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[vonthaden]

Let me start this with a disclaimer: Yes, I am a disgruntled former employee. Yes, all the views expressed here after are biased. Yes, all coins have two sides.

I worked at Jingdezhen Comprehensive College during the 2010-2011 school year. I would not and cannot recommend this school to anyone. From the first day to the very last day this school brought me nothing but headaches. I learned, shortly after I started, that no teachers had left satisfied in the six years the school has had foreign teachers.
Let me lay out my story for you.

Getting robbed. Two weeks after class started, my apartment was burglarized. I was asleep in my sunroom while a thief pried the bars on the window and entered my apartment. I slept through the whole event, but woke to find my computer, briefcase, and assorted other items on my kitchen floor. The thief had taken my camera and some cash but left the other items on the kitchen floor. Maybe he was scared off, I don�t know. I later found out the FT�s apartment on the fourth floor was burglarized two years earlier. The apartment next door had been broken into as well as the FAO�s apartment one building over had also been burglarized. The FT who live in my apartment 4 years prior confronted someone trying to steal his motorcycle in front of his building. I once caught two young men trying to cut the lock off my bicycle. Basically, it�s not safe. I won�t hypothesis as to why the crime rate is so high at this one school.

Late pay. I was continuously paid late. From one day to two weeks. I found out from former teachers that this was normal. I was also told the school has four foreign teachers registered with the provincial gov�t but only three present. A little side money is my guess. When I requested a receipt, I was flat out told no receipts and no we won�t direct deposit the money. My last pay was not given to me the day I finished my contract. �Sorry, it�s not me it�s the business office.� I was paid 21 days after my contract ended and only after I threatened to call the gov�t and report the school. Three FT�s over the past five years have had to leave without airfare reimbursement. They know how to weasel it out of you. If you leave China without your money your chances of getting it later (as promised) are slim. They promise people they would get it later and don�t give it up unless forced to do so.

Absentee management. Just not there. Never. If you have a problem send a text message to your FAO and wait. Wait. Noo, a little longer. Wait some more. The first two weeks I was there I had electrical problems in my apartment. I requested a worker to fix it. Over those two weeks I had no electricity for 6 nights. When I did have electricity I had to go outside and flip the breaker every 30 minutes. I have endless stories that would fit into this category, I won�t bore you. Just don�t expect them to be there. Get a Chinese friend to help you, the school and the Chinese teachers are busy. From now until the end of eternity. They are in a meeting, out of town, at Ktv. I don�t know just not at school.

Hateful students. On three separate occasions I got a straight, �F*** You� from students. Never my own students (they were really good) mainly students in other departments. It was just redneck stupidity. They had heard it in a movie and thought it ok to yell at the foreign teacher. This attitude was a result of the Chinese teachers who taught English. They were not exactly the friendliest bunch.

The washrooms. Ohhh my Lady GaGa!!! Don�t go! I would walk home before entering them. Cancel class. Squeeze my cheeks. Anything but go in there. It was worse than most train stations. You know the trench style squat toilets. They should have water running through them, these did not. Once a week they would dump a bucket of water in the trench. Once a week!! Not enough. Two people were assigned to clean a five story building with over 200 classrooms.

Do I need to go on?

JCC Jingdezhen Comprehensive College.

Just Say NO!!!!

Ol� Nancy was right.