Job Discussion Forums

[Ciara]

I know a lot of contracts stipulate certain amount of teaching hours...so how many do you work? When they say 18 teaching hours, how much additional time do you spend doing administrative work, marking, class preparation?

Just wondering what I shoud expect.

One school said 18 teaching hours, and the other said 40 hours a week (but only 15 are teaching hours...), 3500RMB (Shanxi) vs 4500RMB (Guangzhou) respectively. Both figures net expenses.

What do you guys think?

[latefordinner]

Good question. My first year, my only obligated hours were my teaching hours, and if I wished I could show up for class and leave 5 minutes later. I didn't, because 1) I worked a fair bit of OT so I was there longer than most, and 2) I enjoy sitting in the staff office talking with other teachers. It's amazing what you can learn when you discuss things freely. I was paid the standard 5,000 / month for 20 hours, and was more or less happy, until after SARS. (What happened then is another story)
My second contract specified a lower pay scale, but limited teaching hours. Unfortunately, I bound myself through vague contract language to be available for meetings and consultations when not teaching. In other words, when I'm not actually in class, I'm supposed to be teaching Chinese teachers how to teach. So the actual drain on my time is not less, but greater than before.
Given my eperience, I would say an emphatic "NO" to any office hours in addition to class time. Unless they are prepared to pay something in the neighborhood of 150 rmb per hour for consultation duties.

[cimarch]

My contract states a minimum of 20 hours a week, any extra are overtime. I am obligated to be there only when I have class.

One thing to watch is spaced out classes, 8a.m. to 9a.m., 11a.m to 12p.m., 3p.m. to 4p.m. for example. 3 hours work but your whole day gone.

That said, office hours are basically an excuse to have a white face on hand to show to parents of prospective students a lot of the time.

[Rice Paddy Daddy]

20 hours a week - And guaranteed whether I work 20 or not.

[Louis]

16 hours - and not a minute more. Get that written into your contract.

[latefordinner]

Agreed, Cimarch;
>That said, office hours are basically an excuse to have a white face on hand to show to parents of prospective students a lot of the time.

There is also the unintended (I like to believe) secondary issue of not valuing the professional's time. Tomorrow, to pick a day at random, I will only teach for 5 hours, but I will spend another 4 hours of my time travelling from one location of the school to a second then to a third and then back to the second. It makes for a bloody long day. A lot has already been said about this aspect of being a foreign expert in China, but as far as I can tell the last word is still a long way from being said.

Short answer, class hours are paid hours, anything else you put in or not at your own discretion. People won't value your time until you make them pay for it.

[latefordinner]

an unenlightened knight posted:
>its also to stop you working at another skool

If they can afford not to chisel you on the salary, "extra" hours and so on, they have little to worry about. Newsflash, folks. The surest guarantee that employees will stay satisfied is to keep employees satisfied.

[Sekhmet]

I work 16 hours a week, but that can include office work - proof-reading, website design, etc. and anything I do over that is paid as overtime. It's a nice life, especially since I generally do about 25 hours a week!!! Much fun...
My school, also has no issues with me working other places - in fact, my boss suggested an external summer school I could work for!!!

[Roger]

Office hours are rarely entered in contracts; public schools don't expect you to fulfill a quota! Why should they? You go home, prepare your lessons there, mark students' papers and report - if you must - to regular teacher meetings.

Private training centres are more wary of how you spend your spare time, so they want to render it next to impossible for you to join any other companies.
My first training centre boss actually told me he wanted me to put in TWELVE HOURS A DAY; I was so flabbergasted I said undiplomatically no, and got half my way and had to cede way by half to him: 6 hours a day, including 2 hours of actual teaching, the rest as an office pet.
Luckily, my boss got an irresisitible offer from a rich business type: he would pay myboss as much per hour as 20 students combined paid him and borrow me from him for two hours a day.
Thus I was given time off during office hours to teach that businessman's kids. At the end of my stint my boss gave me an unexpected bonus and in addition never required me to put in time at his office.

[kev7161]

I am contracted for 18 teaching PERIODS (of 45 minutes each). Office time is of my own accord. I don't mind spending time in the office as I want to be well-prepared for classes. Saying that, I spend probably less than 5 hours per week in the office.

I was only teaching 12 periods during the past spring semester and taught 16 during the fall. What I don't like is when I teach two periods in the morning then, almost 3 hours later, I have to teach two more in the afternoon. However, this spring, two of my days had only two morning classes and I had three full days free! I am so spoiled. I know this next term won't be like that!

[ContemporaryDog]

I have 21 lessons, 40 minutes each, so I guess that's around 14 hours. In my first term we had office hours, but everyone was rather unhappy about it, 6 of the teachers left (I only stayed because I met Mrs Dog) and they dropped it.

Last term it was just 16 lessons but I had to trek over to the 'branch' school evrey day. Next term it is more classes but I will be teaching metres from my flat...

[anthyp]

I have 16 hours per week, as well, in a small public college.

Office hours? What are those? I do my lesson planning at home. The other teachers avoid the office like the plague, except in the morning, when they gather to gossip.

Right now, I'm not working at all - we're all on summer break! But I still get paid.

Regarding your respective job offers, I think both are rather low. 4500 for Guangzhou? I imagine you might not be able to save much on that. I guess you could get by on 3500 in Shanxi, and the hours are good, but you could probably do better, if you looked!

Then again, it's almost the start of the school year already.

I'm voting for Guangzhou, because it's a nice - looking, modern city, although Guangzhouren are supposedly pretty rude. And stay the hell away from the train station!

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

8 hours a day, 7 days a week.

[NateM]

[Ciara]

8 hours a day 7 days a week, man I hope they're paying you a lot for it!

As for salary....

It's 4000 in Shanxi and 7000 in Guangzhou. (My first posting consists of NET expenses - groceries, utilities...).

18 hrs + 4 hours office hours a week

vs

40 hrs/wk and not more.