Job Discussion Forums

addertongue · Joined: 16 Apr 2014 Posts: 8

Which age group do you prefer teaching in China?

Bud Powell · Joined: 11 Jul 2013 Posts: 1736

Inexperienced FTs teachers should not "teach" primary grades unless they have successful experience as parents and experience teaching in a formal setting.. Too many people are lured into teaching kindergarten by the high wages, then can't figure out why they become overwhelmed by the little unformed minds.

I came to China with teaching experience. I know the pitfalls of teaching primary and secondary grades. I won't teach below college level ever again. I salute those who SUCCESSFULLY teach primary and secondary school in China. It's tough in the States. It's even tougher in China.

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Bud's right for cities, but I found small town juniors a delight.
10 or so parents would sit at the back of the class where I taught a rural summer programme, so that was a factor.
Then again at a big city Kid Castle I taught at, the parents could observe and that didn't stop the kids screwball behaviours.

haleynicole14 · Joined: 20 Feb 2012 Posts: 178 Location: US

Bud Powell · Joined: 11 Jul 2013 Posts: 1736

I've worked with Chinese third graders in a summer program. (At least, I think they were third graders). Actually, I found the young kids quite charming and surprisingly well-behaved. But I had groups of 4-12, and it was just summer camp.

I'm not so sure how I'd fare with a whole bunch of young ones. I have known FTs who had no real experience as kindergarten teachers who got the job and found themselves screaming at the kids all day. I know that if I had to work with the same age groups in the U.S., I'd lose my mind. I worked inner city seventh grade for several years, and that was trying. I couldn't do that again, especially with the proliferation of the gangs and gang mentality.

I have family members who majored in Early Childhood Education who, when they were turned loose with classes of their own, found that they really couldn't handle it. They were overwhelmed.

I just feel a little leery when I hear of someone who is inexperienced say that he/she wants to teach kindergarten in China. Teaching kids that young takes talent. That's not to say that an inexperienced person with no formal education can't do the job. Au contraire. I've seen high schoolers (in the U.S.) who outperformed seasoned pros.

The_Big_White_Elephant · Joined: 12 Mar 2014 Posts: 56

Bud Powell · Joined: 11 Jul 2013 Posts: 1736

Public universities want someone with the following qualifications: BA degree (minimum) native English speaker, two years experience in teaching or similar situation.

Not long ago, Choudoufu (remember him?) started a thread about what the law states regarding qualifications. What the law says (according to Chou's data) and what universities require are usually two different things. It largely depends upon the school, the city, the FAO, the City FAO and the province.

At one university where I taught, a guy fresh out of college was recommended to the university's FAO by the city FAO. When he showed up at the school, it was learned that he had no teaching experience. He was sent to the nearest big city for a couple of weeks to get some sort of certificate.

If you have a BA and two years teaching experience, you can get a job at a public university or a 2-year college. The more education and experience you have, the more desirable you will be.

I don't know how difficult it is to get a job teaching kindergarteners. I've never applied for such a job.

doogsville · Joined: 17 Nov 2011 Posts: 924 Location: China

You don't often get a choice as to which age group(s) you teach here. It's perhaps more useful to think in terms of types of school, and the age ranges they cater to.

In my experience there are four kinds of schools here. Kindergartens, which take children aged between three and five, though it may vary.

Private language schools, who will take children from three to eighteen, if you think of eighteen year olds as children, and also adults of any age. The private language schools will often separate the students into age related classes, but this can be problematic, since the ability of the students can differ hugely in any class.

Then there's the primary/middle/senior schools, where you may be employed directly by the school or through a private company/agency. In that situation you'll usually only teach one school age range, ie. primary or middle school or senior school, so you'll deal with the age range of that type of school, but you may be farmed out to all three or a mix of the three.

And finally there's the universities where your teaching, at least at my uni, eighteen to twenty two year olds and occasional adults who take further education classes.

The language mills can be the most challenging, since you can teach all age ranges over the course of a working week, which means more planning and less time to gain experience of working with one particular age range.

So if you want to restrict yourself to a particular age range, then perhaps it's best to target the schools, and subsequently the employers, which cater to that.

Bud Powell · Joined: 11 Jul 2013 Posts: 1736

So then, what age group would you recommend for people with little to no teaching experience?

Sorry for not answering the question directly. I'd recommend a university with an English Major program or a two-year college. The two-year college probably won't have many English major programs.

Of the two, I'd recommend a university with an English Language major program. It'll be a lot easier. The students are speakers and enjoy a challenge.

However, if you have a facility with the English language but are unsure of HOW and WHAT to teach, you might want to get a certificate and work in a language center. There, you'll have a lot more guidance in what you are expected to teach. You might want to engage someone who has experience in that area to see if it's right for you.

The_Big_White_Elephant · Joined: 12 Mar 2014 Posts: 56

Thanks for the advice guys.

So do you guys agree with the statement that "the bulk (80%) of the jobs in EFL are working with kids (K-12)"? What about in China specifically? Most the people on this website seem to work at universities, but among foreign teachers in China, do most teach children? For somebody with little to no experience, is it easier to get an entry-level position teaching children or adults?

Shroob · Joined: 02 Aug 2010 Posts: 1339

haleynicole14 · Joined: 20 Feb 2012 Posts: 178 Location: US

MozartFloyd · Joined: 12 Jul 2013 Posts: 66 Location: Guangdong, China

Teach adults or Uni students if you can; especially if you want to have a life in China. If you don't enjoy free time to travel and enjoy life, by all means, teach kids. Teaching kids is hell and I'll never do it again. Sure they're cute as someone mentioned, but it's hard work and you work almost every day with split shifts.

I have friends who still teach in training schools. I can't believe the nightmare they think is life teaching there. I couldn't believe how easy life was when I finally got to the university and that's in part why most of us are teaching at uni's. Plus, many of us get about 12 weeks paid vacation. In August, I'm going to Thailand for a month on the beach. Paid! They pay isn't as large at the U, but if you can land 6K RMB for about 16 hours work a week ... I bet you'll enjoy life a lot more.