Job Discussion Forums

[Rommel]

Miski, I think the title of your tread says it best. "Take Care of Your Children." Don't leave it up to someone else to raise your kids. There's nothing wrong with having someone come in and help out with the housework. We have two little ones and having someone come in for a few hours a week to do the housework really helps out. But that's not what goes on in Kuwait, and you know it. The vast majority of Kuwaitis don't have much of a hand in raising their children. I've taught primary kids for the past 3 years, and I can count on one hand ( and have still have a few fingers left over ) the number of my students who don't have a live-in maid.

The question I have is: If this person was mentally deranged, and not driven to do this (which was most likely the case) something would have come up in a reference check. Didn't the family check this person out before they turned over their children to her? Sad to say, but probably not.

[miski]

Rommel thank you for your post which was plain and not a rant! Yes I agree, far too many kids are left to the maid, it is abominable. My maid does a bit of everything and my kids look on her as a big sister, which I think is great and I don't think is wrong at all, for she has become like a member of our family.

Re the murderer, aparently the Philippines say they do a full mental check before they send their maids over.....but I find this hard to believe. One maid I had to start with ( the first ever) told me 1) she had rabies 2) she had tetanus because she eat many monkeys, jumped ut of my kitchen window and ran up the road in her bare feet- I hadn't beaten , starved or humiliated her. I guess she was just a bit off her rocker. Next time round I struck it lucky and X has been with us ever since.

Teachers who arrive in Kuwait willl be faced with a choice-

1.Put your toddler in a playgroup and there are several .One famous and very attractive one in Salwa (TEPG)is owned by an old drunk who regularly staggers the corridors insulting the staff, and many of the staff he employs are Romanian non graduates, another in Fintas (HC) charges extortionate rates-I think she thinks she's in London......there is another in Abu Al Hasania(T's) run by a friend, very reasonable and well equiped.There are others but I have no exp. of them.

2. Leave your toddler at home with a good maid. My 'star' used to do reading , counting and writing with my first and I was delighted. I have a bright, well centred little girl ( and a not so well centred monster boy....must be the genes)

3. Another choice is that yur school may have a pre-school group (rare) and should offer you at least 50% discount on fees.

The Ministry is at present planning to insist that companies have creche for staff if the number of mothers is 40+ ( unfrtunate if you are in a small co.)


(Hope that was all relevent enough VS )

[veiledsentiments]

It was awfully long, so perhaps it too is a rant. I always taught at university level and it was rare for the teachers to have young kids. Those that did mostly had non-working spouses. But, TEFL teachers were usually older and thus most kids were in school already. The only place that ever provided a creche was at SQU in Oman and it was organized by the mothers... though the university provided a building for them to use.

VS

[trapezius]

http://arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article=99046&d=29&m=7&y=2007