Job Discussion Forums

[Shroob]

Hi all,

At the university where I teach there are 5 foreign teachers. We are all paid the same and our contracts state the same maximum teaching hours (18 academic hours - 45 minutes a week). However, the hours we teach vary between teachers.

I have been given 18 periods (the FAO tried to give me more but I pointed out in the contract that 18 was the maximum). The other teachers either have 16, 14 or, in one case 10 (they belong to a different department however).

I was just wondering is this usual? I can understand the difference between 16 and 18 periods, it's just one class and someone has to draw the short straw. I suppose at the back of my mind I'm thinking that it's because I'm by far the youngest teacher here and with the least experience (though the only one with industry recognised qualifications - CELTA).

[7969]

It's not unusual for teachers at the same school with the same contract to have a different number of classes. I've found that the number of hours actually worked depends on what subject you teach, who the students are, and how many classes there are at that particular level (freshman, sophomore etc). You kind of answered your own question above - the other teachers are in a different dept and thus have different classes/hours.

For example our school has a different intake of English majors each year - one year it's seven classes, next it's six, then eight. A teacher could get lucky and have only 12 periods per week one year but the next year he/she might have a full schedule (16). Sometimes if the workload is a bit light they'll add a class or two from the Chinese dept. (schedule permitting) to bring the teacher up to the amount called for in the contract. Anyway as long as they don't try to stiff you by adding more than 18 without overtime pay you should be good with what you've got. Maybe next year you'll luck out with fewer classes. It happens.

[dean_a_jones]

Yeah, would agree that it is not that unusual, especially across different departments. As you say, sometimes the number of classes to be taught may necessitate a slight lack of balance, often with senior teachers reaping the benefits.

Another potential reason is different classes. If writing was being taught, for example, then I would expect a teacher who had this course to perhaps have reduced hours, as there tends to be more work outside of the classroom due to papers needing to be marked. Same would go for a teacher who was helping develop a new course, which might entail more work.

Finally, if there reduced teaching hours it may be because teachers are doing other types of extracurricular work (or may be called upon to do so). At our school teachers who don't do the full compliment of hours (contracted for 16, some are on 11 or 12) do an extra hour and a half of 'English Salon', which is a once a week, evening English corner type event (unmarked), but with only 5 - 10 students per teacher.

The fact that they tried to give you more than the contract suggests you should watch out, but a bit of variation is not unusual.

[Shroob]

Ok, thanks for the advice and reassurance. I thought I may be being a little too paranoid.

The other teachers all teach 'oral English', only one teacher is with a different department.

[Miles Smiles]

At my last employer, a Japanese teacher was assigned 16 hours of economics and Japanese language while her male counterparts (who taught the same subjects) were assigned three hours apiece. She MIGHT have been a better teacher, but one of the teachers had 30 years experience, so being a better or more experienced teacher didn't figure into scheduling.

Several years ago, I signed on at a college with a contract requiring "up to" eighteen classroom hours. The other FTs had contracts stating a maximum of fourteen hours. One guy taught nine hours and the other doofus taught six. I was the last one to arrive. I got stuck with fourteen, and because I wasn't carrying a full eighteen hours, the FAO made me do extra work for the FL department. I was happy to do the work when it didn't encroach upon my time spent preparing for other classes.

The head of the FL department didn't give me any grief when I didn't do things that the Chinese teachers should have been doing themselves. She knew that the FAO was an idiot who overstepped her bounds.

Sometimes there seems to be no rime or reason to what schools do.

[xiguagua]

I've had it happen as well. For my school we had 3 FT's and there were say 10 freshman classes and 8 sophomore classes, and another teaching other departments and 6 classes needing FT's in other departments. Well, it's weird if you have 2 freshman classes with a different teacher, it throws everything off, it's much easier to just give all the same grade/age/level/whatever classes to one person. Then the next term one teacher that had a lot of classes before was generally given a break. Hence why I was doing 24 classes at one point (FT was fired midterm and I took his classes) and the next term I only got 16, then the next term I got 12.

I would actually prefer having 18-20 classes since in a lot of cities there's not much to do and I end up sitting at home wasting time.

[Guerciotti]

There's no consistency here. It helps to - I cannot think of a better word than "manipulate" - network with and manipulate the admin using your Chinese language skills for a better schedule and let the other chips fall where they may. I don't speak Chinese thus I can't manipulate and so I get all the writing classes plus one class over my contract. Still working on getting overtime pay but I give that a 50% chance of success. Guess where Ill be next year? Not here, not at this school. I will go elsewhere in China or the ME. Maybe I can teach business subjects?

They actually emailed my schedule to the other teacher. Doggonnit.

Five teachers and we all have different class loads. Sigh.

So, no consistency here.

Thanks and my apologies, I needed to rant.

[Opiate]

[Lobster]

Be consoled, some times they like to give more classes to the better teachers.

RED

[xiguagua]

[Guerciotti]

Opiate & RED: Thanks, I appreciate it.
Xiguagua: Thanks. I almost laughed out loud at your post. If you're ever looking for work I can recommend a uni.

I understand it's difficult to give every FT the same number of classes but some hint of equity in the process would be nice.

[vikeologist]

Based on where I work, it can be hard to ensure that all teachers have the same number of classes, because there's a lot of factors; departments insisting that they have a native speaker, family commitments, extra travel required to classes, teaching writing classes (which involves more work writing exams and marking work). All in all i think every teacher where I am had a suspicion last term that they were doing morw work than everybody else. If you can't have everybody happy, perhaps it's ok to have everybody roughly unhappy. It's funny when somebody complains in a team meeting to check out the glares from those who believed that the complainer had the easiest schedule.

I try to explain the reasons for any inequalities, real or perceived, to the teachers. That's the visable side of me, but inside I'm usually thinking that we're all doing comparitively sod all work and this should be fun, so stop complaining. I didn't read xiguagua's post properly. They expressed this better than me.

Sometimes the best teachers do indeed get the most classes. I certainly benefitted from this when I was starting out. Also, the advantage of having 2 semesters a year is that hopefully things can be balanced out. Lastly, though it may be a matter of debate who has the worst schedule, I'm fairly confident that I have the easiest. Hah!

[Non Sequitur]

Vikeologist has touched on a solution which seems to have been overlooked by others.
That is balancing up over the whole academic year.
OP seems to be talking about his/her Spring Semester load.
Assuming he/she was on the staff for the previous semester could we find out what the workload was then?

[Shroob]

[Miles Smiles]