Job Discussion Forums

[Hod]

Call me a scaremonger if you like, but I�m just playing devil�s advocate here.

Isn�t Algeria dangerous? Is it the sort of place where you�d feel happy living and working whilst your aging parents spend hours every day wondering if you�re OK? It's just that I had an ex-colleague who had gone to live in Algiers, and if she ever put her mind to writing about it, it could very well make the plot for a disturbing movie.

I�m not even gonna read any usual pc replies about London or New York being just as dangerous because x thousand people die every year due to gun crimes, etc etc. This is the Africa board and an Algeria thread.

[Muslim expat]

Malaysia actually has a higher death rate per 1000 population than Algeria. Now where they get their statistics I don't know but if 200,000 Algerians died in the internal fighting between 1992 and 2002 it would seem the figures are wrong.

[mahdiyyah]

Hi all, I am a 35 year old English woman married to an Algerian and in July this year, I came to live permanently in Algeria. Having spent my whole career to date as a nurse, but lacking the foreign language skills required to nurse in Algeria, I began to investigate the possibilities of teaching English.
There are a number of private schools, some teaching American english and some teaching pure English as I like to call it.
Although I am not due to start until October, I was told that pay would be about �3.50 - �4.00 an hour which is apparently very good.
I have not investigated teaching in the university as I like the smaller schools and they are usually run by English speakers which helps when sorting out contracts or problems.
I look forward to hearing from anyone who wants more information and can recommend the website given for the Hopeland Institute above.
Hopefully, I can let you know how I get on once I start.
Don't be disheartened, there is an active expat network here and native English speakers are valued highly in the English schools.
Algeria is a bizarre country which feels like you've gone back in time, but the pace of life is slower (if not frustrating at times) and the people are very friendly. I am aware of the dangers but don't feel scared to go out on my own during the day, although I would be selective regarding where I go in the evening. It has been a wonderful experience so far and long may it continue to be so.

[Oasisdweller]

Good to hear, Maddiyah.

[Muslim expat]

Well I am almost there and I have to report that it has been an interesting trip. Going to Abu Dhabi was uneventful and then I got on the plane to Casablanca with a load of sisters and some brothers returning from Umrah. I thought the plane would not be able to take off with all the carry on baggage! It just reminded me about how I love the Arab people. Their passion and the way emotions are expressed is uplifting to me. I am looking forward to working with them and will report more when that begins.

[meri]

I got this email address from Teachabroad.com: [email protected].
I don't know where you'll be living but they seemed very interested in hiring native speakers to teach. I didn't work for them so I can't tell you if they are good employers.

[Muslim expat]

Thanks I tried an email to the address you gave me.
Insha Allah i will get an answer.
I am here now for 2 weeks and I can't say enough about the people here. They go way out of their way to help somebody they feel is sincere. Hopefully I will stay as the students I have met are so keen they are easy to teach due to their enthusiasm.

[Vteacher]

[Muslim expat]

vteacher please get your head out of this space. They are my sisters and I did help some of them fill out their landing cards. If you do good with your brothers and sisters God will reward you in this life and the hereafter insha Allah.

[Vteacher]

[Muslim expat]

You make your choices Vteacher and I make mine. I am not trying to make anyone believe anything but I am stating my beliefs right up front. I mean c'mon my moniker is "Muslim" expat. Besides Vteacher remember my first post when I said I was seeing about getting married? Well I have been to her family and asked her father to marry her and he has consented. This was one of my reasons for coming to Algeria. I also take marriage very seriously as I believe it protects me from being caught up in what is "normal" today. What is normal today I believe will have serious implications on my life after this plane of existence ends for me. Again these are my beliefs that I chose openly and freely. I don't feel like I am that pious either Vteacher. I am just living my life according to a set of principles I believe were given to all mankind to warn us and protect us. The classroom is for teaching English and I do understand how and why humour works in that setting and when to use it. I also have humour in my life though maybe it doesn't come across in these posts.

[grahamb]

You asked the girl's [i]father[/i] to marry her?

[grahamb]

Oh, b*gg*r those italics!

[Muslim expat]

Yes I went to her father and asked. This is how we do this in Islam. See I said this stuff was not normal for todays ways but I am comfortable and happy with the procedure and the answer from dad. But we digress! This is a forum for teaching English to speakers of other languages. The monitor will think I am using it to shock people. I am happy to answer any questions about my beliefs by personal email. My address is here so feel free to ask though I am a better English teacher than a scholar of Islam. If I can't answer any question I will say so and possibly ask a local Imam if I have the time and the question is interesting. Just no questions about the wedding night please !

[grahamb]

Actually I was pulling your leg (joking), because you said "I have been to her family and asked her father to marry her and he has consented." Reading that literally, it suggests that you asked the man to marry his daughter. Of course it's obvious that you asked him for his permission for you to marry her, but such is my sense of humour.