Job Discussion Forums

Boy Wonder · Joined: 29 Mar 2004 Posts: 453 Location: Clacton on sea

I am plainly seething with indignation and anger.
This is the final straw.

The school I have the misfortune to work for obviously thinks the Receptionists are more important than the Teachers.

Not content with hogging all the school stationery......teachers have no pens/pencils/tippex/scissors/teaching materials....the secretaries also seems to think it's ok to refuse various requests.

Who the hell do they think they are?

If I need to delay a forthcoming lesson by 10 mins so I can go out and get resources the school doesn't have...such as Listening materials from the Brit Council Library..... then that is something I need to do.!!!

They fail to inform teachers of any timetable changes......apparently it's up to us to continually ask them throughout our 8 hour teaching day!!!!

They timetable lessons for us at unreasonable times without prior consultation...so your teaching day begins at 8.30 am and finishes at 9.30pm regularly....!!!!

I have had enough......

There is only so mouch more disrespect I can take....

Does anybody else suffer from the curse of the megalomaniac secretary-receptionist.?

Sheep-Goats · Joined: 16 Apr 2004 Posts: 527

The receptionist is more important than some teachers.

Rolling Eyes

dyak · Joined: 25 Jun 2003 Posts: 630

It's true, you have to be kind of a beach to be a receptionist... they are under the misapprehension that they run the school because of where they're sitting.

A lot of London schools lack actual (native) English speaking receptionists, prefering to relieve students of their hard-earned cash in their own language. This is two-fold though, as those students with 'reception-friendly' languages will have no trouble with visas, finding accommodation, getting jobs, having pressure applied to the teacher to ensure they have perfect attendances etc... is there any aspect of EFL where someone is not doing someone else a favour though?

Chris_Crossley

Magoo · Joined: 31 Oct 2003 Posts: 651 Location: Wuhan, China

Boy Wonder: Come to wonderful, egalitarian China. At my first school, the wife of some very low-level 'teacher' (everyone has some sort of honorific title) was awarded a job in said institution because of hubby's connections (Communist Party). She had no education, being from the countryside, so was given a vague position overseeing, well, stuff. This included 3 photocopiers. Up till then, we 2 foreign English teachers gave interesting lessons using REAL English texts. Suddenly, ol' boot face started blocking access to the machines, citing ridiculous, non-existent rules. Even the senior Chinese staff didn't dare to argue, so it was left to me (as a speaker of Chinese and bad-tempered git) to sort it out. When being polite failed, I just threatened Armageddon. The Chinese weren't happy, but it worked...finally. When people are disenfranchised, they find other, less honourable ways of asserting their power. Sad.

Ben Round de Bloc · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1946

ls650 · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 3484 Location: British Columbia

Mouse · Joined: 24 Dec 2003 Posts: 208

When the school I work for was put up for sale it was the secretaries who clubbed together and bought it, so compared to the teachers here the receptionists are more important...

Boy Wonder · Joined: 29 Mar 2004 Posts: 453 Location: Clacton on sea

So in order to improve my job prospects, value to employers and self worth I should become a secretary....... Shocked

I have obviously been under the misconception for several years that being a teacher was a quite important in the running of the school.!!

How stupid of me....!

Tomorrow I shall apply for internal promotion ....for the job of receptionist/secretary or cleaner......
I want the kudos you see Rolling Eyes

Ben Round de Bloc · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1946

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

I agree 100% with Ben. You really can't replace a good secretary, they can make or break your school/business. They are probably the least appreciated person in a school. I remember when I managed a school a few years ago and our excellent secretary wanted to quit for more money. We gave her a big fat raise to keep her there. If any other teacher had done the same, we would have shown them the door.

Chris_Crossley

moonraven · Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 3094

I'm also with Ben on this. Here in Mexico language schools that have put teachers first and treated their receptionists poorly have not been successful.

The biggest challenge I had as director of a school was getting the right folks on the front desk. They were the sales staff--which meant if they didn't sell courses I sure didn't need teachers!

I hate to sound sexist, but I found that men worked out much better as receptionists/salespersons. We had a primary front desk fellow with a Master's in Industrial Engineering/Business Planning (who also became a teacher for us) as well as a back up fellow who also did the accounting (years of management experience, a degree in Business Administration, and the dad of 3 of our best students). We beat the crap out of those language schools who thought having a young woman in a miniskirt with mechas, pass� makeup and a jaw full of chicles on the front desk was what impressed potential clients!

richtx1 · Joined: 12 Apr 2004 Posts: 115 Location: Ciudad de M�xico

Foreign language schools are businesses. Receptionists and secretaries everywhere are -- or think they are -- the ones running the business. And they're usually right. I worked as a consultant in the IT biz before coming to Mexico. Part of my job was keeping the clients happy, distributing the beads and trinkets (coffee mugs and tee-shirts) to those who were in power. The bosses? fergetaboutit! ... I did homage to those who got things done for me.

Teachers, I hate to say, are easily replaceable. Secretaries aren't.

struelle · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 2372 Location: Shanghai

So I guess the question is, for those who work in language centres, who's working on the front lines?

Those who are should be respected and compensated more for their work, after all the success of a school depends on the quality provided by those on the front lines. The DOS or manager may work from 9-5 and be out on the weekends. This is ridiculous, because the bulk of the business takes place during evenings and weekends and is handled by the front line workers.

So it only makes sense for managers to make themselves available during peak times and restructure hours accordingly. At the school I work at, this is the case. We have the branch manager and teacher trainer who show up regularly all day on Saturdays. Even so, there are times when the boss can't be around and the front line workers are handling the business. So then, who are the front liners?

I'd argue it's a split between the teachers and the secretaries. Secretaries are at the first line of customer contact, and they can make or break a sale based on many things. So we're lucky in that we have very competent secretaries who know their stuff, especially the details of how the system runs and how to explain course details, testing, graduation, textbooks, etc. to students. They work very well with us teachers and have few problems.

Teachers are also crucial in that the whole language centre concept revolves around what actually takes place in the classroom.

But the problem running through both threads is high turnover. Unfortunately, as with most front line workers, they are highly replaceable. High turnvoer is one of the biggest problems in this industry, if not the top one.

Steve