Job Discussion Forums

[dmb]

I cant believe for a minute you lack self confidence. with regards to the Borg quote. There is the classisc efl line.'what did you do in class today?'
"i know what i taught in class but I am not sure what was learned"
going back to EFL as a career. dictionary.com defines career

[dagi]

[quote]My dream is to get out of TEFL and get a real job.[/quote]

What holds you back from getting out of TEFL and getting "a real job"? I've read many of your posts and you sound bitter and disappointed. If TEFL is not your thing, why can't you do s.th. else? Excuse my ignorance, but what prevents you from going back to your country of origin and learn/train/study for another profession?

[31]

You are not a TEFL teacher dagi which is a complement and are a professional (real) teacher in your own country and earn a decent salary with decent pay and conditions. I have gleaned this from your posts.

Why I can`t/don`t get out of TEFL and get a real job? I really really would love everyone`s comments on this but here are my reasons in no particular order.

I have a little savings and a flat full of furniture and loads of baby things. If I landed back in the uk tomorrow I could just afford the deposit for a cheap 2 bedroom flat in a crap area. That would exhaust my savings. Flights, sending stuff by cargo and wife`s visa I would have to save for. We could stay with my parents for a little while but they have a tiny place and with the kids it wouldn`t be fair. Besides they think that teaching English is like real teaching and are not aware of what TEFL is like and how precarious my financial situation is.

I would do almost anything rather than claim social security and am not prepared to go on the social even if I could get anything.

TEFL in the UK is so badly paid -18000 a year, in London possibly 22000-an FE college would be a little better paid but almost impossible to get unless you could offer sth else such as PGCE qualified and able to teach another subject. Unis forget it without a PHD and published and most jobs advertised are already taken, the jobs are advertised for fairness.

My wife would be unable to work since she lacks a work visa, we have young kids and her insurance industry experience and uni degree in economics (open Uni) would be useless.

Jobwise what would I do that could support a family in rented accomodation. Getting a mortgage-forget it. My credit rating is non existent which means bad and you need a job first.

Train to do sth is a great idea but who will pay the bills. A foreign wife counts for nothing when grants and the social are involved. I don`t have 3 years stamps so am not entilted to do a free PGCE. Paying your stamps like dmb doesn`t count as you have to be resident in the UK for the last 3 years and paying the right class of contributions- I have checked.

Other jobs-what would I put on my CV? I looked at my local paper last time I was back in Uk and i was qualified for nothing. I couldn`t even get a van driver job as they want experience and tefl is a joke to UK employers. Comments?

[31]

[dmb]

you seem to equate working at ET as the efl industry. My guess is most people on this forum arent on an hourly rate.

[31]

I agree with you that most forum members are not on hourly pay. Most ET teachers are too busy scamming hours to post on here.

But my point is that anybody can become an EFL teacher. ET teachers are TEFL teachers just as forum members are TEFL teachers. What professions are like this?

[Golightly]

[justme]

[31]

You missed an opportunity to throw in an Entrailicus word like ''networking.''

[saloma]

Why do you people BOTHER with this guy??? He has no want to be helped out of the little cesspool of pity he has created for himself.

I work in Taiwan. I work at a language school a lot like ET, and I managed to pay off a huge debt, travel all over the place and put away a sizable chunk for a rainy day. I also worked my ass off. So what? I made the money I needed, and I learned a lot about teaching.

Sometimes places like ET have advantages. Growing pains mean things are changing. If you are a person who can offer constructive criticism, and are willing to get involved to make a changes for the better, these schools can offer great opportunities.

That's exactly what happened to me in Asia. The school is still not perfect, but I am proud to say I made a big difference in the curriculum and standard of teaching there.

Also a place like ET may be a good place for people who are new to Istanbul. Work there, take your time to really figure out if you want to stay in Turkey and suss out other schools for the following year.

So, I am heading to Istanbul after the summer and even though you've said about many, many crap things about ET - I STILL may look Molly up!

[saloma]

BTW - Entrailicus: What you wrote above was really lovely. I get the feeling you really DO care about 31, and want to help him ...but he just can't/won't let you.

Why is that?

[whynotme]

[31]

Next Saloma will be telling us that (s)he worked two jobs to put herself through school yet still had time to take care of business at home.

[dagi]

31, I understand your situation a lot better now! It's not easy when you have a wife and kids to support. If you want to change your situation, it all depends on how much you want it and what you are willing to invest.

You are right, I am a professional teacher with a good salary but keep in mind that I did not become a teacher over night. I used to be a tool maker and believe me I loathed that job! Every single minute of it. I hated work from the bottom of my heart. At a certain point I realized that I had to make some sacrifices if I wanted to change my situation.
For my degree, I had to pay it all myself, had to do low-paid and extremely part-time jobs at Call-Centres. These call-centres here suck you dry and exploit you to no end. I got fired a couple of times because my employers did not like the fact that I was training for s.th. else and have managed to totally screw up my CV. It was three years of hard work with very little money. At certain points I had sleepless nights because I did not know how to pay the rent next months or I had to worry where I would get the money from to pay for tuitition fees.
I had no parents who supported me financially but expected me to visit them three times a year and pay the flights by myself! Because I am not in my native country I was not eligible for any kind of social welfare.

Now I've got my degree, have no savings and from september on for the first time in 4 years I will have a job that acutally pays for my living.
I am only 31 and there are at least another 30 years left for me to work and I do think all the hassles were well worth it.

What do you want? Spend the rest of your life in a business you loath or invest a couple of years and lead a more happy life? If you talked to your parents, would they be willing to help you out? Your situation is not hopeless, you just need to invest a few years to make the change.

[dmb]