Job Discussion Forums

[johnslat]

OK, it's a generalization, but it was inspired by another thread: "Travelling the World Really Possible."
Based on your experience, what do you think? Do individuals who go into EFL (not ESL)and stay in it perhaps (generally) share some common personality traits (e.g.. love of adventure, curiosity, above average ability to adapt, etc?)

I think so - and since I spent over twenty years teaching EFL, I had the opportunity to get a pretty wide sampling.

Are we, as a group, different from those teachers who stay at home, and if so, how are we different?

Regards,
John

[cmp45]

In my opinion, the main difference has to with comfort level and change.
people that venture abroad are more likely to embrace change and able to deal with less comfort as oposed to the ones that choose to remain at "home".

[cmp45]

Teacher...Will this be on the exam?

[Glenski]

There are some who enjoy flitting from country to country, and I would mark them as very adventuresome types, perhaps more so than a person (like me) who has chosen to move to just one place and settle down. (My friends and family, however, persist in labeling me as adventuresome, too.)

So, IMO we have those 2 camps of traveling teachers.

Maybe something they share is a willingness/eagerness to explore another culture, and whether initially or as something they acquired, they might also have a greater sense/awareness/appreciation of a globalized world than people who don't travel.

[Perilla]

Most people back home wouldn't dream of working abroad if they could avoid it, so those of us who work abroad share the common trait that we're prepared to totally remove ourselves from the comfort zone of our home culture.

Beyond that universal similarity, I'd say that things get more complicated - how far outside the comfort zone are you happy to go? How "foreign" is the place you work? Is English used around you? What sort of salary are you OK with? How far are you from home? These are aspects where we will vary quite a bit.

I also agree with Glenski that some of us are itinerants while others prefer to settle down and familiarise with one culture - another big variable.

[bulgogiboy]

Here's my two cents (or tuppenceworth ):

Are ESL teachers adventurous? Hmm, I suppose in some ways, but I personally knew quite a few teachers who, once abroad, would just stay at home every night in front of the telly/laptop/DVD player, or prop up the same bar on a nightly basis, drinking the same old rotgut beer. Not quite Scott of the Antarctic, is it? The initial act of going to live in a far away land may be deemed 'adventurous', especially by people who have always lived in their country of birth, but the day-to-day routine of many ESL teachers is just as mundane as anyone else's.

Are ESL teachers curious? I'm not convinced. I know some definitely are, and I know I am, but I met a considerable amount of teachers who seemed to have no interest in the local language/culture/people at all. In fact, a lot of my co-workers seemed happy to live in a bubble, which excluded all the interesting aspects of local life. There was the bizarre attitude of taking a kind of pride in not being able to speak one word of the language after 5-10 years opportunity to learn. I think these types of people moved abroad to simply get a job/save money, or to escape from problems at home. In a significant percentage of ESL teachers, curiosity about other cultures has nothing to do with their choice to work abroad.

[Zero]

As compared with the general population, I'd say they are:

-more liberal
-oriented toward humanities, social sciences, languages
-more highly educated, tending to have at least a bachelor's (not always, I know)
-less socially connected to their own society
-"dreamer" types; more idealistic
-inclined to prefer novelty and stimulation over routine

[scot47]

We are all losers. But then who wants to be the winner in a rat race ?

[cmp45]

[VietCanada]

I think we are problem solvers as well as being adventurous and curious.

Thinking about trying this job is curiosity.
Actually trying it out is adventuresome.

If you accept these axioms:
Teaching is all about problem solving.
Living in a foreign country is all about problem solving.

Then it follows:
Surviving the experience is adeptness at problem solving.
Continuing to do this job year after year is enjoying problem solving.

[killthebuddha]

[johnslat]

Dear scot47,

Am I to assume, then, that slow rats are better off than fast ones? Not where there are any cats around.

Regards,
John

[spiral78]

Tolerance of ambiguity. High level of. Vital.
Interestingly, it's also a fairly common trait of 'good' language learners.

Overall, I agree most with Zero.

[naturegirl321]

I think so. those of us living abroad have to have thick skin, not worry about what the locals think and not worry about what people back home think. No matter how many times I tell my mom that I'm safe and not going to get SARS, deported, or bombed, she still doesn't believe me

[bulgogiboy]