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conoresl1984
Joined: 15 Feb 2017
Posts: 21
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 Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 3:09 am Post subject: Public schools in China. How many classes same students |
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Hi all
I have been teaching in public elementary schools in Vietnam for over a year now. I'm applying to work in China for the September period.
I would like to know about the nature of teaching in the public system there.
In Vietnam, you will generally see the same class only once per week. I feel this is too short.
I like teaching in the public system but I would like to teach the same group of students if not every day, then at least a couple of classes each week.
Could someone enlighten me to how things work in China.
Appreciate your comments |
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kev20
Joined: 31 Jul 2013
Posts: 114
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 8:45 am Post subject: |
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You will see your students a maximum of once a week in China. Some schools may even make it every other week. The schools are big, the classes are big and they want to give as many students as possible access to a foreign teacher. It looks good and keeps the parents happy.
Giving the foreign teacher two classes a week is kind of overkill in a public school. |
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backtochina2017
Joined: 28 Nov 2016
Posts: 123
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 8:54 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| I would like to know about the nature of teaching in the public system there. |
| Quote: |
| I would like to teach the same group of students if not every day, then at least a couple of classes each week. |
Your desire doesn't match your expectations.
Pretend you are in control over a government you must appease without rebellion. The common people want equality and fairness. You must spread your bread crumbs evenly, even if it starves everyone in the process.
The answer is quite clear.
Leave the public school system, work with the rich elite in Beijing and Shanghai. You will be required then to meet with your disciples more often.
Personally, I reject this and I prefer to meet students once a week in class. I see them also on the streets and sometimes at stores or restaurants when I am not working. I embrace life and living. I teach outside the classroom. |
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ChrisHenry15
Joined: 03 Jan 2015
Posts: 99
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 9:19 am Post subject: |
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| Class schedules are school specific. I have friends who teach the same students twice a week, once a week, and twice a month. |
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OhBudPowellWhereArtThou
Joined: 02 Jun 2015
Posts: 1168
Location: Since 2003
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 1:05 pm Post subject: |
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This is interesting advice.
Ideally, one should know how to get to China before he gives advice regarding how to work in China. |
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OhBudPowellWhereArtThou
Joined: 02 Jun 2015
Posts: 1168
Location: Since 2003
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 1:06 pm Post subject: |
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| ChrisHenry15 wrote: |
| Class schedules are school specific. I have friends who teach the same students twice a week, once a week, and twice a month. |
This has been my experience working in public universities and colleges in China. I've never been given a schedule before I arrived at the school. |
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Brunouno
Joined: 18 Apr 2013
Posts: 129
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 1:27 pm Post subject: Re: Public schools in China. How many classes same students |
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| conoresl1984 wrote: |
Hi all
I have been teaching in public elementary schools in Vietnam for over a year now. I'm applying to work in China for the September period.
I would like to know about the nature of teaching in the public system there.
In Vietnam, you will generally see the same class only once per week. I feel this is too short.
I like teaching in the public system but I would like to teach the same group of students if not every day, then at least a couple of classes each week.
Could someone enlighten me to how things work in China.
Appreciate your comments |
I would be much more concerned about finding a tolerable job that you can bear for the duration of your contract rather than minute aspects of a job. What you mentioned is, indeed, a minute aspect when you consider the other rubbish that 99 percent of teachers need to put up with here. |
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Non Sequitur
Joined: 23 May 2010
Posts: 4724
Location: China
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 6:19 pm Post subject: |
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OP - PM me with a contact email and I'll send you a typical timetable for a vocational college - Qingdao in Shandong.
I asked a former student about her experience of FTs at high school. She said 'once per week' contact, but the normal 60 student class was cut in half for the FT classes. 60 is nigh impossible to manage for Oral English. |
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backtochina2017
Joined: 28 Nov 2016
Posts: 123
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| Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 11:16 pm Post subject: |
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| OhBudPowellWhereArtThou wrote: |
| ChrisHenry15 wrote: |
| Class schedules are school specific. I have friends who teach the same students twice a week, once a week, and twice a month. |
I've never been given a schedule before I arrived at the school. |
It's true that if multiple teachers are hired to come at the same time, they will decide later. In fact, you don't want to know your schedule at this point.
What they do is find out who is willing to work the most out of the pack. Then they overwork those people. So, during your first month if there are other teachers don't do 100%. Offer up additional stuff as the months go by.
If they are deciding where to send you, you can at least make a bid and tell them you want to go to a high school rather than middle school. If you go to an elementary school, expect additional teaching hours at the school. High school students are usually too busy to come, and middle school students will often have other after school activities lined up. You might see them however on the weekends if their parents are keen on getting a "tutor".
If you are wanting a schedule for university, you can pretty much negotiate it with the international department at the university. I had one interview where they wanted me to teach science. I told them if it wasn't about astronomy I would not take the job. So, they changed it to a"newspaper" course. I then asked them why they would hire an English teacher whose main purpose is to get them to speak have them teach a course on newspaper reading. We ended up modifying it to something like a "Talking about the news" course. Students would prepare presentations on current events and discuss how it impacted their country. Current topics at the time were Lance Armstrong drug incident, Prince William's visit to Africa, and a Chinese poet, Mo Yan.
One student came a month later because he was in Alaska through some fishing program. So, I told him to make a presentation on that and I used his material for listening exercises for other classes.
With university, they basically want you to create the course. I would use their computer lab and meet with students more than once a week. There was also an English corner on Fridays for anyone to attend.
Since it is a university, students are not under any obligation to attend classes. As long as they take the tests and pass the university doesn't babysit them beyond that. Schools will try to get students to come the first month, but after that college students are on their own. Young adults. They don't have to answer to parents like high school students and younger. |
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OhBudPowellWhereArtThou
Joined: 02 Jun 2015
Posts: 1168
Location: Since 2003
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| Posted: Sat Feb 25, 2017 12:20 am Post subject: |
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| backtochina2017 wrote: |
| OhBudPowellWhereArtThou wrote: |
| ChrisHenry15 wrote: |
| Class schedules are school specific. I have friends who teach the same students twice a week, once a week, and twice a month. |
I've never been given a schedule before I arrived at the school. |
It's true that if multiple teachers are hired to come at the same time, they will decide later. In fact, you don't want to know your schedule at this point.
What they do is find out who is willing to work the most out of the pack. Then they overwork those people. So, during your first month if there are other teachers don't do 100%. Offer up additional stuff as the months go by.
If they are deciding where to send you, you can at least make a bid and tell them you want to go to a high school rather than middle school. If you go to an elementary school, expect additional teaching hours at the school. High school students are usually too busy to come, and middle school students will often have other after school activities lined up. You might see them however on the weekends if their parents are keen on getting a "tutor".
If you are wanting a schedule for university, you can pretty much negotiate it with the international department at the university. I had one interview where they wanted me to teach science. I told them if it wasn't about astronomy I would not take the job. So, they changed it to a"newspaper" course. I then asked them why they would hire an English teacher whose main purpose is to get them to speak have them teach a course on newspaper reading. We ended up modifying it to something like a "Talking about the news" course. Students would prepare presentations on current events and discuss how it impacted their country. Current topics at the time were Lance Armstrong drug incident, Prince William's visit to Africa, and a Chinese poet, Mo Yan.
One student came a month later because he was in Alaska through some fishing program. So, I told him to make a presentation on that and I used his material for listening exercises for other classes.
With university, they basically want you to create the course. I would use their computer lab and meet with students more than once a week. There was also an English corner on Fridays for anyone to attend.
Since it is a university, students are not under any obligation to attend classes. As long as they take the tests and pass the university doesn't babysit them beyond that. Schools will try to get students to come the first month, but after that college students are on their own. Young adults. They don't have to answer to parents like high school students and younger. |
Who is "they"?
And specifically--- in which schools have you taught in China? |
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hz88
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 162
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| Posted: Sat Feb 25, 2017 12:43 am Post subject: |
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There is no set pattern to this. It is school specific.
Generally in public schools teaching Oral English, you will see one class once per week. If you are wanting more contact then you should be looking towards international schools.
Timetables are planned very last minute and usually we don't know until shortly before semester begins and even then it can change later on at a moments notice. A lot of public schools simply substitute one of their regular Chinese teachers English classes for the foreigner class.
As for class sizes, again, it depends on the school. In my experience anything between 30 and 70 students depending on if it is middle or high school. |
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backtochina2017
Joined: 28 Nov 2016
Posts: 123
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| Posted: Sat Feb 25, 2017 1:16 am Post subject: |
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Who is "they"?
And specifically--- in which schools have you taught in China? |
They would be the employers. This is not just China. I experienced the same thing in Korea and Japan. In Japan, it is a little different because you are allowed to take on privates without the legal master/slave backlash. You just have to report your income to immigration and they actually want you to make enough to show you aren't living off the government.
If you go to a school and are the only teacher, you have more negotiating power. I look for these schools. Next would be the language schools that send teachers out to public schools, so the teachers don't see each other besides monthly meetings. Even those will get half and half after a while.
The big schools like EF and Web International, Pattison, and maybe Shane English School (I have no experience with them though) will have teachers come and teach small groups, English corners, and you will have office hours. In this case, you are bound to be grouped with other teachers more. I did work at one school in Beijing with excellent location just outside subway line 2. This was similar.
In that case, what they did was they promised high school classes to 3 teachers. When we arrived to the school and found out they only had one position for 3 people, we told the school we each thought we would have a high school only schedule. This tension later resulted in me and a month later another teacher leaving because we had to teach younger kids but were promised high school classes. The third teacher stayed and was treated nicer of course.
So, the point I am making is that if you work at a school with other teachers you need to realize the school is going to use you as a group not individually. They might talk to you individually, but that is not how they are making decisions regarding the schedule. |
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jimpellow
Joined: 12 Oct 2007
Posts: 913
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| Posted: Sat Feb 25, 2017 2:04 am Post subject: |
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It really depends on the kind of program you will be teaching through. I will defer to what others have said about teaching as a "general" teacher.
However, if you want to teach the same group everyday, then you should be applying to the college prep programs. Then you will have the same spoiled snotty lazy students everyday as they are really only for the students of richer parents.
The pay is usually quite good. You do have to be able to walk the walk on at least a couple different subjects such as IELTS, Business, Critical Thinking, Physics etc.
If you get tired of teaching a couple grades of classes composed of the same lazy rich students, the Chinese teachers will gladly help you. One will invariably tell you what an honor it would be for his lower income students if you taught them a class. Once you accept, they will all come begging, and before you know it, you will have a second job of unpaid work.
If interested in learning more about this route, please pm me and I will send you the email of one spineless coworker who burned out from the abuse and fled the country after three months for the Peace Corps. |
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