Job Discussion Forums

maryknight · Joined: 12 Oct 2005 Posts: 83

i am about to buy a ticket to either japan or china. i'm going to check out one of the countries, so now is decision time....
i noticed talk of things getting not as lucrative in japan. do you think china has a better future for tefl teachers?
i have a tefl, masters in social work, i'm 50, i like all ages.

Doglover · Joined: 14 Dec 2004 Posts: 305 Location: Kansai

maryknight · Joined: 12 Oct 2005 Posts: 83

thanks. i just did the calculator converter and realized i'd get paid practically nothing in china. and i do have the $2000 to $3000 for start up costs. so i'm on my way to japan! actually i'll come in 2 weeks just to check it out (and, yes, i will still have $3000 for start-up costs after i make this trip to explore my prospective new country!)
i'm looking for work at a language school probably. i hear its very hard to get university work in japan.

Doglover · Joined: 14 Dec 2004 Posts: 305 Location: Kansai

D.O.S. · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 5:05 pm Post subject:

Ah, the sweet sounding Japanese university job is not what it seems!

Professor, which curriculum do you teach to your students? Interchange book 1 or 2? Word searches or bingo?

Japanese university jobs are usually nothing more than eikaiwa with holidays.

It is not meant for people genuinely concerned with teaching.

MrCAPiTUL · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 232 Location: Taipei, Taiwan

My buddy works in Shanghai. He gets paid 3000 remnibi a month. That equates to around 600 USD. However, you can get a full meal for a buck! He lives quite comfortably in China. The catch, though, is that you can't really pull money out of the country. It is difficult to exchange to a foreign currency, and when you do, you get hit HARD! So, you won't really be able to save anything (unless you save in Remnibi Yuon). If you plan on staying in China - good move. Good language to learn if you want to get into business, as well.

Ask yourself this, though - can you handle living in a communist country? that is the biggest obstacle to over come. That and the money.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:34 pm Post subject:

MrCAPiTUL · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 232 Location: Taipei, Taiwan

This is true. 3000 would normally be a tad low, but he does have all accomodations paid for - housing and 3 squares a day.

The communist part is still there, though. For instance, you can't really access websites that TEACH you anything - Can't access american government sites, still don't have your privacy, still can't really practice religion openly. . . . it's still very much communist. it was only a few years ago that tibet's temples were being knocked down. . people still get arressted on suspicion. . . Right off the bat, you may not notice the communist traits, but they are there. The government is still in full control of the system and people. I must say, however, that foreigners don't have as many problems as the Chinese themselves do.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 9:07 pm Post subject:

Everything you say is true. But I guess I've just traveled enough to know that this state of affairs has very little to do with the offical form of government and everything to do with the state of development. China is clearly an authoritarian regime. But then so is Saudi Arabia (and most other countries in the Gulf). I've found that authoritarian governments come in all favors including "democratic."

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 9:12 pm Post subject:

I'll also concede that there is a huge and growing gap between the lives of the new-economy middle class in the cities and the poor in rural areas -- just like in the US except that in the US the difference is between people in the suburbs and people in rundown "urban" areas.

MrCAPiTUL · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 232 Location: Taipei, Taiwan

Well said Abu.

Out of curisousity, how long have you been teaching around the globe? What countries have you been to?

abufletcher · Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 12:02 am Post subject:

First overseas EFL job: Saudi 1983. Since then Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, Mexico, and now Japan. In-between travel to many many other countries/places including Tanzania, Kamchatka, Vietnam, South Yemen, Tibet, Nepal, Indonesia, Turkey, Jordan, Finland, and Guatemala.

For a while I thought about getting out of teaching EFL (almost everyone does at some point) and worked at travel photojournalism for a while, working primarily for a National Geographic-like Mexican magazine called GeoMundo.

It's been a great life but not without some concessions.

MrCAPiTUL · Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 232 Location: Taipei, Taiwan

Nice. Do you have a family? If so, how has it impacted family life (especially that of your offspring)?

abufletcher · Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2006 5:57 pm Post subject:

3 wonderful kids and supportive spouse. Daughter born in Kuwait. Two sons born in Oman. Attended British international school in Oman, Mexican private school in Mexico, and Japanese public schools in Japan.

My daughter is pretty well fluent in three languages while the boys are stronger in Japanese and English with Spanish a distant third (though their passive understanding is fairly good). All, expectably, have a very international perspective.

With kids the crunch typically comes when they hit high school age (though some may argue it comes earlier). Overseas international (English-medium) school can be very expensive -- typically beyond the means of EFL teachers. In Japan a good international school can run almost $20,000 per year per child. Even if you could find a "cut-rate" school at $10,000 a year you're still talking $30,000 per year for three children.

In our case this has meant that for the last couple of years I've been in Japan and my wife and children are in the US so the kids can be attending high school -- and I can continue to support the family.