Job Discussion Forums

killian · Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2003 4:46 pm Post subject: Are you a China ESL Sucker?

Are you a China ESL sucker?
i used to be in mainland china. now i am in taiwan. was a sucker then, am a sucker now.
anyway...was reading the taipei times today. there was an interview with some banking wunderkind going on about the US claimed undervaluement of the chinese RMB.

this man, tony yang, uses his family to illustrate a salient point of the chinese economy:

"take my daughter for example. she is enrolled in the american school here (shanghai) this year after having been on the waiting list last year. she's enrolled this year because there are three extra classes for nearly 100 more new applicants"..."the tuition will cost me US$20,000 per year. plus, the supply of local-foreign language schools is unable to meet the local demand. how can you say china's economy is not doing well?"

so...mommy and daddy pay US20,000 per annum for foreign teachers. how many ladles are they dolloping to you off this greasy, fat gravy train?

money is getting made hand over fist off of you. are you getting your fair value?

what can be done? if you go to prime mover and shaker territory, demand more. they are a business. they know making money takes money. if you'll work for peanuts, they'll give you peanuts, moldy if you are passive enough. if one guys gets it up, others can use the leverage. beijing ads offering 3000RMB/month? don't be a sucker. you may not like me, but for better or worse, our fates are related. what'd they used to say...? "workers of the world..." something or anuther. i was hung over that day.

ask for more.

Minhang Oz · Joined: 23 Apr 2003 Posts: 610 Location: Shanghai,ex Guilin

Killian, he's referring to one of the International Schools [probably AIS] which cater for rich ex-pat kids, rather than the local language mills. These places hire internationally, and pay scales reflect that. The fees are outrageous. A top private school in Australia [non-residential] would charge USD 8k maximum.

killian · Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2003 8:34 pm Post subject:

anyone here work/have guanxi with this school? can't help but wonder what teachers get paid there.

knowledge is power.

Peter · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Posts: 161

In Shenzhen, in the suburb of Shekou, there are two international schools
One of them hires local foreigners who are indeed real teachers.

But......no benefits, no housing assistance, lower wages, no yearly ticket home and same workload.

Robberbaron capitalism is the same anywhere......or the Chinese way is happily adopted by the owner of this place.

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

Did you refer to the Shekou International School, Peter? I had a talk with one of their staff, and it seemed to me they were as cluyeless as anybopdy anywhere else as to what they should offer a teacher. Besides, they are so understaffed that they would have to overwork any candidate - that's what she said anyway!
VIsa? Yes. Housing? Probable. It's a nice estate, but you will probably have to pay for your accommodation (I did not ask).

On the other hand, the American School of Guangzhou seems to be offering decent conditions to the right candidates who would have to teach a number of subjects (not exclusively English, and certainly not "oral English").

Wolf · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 1245 Location: Middle Earth

I have several friends who work for international schools in Macau and Japan. They don't make tons of money. My friend in the Japanese school had some really nice benifits (health care, retirement pension fund, etc) but his salry wasn't much better than mine.

My SAR friends are about as well off as my teacher friends back in Canada.

International schools don't automatically mean tons of money, although they'd be a safer, more secure job than a language mill.

I don't know anyone who works for an "ivy league" private school, though....

MyTurnNow · Joined: 19 Mar 2003 Posts: 860 Location: Outer Shanghai

Loath though I am to defend most school owners, you should bear in mind that while many English mills can't even muster a working photocopy machine, international schools have to buy all the Real School Stuff- gyms, chemistry labs, computers, AV equipment, and so forth. In some cases that high price also includes room and board on the premises...
MT

Wolf · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 1245 Location: Middle Earth

MyTurnNow · Joined: 19 Mar 2003 Posts: 860 Location: Outer Shanghai

Yup.
As an expectant parent (assuming my poor wife pulls through) I would kill to be able to open an international school. I'm sure the income is toler'ble but mainly, after teaching the products of Chinese schools for the last few years, there is no way in hell my child is going to one of them.
But the cost of starting an international school, at least a decent one, is absolutely astronomical.

Please be looking for P-T home-schooling positions offered in about 5 years!

MT

Egas · Guest

I don't know about the particular international school above, but in Beijing the two leading international schools offer anywhere from 30 000 - 50 000 RMB month as salary, plus around 15 000 for housing, plus other benefits. I know because I have worked at both schools. But other international schools here offer less.