Job Discussion Forums

[demons1979]

I worked at Topkids (which is under the Deborah name in the town of Tin Shui Wai) for just under two years and came out scratching my head at the stubborness and lack of understanding of the way Chinese do business.

I loved the kids and the most of the Chinese teachers i got to know were lovely, the job was mediocre but the management sucked.

Especially the headmistress of the International Kindergarten.

They paid on time and paid me out in full but thats beside the point.

My full story to follow in the next couple of weeks.

I would like to hear other peoples stories working for the mythic "Mr Chan"

[bombers1979]

I agree, the school had it's good points as in it provided and apartment and we got paid on time but that about it.

The administration was rubbish and the communication with foreign teachers was terrible and clearly a university degree doesn't qualify you to use the photocopier or the laminator. They never pay compliments if you do a good job and they have no respect for Chinese OR foreign teachers.

I understand that different schools will have different administrations but we have friends working in other subsidiaries of Deborah in Hong Kong and they have had the exact same problems.

My advice would be to give this place a miss. It just isn't worth it.

[poof]

Is this 'discussion board' not enough??:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?t=19404

[Joyfulone]

Top Kids in Tin Shui Wai is a very bad school. An American male teacher "B" threw his ex-girlfriend (also a teacher there) across a room because she had started seeing someone else.

When she told her head teacher and principal about it, they did nothing. He denied everything that happened even though she had red marks on her arms and was visibly shaken up. She was a senior teacher and had worked at Top Kids and Deborah for 3 years. She left the school a month later but he's still working there.

What kind of school allows violence? He's still there!!!! They even renwed his contract this year! Why would they condone or even tolerate that sort of behaviour?
It just showed me that the school doesn't take care of their teachers at all!
in my opinion, the school is completely unprofessional and a bit of a joke really.
On top of not having a real cirriculumn or text books, they care more about making money than taking care of their teachers.

[bombers1979]

yeah, I totally agree. The school never supports you or takes your side when parents make unreasonable demands or requests, you have to do unpaid Saturday work that is completely pointless and in general, they have no consideration for the wellbeing for either the Chinese or Foreign staff

[georgepoff]

working for TOPKIDS ?

[bombers1979]

Well look, for three months, you might just be able to survive and if that's what they're offerring then it may be okay. I would be surprised if you decided to stay for longer at the end of it anyway. Better to lock yourself in for three months and then if God forbid you do decide to punish yourself for a further year then you always have that option.

Yes, Topkids has gotten a bad write up because it's not a good company to work for. It's an "International School" yet they expect you to teach the "Chinese" way. You get no support from your administration other than criticism and in general they couldn't give a rats about you. The pay is low in comparison to other schools and you don't find out until you get there as to where you'll be teaching so you could end out in Tin Shui Wai or Tseun Kwan o where it takes an hour by bus or more to get into town.

Anyway, I hope this helps. Good luck.

[Dipso]

Deborah isn't teaching, it's day care. I spent far more time and energy on snacks and bathroom trips with the kids than I ever did on teaching.