Job Discussion Forums

[Chel]

Hi everybody!!
I'm just curious...

Which aspects of your job do you personally believe to be the most positive and/or negative?

Thanks a bunch:)

[moonraven]

This relates to all of the jobs I have had:

Positive: Students, always! Adminstration folks who have been 100% supportive, who have recognized academic excellence.

Negative: Other administrators I have had to deal with--especially directors whose kids are in the school and who don't have to do any work, and owners who lie and cheat their teachers.

[denise]

the good:

--the job as it looks on paper
--my colleagues
--the relaxed atmosphere
--when students a) suddenly understand something and their faces light up, b) ask for help in or out of class, c) have and express opinions, d) go to school events & parties, and d) are sweethearts
--the knowledge that even on the crappiest of days (and maybe especially on those days!), I am learning something about teaching

the bad:

--the management company that has decided to close our school and open a copy-cat version of it with no funding or training and inadequate staffing.
--the dank, dreary atmosphere of our school--coffee stains on the floors and walls, no lights in the hallways (and damn, it gets pitch-dark in there at about 5pm!) unless Management Bigwigs in Suits are visiting from the city (and we cannot turn the lights on ourselves--there are no switches! there is one switch in an open area near the restrooms, and sometimes in a fit of rebellion I turn it on to light that area, and usually within 15 minutes or so it has mysteriously been turned off...)
--students who behave like children and give no indication that they are socially or intellectually ready to go to college

d

[Ben Round de Bloc]

[British]

Chel
----------------

WELCOME TO THE FORUM

[Chel]

Thanks British Bulldog, it's nice to be here. I have been reading posts in the cafe for a long time, but just never registered.

Thanks moonraven, denise, and ben for your great answers. I'm a university student and prospective english teacher. So needless to say your answers are very helpful!!!

Grazie

[Glenski]

Positive:
some students
some colleagues
being in a foreign land I like (related to food, people, culture, etc.)
being immersed in a foreign land makes it easier to learn the language
exchange rate sometimes
meeting my wife here
being given total authority in the classroom (depending on the employer)
availability of private lessons
learning how to drive on the opposite side of the road
getting my foot in the door without teaching credentials or experience

Negative:
some students
some colleagues
administration in most cases
being immersed in a foreign land with little English around some places
pension system
unemployment system
limited (3-year) contracts being the norm
exchange rate sometimes
high school textbooks and the teaching system
some private lesson students (cheap, late, irrational)
being unable to vote in a land where I pay taxes
earthquakes (so far, so good)

[denise]

I just thought of a couple of things that I'd like to add--not specifically related to my current job, but related more to the EFL world in general.

positive:
the EFL lifestyle--we are living our daily lives in different lands, so we get to deal with everything from the exotic (new foods, places, people, etc.) to the mundane (having to pay bills via inserting money into funky machines at the post office). In the jobs that I have had, I have not been trapped in a "foreigner bubble"--I've had plenty of freedom and opportunity to explore the area away from the expat bars and meet real, authentic locals--yet I've always made good friends with fellow teachers and foreigners, who can empathize with my experiences more than the locals.

negative:
choosing a job (which I am enjoying for the most part) in a country that for whatever reason just never appealed to me

d

[Guy Courchesne]

My experiences in Mexico don't correspond to all the teachers that post here, so take it as my own experiences and nothing more.

Positives

Good food, wonderful culture, no freezing Canadian cold, warm people (students and all others), no worries about terrorism, decent pay, freedom to work my own way, lots of contact with people from all over the globe.

Negatives

Mexico City traffic

[jpvanderwerf2001]

Chel. Hi, I like this topic:

Positive:
Getting to know the students
Supportive colleagues
The challenge of living in a foreign country
The thrill of teaching someone something
Seeing the moment a student understands

Negative:
Unavoidable bureaucracy of developing countries
The occasional whiny colleague
The occasional "infallible-if-you-ask-them" colleague
Getting used to waiting

[Roger]

Teaching in CHINA, what I consider POSITIVE are the following:
- You won't be overworked for the whole year - unless you really want to.
- It's highly informal, little is set in stone;
- for us FTs no teacher palavers under the guidance of a principal.
- social activities are organised, including sightseeing outings;
- there can be stunningly cordial students and parents (but don't take
that for granted!)
- ?


Absolutely NEGATIVE:
- no job security - virtually every year you negotiate a new deal, normally
with a new employer;
- there is next to no professionalism here, so no matter how much
you endeavour to lift your learners' levels it will NOT be appreciated;
- there is no genuine respect for teachers (but for businesspeople!);
- there is no continuity schools; you never know where your predfecessor
left off; you continue where you choose to...
- if you fall out with your employer you are destined to be a loser as
you are fighting a lonely fight on their home turf;
- there is considerable xenophobia and stabbing of foreigners' backs
by jealous Chinese colleagues and superiors;

[waygukgaijinhaole]

-that twinkle of understanding in a student's eye
-students' life-stories
-a job that feels like traveling
-everyday errands are an adventure(I supppose that could be both good and bad)
-students' progress from the day you meet them to the day you leave them
-cost of living


-missing family
-missing 'home food'
-cost of 'home food', if you can find it
-confusing, frustrating encounters with natives
-terribly ineffective but mandatory teaching techniques
-lack of respect

I worked in Korea for a year and a half.