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I'm With Stupid
Joined: 03 Sep 2010 Posts: 432
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Posted: Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:17 am Post subject: |
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I still work for ILA. It's pretty much the same as ever. The main difference is that they switched the contracts to a higher hourly rate, removed a lot of the bonuses and then reduced the number of contract hours to 73 for a full time contract. For most of my contract, I've had about 24 hours a week teaching, but sometimes as low as 18. The other big difference is that scale increases are no longer automatic based purely on time spent there, and there are criteria to be met. So for example, I had to be trained up to teach exam classes and do level testing to get my last pay rise.
I quite like it. The lack of consecutive days off is a bit crap. I guess the lack of extra perks and unsociable hours wouldn't suit teachers with families. But you do get a lot of freedom to teach how you want to, contrary to Mark's claim that they want teachers who can follow a process. Oh, and the resources are probably the best I've seen, with the exception of anything IT-related.
And I think ILA still has a pretty good reputation amongst the best-paying schools in town. RMIT and the British Council are full of ex-ILA teachers, so if you're interested in progressing to higher-paid stable jobs with reputable companies, then there are worse places to start. |
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luked
Joined: 13 Feb 2013 Posts: 2 Location: London
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Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2013 12:15 pm Post subject: |
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Which ILA school are you at I'm with Stupid? |
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Tigerstyleone
Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 181
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Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2013 1:41 am Post subject: |
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How much does it cost for a primary student to study English at ILA ? |
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andy84
Joined: 29 Mar 2013 Posts: 2
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Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2013 1:14 pm Post subject: |
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Hi
My girlfriend and I are looking at schools to apply for in Vietnam and we're interested in ILA. Does anyone know if ILA are flexible with their schedules or is it very much a you get what you're given situation? We ideally don't want to have different days off. I'm interested in feedback regarding any of the ILA centres.
Thanks in advance.
Cheers,
Andy |
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mk87
Joined: 01 Apr 2013 Posts: 61
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Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2013 6:10 am Post subject: |
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Andy, if you interview at ILA and get the job then it's worth mentioning what you want from the off. They will try to do what they can; but from what I understand some of the bigger centres are a bit more difficult to "manipulate" your hours. It's all about being open about what you want.
I've been at ILA for a year and a half and quite a lot of what is in this thread is totally different from my experiences. I dont want to preach, or sound like a company man so I wont. But if anyone has any questions I will try to answer them as best I can. |
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andy84
Joined: 29 Mar 2013 Posts: 2
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Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2013 3:13 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for the reply and the good advice, it's much appreciated. It's good to hear that ILA will try and accommodate their teachers' requests where possible.
From what I've read they seem like a decent employer. However, the lack of two consecutive days off would it make a little difficult to see other parts of Vietnam.
Like you say, it's best to be open about what I want (if I'm successful with the application). |
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mk87
Joined: 01 Apr 2013 Posts: 61
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Posted: Thu Apr 18, 2013 4:52 am Post subject: |
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Yeah the lack of a proper "weekend" can be annoying at times, but equally it can work quite well if you are prepare to think ahead about your holiday. If you end up on a tuesday/ thursday schedule (most likley for a new starter) then you only need to book 2 days holiday off and you can get 5 days travel time. I guess like most things it has pro's and con's.
I'm working 7 days a week at the moment, out of choice (I didnt want to give up a class that I have taught for a year and a half) and ILA have been great about letting me choose what times I want to work etc.
I think ILA is a good place to work, maybe slightly less so in one of the huge centres. Lots of the stuff that has been written on here about them is simply false. We have a couple of Viet Kieu's working in our centre, and a few older people, as well as some newly qualified teachers and everywhere in between.
In terms of being told to teach in a "strict rigid way", I've never seen anything like that. My management have been very supportive of me experimenting with my classes etc. Again, it seems to all come back to communication. If you are happy to be honest then you dont seem to run in to much trouble. I'd be interested to hear what the people who suggest ILA only teaches in a certain way are actually talking about. the posts are quite vague. |
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xees
Joined: 25 Mar 2010 Posts: 3
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Posted: Fri May 17, 2013 5:07 pm Post subject: |
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Hey, I just want to say that I'm currently working at ILA and that I'm happy here.
The management in my centre (albeit I work at a smaller centre so I have more contact time with the said academic staff) is good and actually provides me with useful ideas and activities for the classroom.
I'd be happy to answer anyone's questions about ILA Vietnam - but I can only supply my experience rather than giving you a what's what of ILA.
I think the advantage of ILA is: It's good for new teachers. If you're someone more experienced then it might be better to look somewhere else |
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Tigerstyleone
Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 181
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Posted: Mon Jul 01, 2013 6:47 am Post subject: |
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July 1st, 2013
This is the beginning of the end for ILA. Teachers will no longer be clamoring to get in. |
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charlesmarlow
Joined: 17 May 2013 Posts: 68
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 2:43 am Post subject: |
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Hi Tiger
Do you have any info concerning the beginning of the end for ILA?
From teachers and managers who I know and have spoken to recently, ILA's business is doing well. I know someone who was recently employed in Saigon at 24 USD an hour to teach IELTS and other academic English programmes. In addition, he has a work permit, visa etc, one month paid
holiday per year and paid Viet holidays. Also other benefits, bonus for resigning contract, health insurance. Sounds pretty good to me. |
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Tigerstyleone
Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 181
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 4:05 am Post subject: |
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Mr. Gingo I mean Marlow,
There's always an exception. The good IELTS teacher making $24 an hour, but how many hours a day is that?
Anyway, what does the 1st or 2nd year teacher earn at ILA? How's their schedule?
Do they start at $2200 a month working M-F with no evening or weekend classes? Do they have name tags ? |
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TRH
Joined: 27 Oct 2011 Posts: 340 Location: Hawaii
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 5:36 am Post subject: |
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Tigerstyleone wrote: |
Do they have name tags ? |
I am a unclear about exactly what point you are trying to make. Exactly why is ILA moving down in your estimation? I am sometimes brief to a fault but you can be rather cryptic.
Are name tags a good thing or bad? Maybe they just honestly identify teachers as hourly employees and not really faculty in any academic sense of the word. |
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I'm With Stupid
Joined: 03 Sep 2010 Posts: 432
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 7:48 am Post subject: |
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Tigerstyleone wrote: |
July 1st, 2013
This is the beginning of the end for ILA. Teachers will no longer be clamoring to get in. |
Been looking at your Mayan calender again? |
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Tigerstyleone
Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 181
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:14 am Post subject: |
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I'm With Stupid wrote: |
Tigerstyleone wrote: |
July 1st, 2013
This is the beginning of the end for ILA. Teachers will no longer be clamoring to get in. |
Been looking at your Mayan calender again? |
hehehe
Ok, so ILA isn't going to collapse into bankruptcy. They will continue to attract the newbie without a clue type teachers, ( and the few IELTS experts here and there) but they are going to find it hard to retain teachers in the next coming year or two. Look at how many teachers are planning to leave this August. That's only the beginning.
Again, what does a newly CELTA qualified teacher earn at ILA? How's their schedule? Do they have name tags ?
If I'm wrong, I'm wrong and I'll admit it. Let's see what happens in the next two months. |
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I'm With Stupid
Joined: 03 Sep 2010 Posts: 432
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:46 pm Post subject: |
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Name tags?
I don't know how much a new teacher earns, but as I understand it, it's still a MWFSS or TTSS deal (with a handful of people on M-F), which isn't great because you don't get two days off in a row, but the Tuesday Thursday schedule is still pretty decent with 3 days off and 20 days paid holiday (which works out at 5 weeks for TT people). I've always said it's one of the best places for new CELTA graduates, along with Apollo, but once you've been teaching for a while, you can probably get a better deal elsewhere. But they do the basic things well (always get you a work visa, pay on time, etc) which as I understand it is a bit of a rarity in this country. |
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