Job Discussion Forums

[pixiepower]

Hi,

I am just wondering if anyone is willing to talk about their experience of teaching in Saudi as a minority teacher. Have you experienced discrimination from students and/or colleagues?

Thanks

[nomad soul]

Assuming you mean non-white... I'm not a haole and had no problems teaching and living in KSA as a single female. However, I was in Jeddah, which has a demographic breakdown of 1.9 million Saudis and 2.13 million expatriates (as of 2015). It's quite ethnically diverse.

[pixiepower]

Thanks for responding. I understand that this is a sensitive issue for some people, and i assume that is why people are reluctant to enter the debate (or maybe it does not apply to them, and/or they simply aren't interested), so I appreciate your response.

[nomad soul]

[cassava]

Pixiepower,

I would advise you not to focus on or be unduly concerned about your "minority status." You cannot now modify Darwinian evolutionary factors. You should regard these as being relatively unimportant and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. You are what you are.

What you should focus on is your knowledge and competence in your subject, your personality, as well as the psycho-social background of your prospective students.

In my view, you should be highly proficient, academically and pedagogically, in your subject area, and your personality should exude supreme confidence, without arrogance. You should radiate charm and enthusiasm.

Many students in your classes will not be brimming with academic zeal and ambition. Some of them will be there simply because they have to be there. If you have lots of energy and a good sense of humour, you may be shocked to discover that you can get a surprising amount of work out of them.

Make sure that you become thoroughly familiar not only with the social mores and customs of the Kingdom, but also with the institutional conventions and etiquette that may be peculiar to the particular area of Saudi where you may be working.

You should be flexible without being a pushover. Your students should see you as someone who is kind and warm, and who has their best interest at heart. If you are a cold, mean-spirited, bigoted, hard-nose disciplinarian, you will fail.

I would strongly advise you to focus on the good qualities I have mentioned. Moreover, if you can stay positive most of the time and ignore the negative carping that you will hear from some of your colleagues, you will find that your Saudi experience is extremely enjoyable. Good luck.

[nomad soul]

Ditto the above, regardless of which country you teach in. That's what your focus should be on.