Job Discussion Forums

Deats · Joined: 02 Jan 2015 Posts: 503

Not the sharpest tool in the box, are we?

In Vietnam you were paid the same as a NEST because you are white. Simple as that. It has nothing to do with your skill as an English teacher. I can only imagine the place that hired you... desperate. Like may places in SE Asia. All that is needed is a white face. You can't expect to come to Russia and get the same, because your white face is no longer valuable. If you didn't even realise that, then there isn't much hope for you.

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

Deats · Joined: 02 Jan 2015 Posts: 503

http://gradestatistics.cambridgeenglish.org/2011/celta.html

1.07% of people fail CELTA. Wow, it must have been hard to pass... maybe I should enroll... or maybe I shouldn't waste my time and money.

Taking IELTS doesn't mean you can teach IELTS. Laughing

As for your second point, I have my reasons (plural). And I'm 99.9% sure that I am right.

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

I supervise university teachers across the CEE/fSU region (approximately 200 this academic year) and have hired both NESTs and NNESTS in a relatively fair balance for years. There is no wage discrepancy in my world - as noted earlier NNESTs bring a different and valuable set of strengths to the process.

At entry level (the OP's situation) and at private language schools, there may be some differences in pay offered, but this is by no means endemic to the profession.

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

Не, ну дядя, ну скажи, почему я не русский? Жутко интересно! Можно даже в личку – никому не расскажу, чесслово!

Now, seriously, why am I not Russian? Let's forget the banter that came before (it was really nothing) – I'm curious! Smile

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

Just to address Deats' point about my white face, etc. – yes, my students and (some of) their parents saw my white face. They also all knew I was Russian – because they always ask you, "Teechah, where are you from?" The parents of the kids from one of the classes even raised concerns with the school, but in the end were pacified by the EC team and my AM. All the kids stayed at the school, and I continued being paid the same.

So, white face is one of the factors, but definitely not the most important one.

Deats · Joined: 02 Jan 2015 Posts: 503

No need to PM you nephew, I can tell you openly here, if you insist.

For a person who doesn't have a degree in English, didn't go to a Western university, didn't go to a good Russian university, only has a CELTA, hasn't got any experience of teaching other than singing songs to children, you have a very interesting way of writing. I don't believe for a second that a person who has your 'credentials' would write like you do.

For example, why use 'am I not'? Very formal. Also, you have a very good understanding of punctuation for a person who has never had the necessity to write in English. For someone who hasn't had the need to use English in a formal setting (especially writing) then where would you have acquired this skill from? And it's not like you spend time checking your messages for mistakes, you fire them out.

It wreaks of a native speaker using 'highbrow' English and trolling.

I don't buy it.

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

OMG, that felt so... I don't know... So good, quite frankly! Smile

I feel like the past hour or so of replying to those (not so pleasant) messages of yours is totally justified!

Am I really that good?

Maybe I should stop doing EFL (which I hate anyway – but the money is good!) and do something else with my English...

Thanks, Deats! Seriously!

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

Hmm. I guess I should be sure to tell the students and professors at 'my' university that they couldn't possibly be using the very good, educated English that they do; someone might mistake them for native speakers merely posturing as Russian/Slavic. Rolling Eyes

Deats · Joined: 02 Jan 2015 Posts: 503

Native speakers make mistakes. I am the first to admit it. Especially when writing words that they never usually write. What is your point? I never said my English was perfect - far from it.

But so do non-natives. Which is why this person's writing is rather surprising.

It's not about my level of English.

And you are talking about teachers in universities - no doubt highly qualified intellectuals. Not a person who has taught kindergarten for a year in Vietnam and was only educated at a low level university in an unrelated subject.

Spiral78 - maybe you would also like to clarify the salaries that you pay the NNEST and NEST. From my experience both are paid nothing. SPBGU offers more or less the same salary to both - 15,000R. So don't get up the OP's hopes. Maybe you should explain unis pay a pittance. AND the OP has NO chance of working in a uni with their credentials. Other than that... useful info . Rolling Eyes

Sashadroogie · Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 3:23 pm Post subject:

Deats, what's going on with you? Why the escalation of this thread and others into a slagging match?

nnest · Joined: 18 Jun 2015 Posts: 26

I've been thinking why Deats called me 'nephew' in that post – just couldn't wrap my head around it. A substitute for 'son', perhaps? Then I re-read my Russian bit and it dawned on me that it's because of my use of the word 'дядя'. Smile

I'd like to clarify that in this case 'дядя' actually means not 'uncle', but 'mister'. The way kids address unknown grown men. "Дядя, дядя, а который сейчас час?"

(Now that I think of it, I can't recall modern Russian kids using the word in this context... Which makes me feel old. Sad

)

It was meant to be humorous, but not offensive.