Job Discussion Forums

[Candoguy]

Enlighten English
4B, Zihong Plaza
57/800 Zhongshan Road(W)
200051, Shanghai

Has anyone heard of this school in Shanghai? I've applied to do a three week summer camp for them in July and it seemed incredibly easy to be offered a postion. They don't pay a wage, but they do reimburse flights, give free accommodation in a hotel, provide lunch and Mandarin lessons as well as a couple of trips visiting Shanghai and surrounding areas. I'll have to work 25 hours a week plus lesson planning time over a 5 day a week period.

Anyone know anything about this school?

[senorfay]

No salary? 25 hours per week? You gotta be kidding if you're considering this. Is this your idea of a vacation? If you take up an offer like this, it helps to destroy the industry for people who are working for money. Our wages are already low enough without employers expecting us to work for no money at all.

[kungfucowboy83]

25 classes is a very full load even if it's at a language mill. prep time will be from 10min-2hours per class depending on what you have to do and what resources you have available.

imo a low offer for what you would be doing in shanghai is 10 000rmb per month (in shanghai other places don't pay as much)

a round trip flight from the USA would cost about that so if he is only working 3 weeks so i guess it's not too exploitive, if they actually pay the full amount of the flight. This is a 3 week gig not a year long contract where a flight would normally be included.

personally i think it's not a good idea. at 25 hrs a week you will be working pretty hard. the only way i could think it would make sense is if you didn't have the money to come over here for a visit on your own and in that case it's a really bad idea because you are at their mercy.

if you go be very careful that they don't set you up in a roach motel with no ac or stiff you on the flight. both have been know to happen.

[Candoguy]

Thanks guys for your input. Here's details of the the deal I've been offered:

Dear Teacher,

I am writing to inform you of a summer camp we will hold in July. The camp will be in a large primary school in downtown Shanghai, China. The starting date of the camp is the 30th of June through to the 18th of July.

If you coming from abroad we are offering you return flights, reimburse up to the value of 6000 RMB, free accommodation, free lunch, daily food allowance and sight-seeing trips in and around Shanghai.

If you are currently in China we offer the same as above but instead of the flights, we will pay you 4000 RMB to 6000 RMB depending on experience.

If you would like to stay on working for our school we will also offer you a job placement after the camp. (Depending on performance).

The teaching schedule will be morning classes and afternoon activities, making up a 25 hour week.

Teaching schedule for the Shanghai summer camp

08.20 to 11.20 esl classes with a 20 min. break
11.20 to 12.55 Lunch
13.00 to 14.00 esl games
14.00 to 14.20 Tea Break
14.20 to 15.20 Activities ie football, role play and games
etc.

Esl teaching will be done from a text book supplied by us. We will be more than happy if you can bring some teaching materials and ideas sharing with the other teachers.

[KidfromBrooklyn]

Hahahahaha man these school leaders are really fishing. Summertime is the MOST BUSY, MOST PROFITABLE FOR THEM. This is really opening the umbrella!!!!

[Candoguy]

Thanks for your comments. I decided not to take this post in Shanghai after reading your replies and having spoken to an ex EFL colleague.

I think I made the right decision as I'm working in London (not teaching) earning a lot of money that will enable me to take a holiday for a month in China anyway!

[william wallace]

"Enlighten English" ? Now, if it was enlightenment, I'd go without a salary...heck I forked out over 40 K Canadian for 6 years to get so-called enlightenment, and I'm stay trying to get there, or is it here ?
I'd send back a sarcastic (forget witty; between poor English and their role playing as whatever, it would be lost on them/her/him)
Good movement!

[kev7161]

I'm working a summer camp now for 3 weeks (15 weekdays -- well, sort of: there was a 1/2 day off for a 30-minute opening ceremony, one full day off so the kids could go to a park I didn't have to go with them, another 1/2 day off coming up soon that I don't have to take part in, then of course a 1/2 day off for the closing ceremonies) - - 2 to 4 40-minute classes a day plus whatever prep time I need (let's say an hour a day). My last class finishes no later than 3:10 and I'm always out the door no later than 3:30. My salary? 7000rmb Usually I'll have a free period in between my regular lessons where I can do lesson prep and it's only a summer school so it's not like "serious" lesson prep. There are Chinese teachers here doing Chinese lessons and some Chinese kids doing the song and dance routine so this is one of the BEST SUMMER CAMPS I've ever worked! Sure, I've worked others where the pay was four or five thousand yuan more, but I worked my tail off for that. By the way, I also get my usual year-round salary from my school so this job was taken just for extra folding money. I didn't ask the teachers who came only for the camp if they got airfare reimbursement + salary, I'll do that next week and get back to you. 6000 airfare doesn't seem like much for summer travel (and high fuel prices) does it?