one class.
3) High intake of students means the optimal class size is broken. Reports of 10 students being put in one class were recorded.
4) If you go to the right school, chances are you will be taught by qualified foreign teachers. Otherwise, you will be taught by foreign teachers who are not trained teachers. Some cannot talk properly and carry with them heavy accent. Many of these backpackers come from very low social background in their own country so you know too well what to expect. They are not stable as well.
5) These foreign teachers are not necessarily from native English speaker countries. Many are from Italy, Germany, Denmark, Holland, Africa, etc. You name it.
6) Teaching assistants often make incorrect interpretation of what the foriegn teachers say. (I experienced this myself and found myself in an awkward situation. If I let the class know that there is a problem with the teaching assistant, I will upset the teaching assisstant. If I don't correct the teaching assistant, I am doing a disservice to the students. I don't want to make enemies out of these unqualified teaching assistants.)
7) If you have a Chinese face, you will normally not be accepted even though you are a great teacher. The students simply blindly believe in the magic of a white face.
[This post entry was originally posted in a Yangshuo English Schools Alumni Forum:-
http://yangshuoalumni.uu1001.com]
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