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Job Discussion Forums "The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
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Mausami
Joined: 25 May 2018 Posts: 1
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2018 12:08 am Post subject: Avoid Admiral Farragut Academy in Tianjin |
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This school claims to be an international school but it is not. Students are supposed to be earning a US high school diploma, but they are not capable of high school level work in English. Teachers are pressured to give students grades of 80% or above and cheating in rampant. There is very little support for teachers in all areas related to academics - no training or professional development, subpar materials, terrible technology. In addition there is no effective disciplinary support whatsoever. For example, students brought a tazer to school. When a foreign teacher caught them playing with it and confiscated it, the school had a series of meetings that resulted in telling the students they were on "probation" and if they misbehaved again they would be expelled. They were smoking on campus just days later - no punishment again. Because the students know they will not be held responsible for their behaviors, even small problems become impossible to control. There also seems to be racism against foreign teachers of color - teachers cut to half time in favor of white teachers, teachers given poor assistance and living conditions in comparison to others, etc. Avoid this school - there is better out there. |
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rioux
Joined: 26 Apr 2012 Posts: 880
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rocket man
Joined: 19 Dec 2015 Posts: 110 Location: Raleigh NC USA
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2018 3:28 am Post subject: |
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sounds almost like the school in Shanghai I was teaching at and I posted below about. Also have a friend at a similar school in Shanghai experiencing the same stuff.
Swear these dual diploma programs in China are nothing but shams in order to take away as much money from the parents as possible. |
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nimadecaomei
Joined: 22 Sep 2016 Posts: 605
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2018 8:00 am Post subject: |
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Not sure all of these places are like this. I teach for the International Dept of a high ranking Chinese high school (public). Students do not get a US diploma, but they do get the required courses (AP) for US universities. The students, besides one or two, are great and hard working. They care so much about the grade you give them that I have had several start crying. The grades are not changed, cannot be changed.
I think a problem with the private places is they will do anything to make the parents happy. That means students who are having difficulty are given a better grade, when they really need outside tutoring to improve. Other students know this, I would be pissed to if the slacker next to me got the same mark even though I earned mine. |
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Modernist
Joined: 03 Jan 2016 Posts: 72 Location: Routing
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Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2018 1:49 am Post subject: |
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Quote: |
Not sure all of these places are like this. |
True. But, from what I've encountered here, there is virtually no way to be certain about which of the two kinds you're dealing with, until you are there and working with the kids. The names mean nothing, the size means nothing, the city means nothing (in terms of the teaching conditions), the notion of public vs private means nothing. The presence of AP, IGCSE, A-level, IB, or other lists of letters...the presence of a Western 'partner school'...Western management...it just doesn't guarantee anything, none of it. Perhaps if you're licensed and it's a school with formal accreditation connected to non-Chinese reviewing bodies, that has some true value. But few of us here are licensed, are we?
Whatever you may be told in an interview probably means less than nothing, considering how Chinese are.
The school I'm at has mostly good kids (although it has other problems facing FTs here), but from its name and profile, frankly, it very easily could be a clone of the bad school in this thread. There's nothing on any Google searches that says anything helpful about it. Coming here was a total gamble last year for me.
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a problem with the private places is they will do anything to make the parents happy |
This one is fully private but it still has some outstanding kids here. In fact, the majority of my students were very good and made strong efforts. I think you overstate the public vs private thing. Not all publics that hire FTs are particularly good, and although all privates are obviously focused on money, that doesn't mean the kids are awful in ability or behavior or that grades are changed, etc. Also, some of the 'elite' publics are empires with various divisions and the caliber of students in different parts varies markedly. My new one has a certain international division that is more pay to play, and another international division that is more ability-screened.
You can avoid notoriously awful ones called out on forums and Web searches, sure. But given the sheer number of them, including new ones opening regularly, how can you tell beforehand if a place is full of reasonably diligent and capable rich students who work hard, or full of lazy and entitled rich students who are just marking time until they inherit the family business?
I think it comes down to luck, to a significant degree. Unless you have some other method you'd like to share? |
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happeningthang
Joined: 08 Oct 2003 Posts: 117
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2018 12:06 am Post subject: |
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I would have avoided this place just on the name alone.... That's not seriously what it's called is it? |
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nimadecaomei
Joined: 22 Sep 2016 Posts: 605
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2018 2:42 am Post subject: |
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Agreed, to much generalization on my part. |
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