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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2014 12:56 pm Post subject: |
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Sleepwalker wrote: |
I must have been lucky but all had CELTAs and good board work. |
Interesting, none of ours had CELTAs, they had all been sponsored to do MA's in the UK or Oz. Limited practicum time but very good on theory. |
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Sleepwalker
Joined: 02 Feb 2007 Posts: 454 Location: Reading the screen
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 5:42 pm Post subject: |
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The college I worked at made it a requirement that anyone teaching English (Omani or expat) had to complete a CELTA during the first year of employment. They could take a loan for the fees and either repay from salary or trade it off over service time. The CELTA students were allowed to leave early for classes and the rest of us took a few extra hours. It was a great system.
The Omanis with CELTAs were talented teachers to start with but really improved. None were eligible for Masters sponsorship because they were SQU graduates and the GPA wasn't as high as others who studied abroad or in private colleges. It was a sore point at the time (and probably still is). |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 5:48 pm Post subject: |
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Sleepwalker wrote: |
The college I worked at made it a requirement that anyone teaching English (Omani or expat) had to complete a CELTA during the first year of employment. They could take a loan for the fees and either repay from salary or trade it off over service time. The CELTA students were allowed to leave early for classes and the rest of us took a few extra hours. It was a great system.
Sounds brilliant!
The Omanis with CELTAs were talented teachers to start with but really improved. None were eligible for Masters sponsorship because they were SQU graduates and the GPA wasn't as high as others who studied abroad or in private colleges. It was a sore point at the time (and probably still is). |
Mine are all CAS graduates, maybe the GPA's are lower at SQU because the grading is real? Certainly isn't in CAS. |
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Sleepwalker
Joined: 02 Feb 2007 Posts: 454 Location: Reading the screen
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 8:48 pm Post subject: |
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Judging by these teachers, the grading had been as rigorous as a decent university in the west. I've been at interviews with CAS graduates and I've never been impressed.
I work with four Omani teachers now - 3 have CELTAs and the other has a Teacher Training Certificate from Moray House, Edinburgh. All are SQU graduates and very good teachers. |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 11:07 am Post subject: |
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Sleepwalker wrote: |
I've been at interviews with CAS graduates and I've never been impressed.. |
I'm not surprised. I've tried to teach them for the past 3.5 years.... |
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Sleepwalker
Joined: 02 Feb 2007 Posts: 454 Location: Reading the screen
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Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 12:10 pm Post subject: |
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You have my sympathies..... |
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Tazz
Joined: 26 Sep 2013 Posts: 512 Location: Jakarta
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Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 4:13 am Post subject: |
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Don't think the CELTA course contains a component called 'how too engage the largely hostile, disaffected Omani youth' of the MOM colleges-think the instruction is aimed at teaching those who are inclined to actually learn. From an expat point of view, I think a week in an army boot camp would be more useful.... |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 7:09 am Post subject: |
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Tazz wrote: |
From an expat point of view, I think a week in an army boot camp would be more useful.... |
I agree although I don't think, based on my observations of the army here, that the Omani Army has quite grasped the idea of boot camp yet. |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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omanoman
Joined: 11 Jun 2014 Posts: 140
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 6:31 am Post subject: |
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That article is more specifically referring to blue collar workers but the main point is regarding ownership rules. One of many changes needed in the regulation of businesses.
Still no clarification about what exactly the 2 year rule means for white-collar expats, like teachers and whether they are able to move to another job after completing the first contract. |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 7:07 am Post subject: |
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omanoman wrote: |
Still no clarification about what exactly the 2 year rule means for white-collar expats, like teachers and whether they are able to move to another job after completing the first contract. |
Do try to keep up old boy, from today's ToM (my emphasis):
"Article 11 in the Passport and Residence Act in Oman states that the employment visa will not be issued to any foreigner who has previously worked in Oman but has not completed two years from the date of last departure," said a reliable ROP source.
"The law will be applicable to everyone," said Al Dhabari. However, he added that a no objection certificate (NOC) will not be necessary if the expat was to rejoin his previous employer."
The article goes on to state that:
"However, businesses in Oman will lose an expat visa from their company quota if they issue an NOC to employees who want to move to other jobs within the Sultanate, say officials.
As per the rules, the employers would have to choose between issuing the no objection certificate, and then being unable to hire another expat or retaining the employee and not issuing the NOC."
So no employer is gong to issue an NOC under those conditions.
In anticipation of the scurrilous claim that I'm making this up I attach the link:
http://www.timesofoman.com/News/35261/Article-Oman-expat-labour-law-No-plan-to-defer-two-year-ban-on-expatriate-return |
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omanoman
Joined: 11 Jun 2014 Posts: 140
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 8:42 am Post subject: |
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MG, that is from the original story from JUNE 14 - the one that is still under discussion and we have had a thread on it here.
Your post earlier is referring to a different, recent newspaper story and so my comments were referring to that one.
Am I keeping up? |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 11:31 am Post subject: |
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Whoops! Link within a link problem. Doesn't change the fact that the language was, and is, clear enough: it applies to EVERYONE. |
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omanoman
Joined: 11 Jun 2014 Posts: 140
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Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 3:48 pm Post subject: |
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We went over this when the original story came out. Since that time, there has been more discussion about what it actually means for employees who fulfill their contract and wish to change jobs.
The issue that the employer will be punished for allowing a visa transfer is still unclear from the ministry itself .
Like many decisions here, it wasn't fully thought through and the real life effects have yet to be seen. The big economic families who employ most of the expats will have their say and influence of course.
My bet is that if you do complete your contract, you will still be able to move to another job in Oman. |
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MuscatGary
Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 1364 Location: Flying around the ME...
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Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 4:32 pm Post subject: |
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omanoman wrote: |
We went over this when the original story came out. Since that time, there has been more discussion about what it actually means for employees who fulfill their contract and wish to change jobs.
The issue that the employer will be punished for allowing a visa transfer is still unclear from the ministry itself .
Like many decisions here, it wasn't fully thought through and the real life effects have yet to be seen. The big economic families who employ most of the expats will have their say and influence of course.
My bet is that if you do complete your contract, you will still be able to move to another job in Oman. |
Conjecture on your part. |
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