Job Discussion Forums

[IT2006]

I must applaud Sinaman and what he is trying to accomplish.

Any serious teacher who has spent any time in China as a foreign expert sees a desperate need for screening the riffraff that washes ashore. True, the administrations (in many cases) have very low expectations for the FTs, so it matters little to them that Ms Jenny is as crazy as a loon and Mr. Johnny is a drunk. They fill the bill if they show up.

Somewhere in the hiring process there should be some kind of screening done by a westerner or at least someone familiar with the west.

Why?

This is a common scenario: as long as the applicant/interviewee does not ask too many questions or does not make many demands over the phone (when an interview actually takes place), he is accepted for an advertised position in China. (I am saying that this is a common scenario. This is not always the case as , I am sure, the serious teachers on this board will point out quite quickly).

SOME recruiters don't really seem to care about the quality of the person whom they recruit. It is not in their interest to screen people out. (Yes, I know, some recruiters really DO care about their own reputations, hence they make an effort to weed out the nutcases). The FAO in MANY cases can't pick up on subtle signals that the person to whom he is speaking is a whack job because all he's ever encountered are western whack jobs.

The interview to which Sinaman refers raises a few red flags. While neither of the requests/requirements/demands that the interviewee posed are outrageous in and of themselves, the fact that they arise together makes me wonder about the suitability of the candidate in question.

Not wanting to take public transportation in China is understandable AFTER ONE HAS LIVED IN CHINA AND ACTUALLY RIDDEN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, but guess what? Not every school can or will provide a shuttle for foreign teachers.

Not wanting to shift gears from advanced students to mainstream students is a reasonable request, more so if back home the candidate specializes in teaching the gifted or doesn't have the skills (or perhaps the constitution) to teach on a fundamental level. Some teachers in America just don't and won't teach that level. That's a personal choice. With that choice, however, comes limitations in job opportunities.

However, the two requests made at the same time point to some sort of aversion or reluctance to interact with others. That would raise a red flag in my assessment of the candidate and cause me to ask more questions regarding the candidate's desire and ability to work with others of a different culture.

It has been a few years since I have taught in China. One factor that makes me reconsider a return to China to teach is the quality of my prospective foreign colleagues.

I've worked with foreign experts who expressed an aversion to public transportation as well as teaching anything but the best and the brightest. Some of these same people also expressed a general dislike for the local culture and its people, so it is fair to assume that there was something besides a dislike of crowded buses behind their aversion to public transportation. These same foreign experts thought that their students were idiots and even told them so. Not wanting to teach anything but the best and the brightest would be a red flag to me.

Conversely, a candidate that showed an aversion to teaching advanced students would raise a red flag.

There are other problems to be addressed in the hiring process, and that includes the screening of those who are chronically and severely mentally unstable or otherwise unfit.

I know firsthand of a deeply disturbed FT who was hired, then soon dragged out of his apartment by the police because he had barricaded himself in his apartment and refused to teach classes. A simple interview would have screened him out quickly.

Anything that can be done to help stem the tide of those who should not be teaching in China (or anywhere) is one step in the right direction.

[IT2006]

[Sinaman]

[clayrview]

Just to add my two cents.. I am a certified Canadian teacher, and have taught a year in Canada and in England.

Let me just say, that teaching in England I worked nearly 12 hours a day, most days getting to work at 7 am to set up, and leaving often after 6 to do then some extra planning when I got home too. I came in without pay on holidays to put up displays and catch up on assessments and reports. (as most of the other teachers did as well)
The expectations in UK schools are INSANE, especially when in a school with special measures and the education authorities can come into your class at any time, to observe and evaluate you. Headteachers breathing down your neck, reports, observations, IEPs, assessments, curriculum planning, records. Not for the faint of heart.

And for the pleasure of doing it.. I came home with absolutely nothing saved (plus a little debt) as my tiny 1 bedroom in a houseshare cost nearly 600 pounds a month, on top of the rest of exorbitant expenses in England.

Yes, working in Asia I was taken a bit for granted, treated like a monkey at a zoo sometimes, wasn't paid like royalty, but hey, I had a life!

(p.s. working in Canada as a teacher is ace, although until all the oldies retire, we're SOL for jobs!)

[tatsuo1]

[nobleignoramus]

[vikuk]

Well Noble as an individual it doesn't really matter that much - what ever my background doesn't change the fact that China EFL is littered with sub-standard work conditions and suspect recruiters who are only too willing to exploit situations that may lead the FT into unpleasant employment.

What if I were to start writing about your professional life in China - the years you may have been here, the progress or stagnation of your career, where on earth can you take it from here - what would be the point, apart from trying to make a immature personal attack on a fellow poster.

As far as your enjoying all those hours of developing a fresh and flexible mind - good for you - I'm sure your employers appreciate it