Job Discussion Forums

[lizziebennet]

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[veiledsentiments]

What level are you teaching? University females? Academic English?

If so, this isn't entertainment teaching, although students appreciate a sense of humor.

VS

[lizziebennet]

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[desultude]

It is a delicate balance between being entertaining enough to keep their interest and serious enough to impart the education they need.

I found that I had some very serious students and a lot of young women in need of some affection and social life. The serious ones deserve all you can give them and the others hopefully will be inspired to try a bit harder.

I found that if I took the students seriously, some of them would really rise to the challenge.

The young women in Saudi Arabia deserve the best that you can give them.

[lizziebennet]

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[heavie]

Perhaps your students will be well motivated and want to learn. Personally I think you will have a better chance of being asked out to the movies by a camel who speaks 3 languages in Saudi Arabia.
Your students will want one thing from you.
VERY HIGH MARKS.
They will work in class and smile at you and even ask questions that they are curious about. They will also smile and tell you what a wonderful teacher you are, but in the end they dont care what they learn, have no motivation to learn, because their place in life is already established through family connections or "wasta". They will compliment you, thank you, all nonsense just to develop wasta with you, so you will give them high marks. They will not study outside of class, the smiling and friendliness they show you in class should be enough to pass, so expect a very pleasant time in class until there are exams, and then you will face the music.
This is not Asia, I assure you. Education in Saudi means, you have passed the course and they haggle with you over 1-2%. It has nothing to do with learning.
You passed 4 students from your class in Singapore, you will not be doing anything like that in Saudi. You will pass the people who have family connections(wasta) or someone in administration(your boss) will pass them. If you fail your students in Saudi Arabia, they will go to the administration and tell all kinds of lies about you, e.g you are saying bad things about the royal family, you are saying bad things about Saudi Arabia etc, etc. You can fight your case, but you are a foreigner and a non-muslim, so who can the administration believe, the infidel non muslim or the devout religious students. They cannot accept your version over a non-muslim, i.e take the word of a non muslim over a foreigner and also cause trouble between tribes. The administrator will see this as a chance to gain wasta with a powerful connected person, "I will take your side in this and later when I need a house for my brothers family I will call you."
Are you students PAYING for their "education", then they are payiing for their results. Why pay money for a failure, well they dont.
I've read some nonesense on this website, but giving hope to Saudi females?? Are you trying to change the world or teach English? I wouldn't attempt either in Saudi Arabia
1) They will be married off to a cousin and told what and when to do it.
2) 98% of women will not have a job. They are not western women, they are not empowered and have no examples like Hillary Clinton to follow.
3) Their family will get them a job, not their qualifications or education, so whats the point in education.
You have two types of sudents.
1) Wasta students
2) Without wasta students.
Number 1 does not need education, its family connections open all required doors.
Number 2 does not need education, because even with it, they have no family to open the required doors.
If you are coming here to make women's lot a richer and better experience, forget it. People are in Saudi for the money and anyone who is there for any other reason is a liar or a fool.
Girl Power, Are you one of the Spice girls? Emma Bunton, I'll bet.
"I feel like jumping on a plane" well after you get there, you will feel like jumping under a train. Good luck with your "Harvard hopefuls".

[rigel]

Heavie, that is a great post. It's good to read a veteran tell it like it is. Much of the time, what you read here is really just a 'whole bunch of nothing'.

Allow me to add more info for the OP's enjoyment:

I've heard from another vet here that the KSA is a 'face' society, just as is Korea. One must be careful in places where Face is the societal stabilizer. You know from your Korea experience that if you start uplifting people who are low on the 'face ladder' and empowering them, you will find yourself in trouble or even on a plane out. Ready to get fired for simply doing your job? Be a westerner who believes 'all men are created equal'. Try to help that son-of-the-beggar down the street who's as smart as tack be as knowledgeable as the grandson of the Royal Prince and see what it gets you. Better yet...expose the grandson as being 'just another student' who's no better than anyone else in the classroom and see what happens. Be ready to pack your bags.

[Grendal]

ouch

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

[rigel]

I said MUCH of the time, man. MUCH of the time. But not all the time.

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

Er...I was agreeing with you, rigel. I wuz referring to heavie...

NCTBA

[johnslat]

I think it's great that people come on here and tell about their experiences in the Kingdom.
But what I don't think is great (and what seems to happen a lot) is posters who come on here and tell YOU what YOUR experience in the Kingdom is going to be like based on THEIR experiences (good and/or bad.)
I've written it before (and I'll probably write it again):

Everyone has his/her OWN, private Saudi Arabia.

Regards,
John

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

I think the great underlying and unspoken component here is admin support. Mine could get iffy at times...depended on the sycophant in charge at the time. Some seem to have enjoyed great support.

As long as you got that (admi support), plus fewer expats NOT tryig to screw all the others to climb up the food chain/slack off as much as possible, then yer golden.

NCTBA

[meyanga]

lizziebennet,

Please don't let the cynicism of others put you off. In my short experience here, Saudi women have, for the most part, been motivated and lively students. There are, of course, those who are not, but don't we get them everywhere?

Many students I teach are desperately trying to achieve high scores in IELTS or TOEFL to enable them to go overseas to complete Masters programmes. I fail to see how any amount of wasta could influence those marks.

I personally give marks that I think are deserved. And...yes, I have had students complain about them and ask to change them, but I have refused. If you change marks that you have already given, you are just opening yourself up for a whole load of problems and it looks very unprofessional.

[Grendal]

One word of advice for the classroom.
Classroom management skills 101.

Wait five minutes after class starts because the latecomers will start trickling in by then. This means that another five mins. are waisted for the straglers. Once you have reached a fairly good attendance level, which should be in about another five mins., start your lesson and teach until the first break. This means that you effectivly have about 35 mins. to deliver your lesson for that period. Occupy them for the first fifteen minutes with some conversation, let them use what they know and keep it interesting. I used to argue that the earth was flat and ask for proof that it was round. When they would give it I would call it propaganda and try to make them believe it was flat.

This was the men's section, I don't know about the women's.

Grendal