Job Discussion Forums

[laugh2]

Any advice on the following would be helpful.

I have two offers from Poland for my first ESL position. Which do you think would best enable me to get a better job my second year of teaching? Or does it matter much at all? Both schools teach children, teenagers and adults - general and exam English.

One job is in Szczecin with ELS-Bell, the other with Lektor School of English in Mragowo (population 22,000) in the Lake Region. The hours and pay are better in the small town, but there is nothing in the way of teacher development. The only other native speakers will be the one or two other teachers. The former teacher testimonials on the school's web site positively gush about their experience there.

What I like about the city ELS-Bell offer is, of course, all that cities have to offer, plus, frequent teacher input/development. But teaching 4 classes on Saturdays is mandatory and it looks like there's potential to have to teach close to 30 or more hours a week.

I'm a spanking new teacher with no experience and will be a newbie abroad. I'm concerned about handling the workload without losing my mind, so the small-town job with less hours but no training appeals. But the city offer, with a large, professional-seeming school that gives support - maybe 30 hours of teaching wouldn't be so bad.

Any thoughts? And, again, might one or the other job better set me up to get a better job or one in a city I prefer the following year?

Thanks.

[lajzar]

Point of order: Its normally (and today is no exception) considered bad form to post in multiple forums simultaneously with identical queries. You should pick the most likely forum, and jsut one.

Three different forums is just too many. Otherwise, I might have given you a helpful answer. This is probably why others have held back too - bad nettiquette on your part.

[laugh2]

Point taken. I consider myself punished.

[laugh2]

It's my first posting. Now I know.

[valentine]

is it also considered bad form to check 3 forums simultaneously? you are right not to help someone just becasue they have abused and debased the system. and you are right too punish this man. idiot.

if you want my advice, and i have never been to poland - i was thinking about moving there though- is to take the job that looks best and easiest with the best conditions for you to ease yourself into teaching. as a new teacher, everything will be important and everything you do will help yourself develop and improve - such as really learning the grammar, teaching techniques etc... which you will naturally develop on your own.
my advice would be to take a job which lets you figure out things for yourself a little bit, then in a year move to somewhere which'll allow you to hone your skills, get more guidance and develop even more.
if i were you, i'd spend a year in place that looks most fun, most caring and most helpful - the former one looks best to me, then move later. living abroad / adapting / leaerning new skills will keep you busy for a year anyway, you have a whole career to do stuff after that.

now, i'm off to post this on as many forums as i possibly can. look out for me in indonesia, oman, france, etc....
what the hell is netiquette anyway? no spitting in cyberspace? incorrect use of smileys is punishable by flogging? i knew there was a reason i usually avoid message boards like the plague.

[Alex Shulgin]

[lajzar]

I do not consider what i wrote to be a flame, but more guiding a new user in teh accepted norms of Internet usage.

If it was intended as a flame, the language involved would have been a lot more colourful.

[Flabs]

lazjar: get a life.
these forums are supposed to make it easier for us to swap ideas, info and hopefully help each other as teachers, not for some to prove how much time they spend on the computer!
laugh2: i would also go with the offer from Bell, being a bigger organisation they will hopefully be more organised and accountable, and teacher development is great on your first job. it's a good suggestion to see if they will alter the hours for your first semester as a new teacher and their response will tell you what kinf of employer they will be.

[peekay]

Laugh2 thank you for posting this as I'm in a similar situation. First EFL teaching post (although I've taught a literacy class in a prison which included non native speakers) and I have lived abroad before (albeit far too long ago to mention )

I have an offer from ELS Bell in Gdynia and one from ILS in Opole. I consider both to be good offers (both could be more money though!), although I like the sound of ILS on paper. However, those I've spoken to who know Poland (apart from those working at ILS ) say take the Gdynia one as its a much better place to work!!

Let us know what decision you come to.

[laugh2]

I decided to go with the small school in the small town which itself is in a rural area. It will be the closest I've come to living in "the country," something I've always wanted to do, so I'll get to sort of tick that one off the list. Thanks to you all for your thoughtful replies, I found them very helpful and interesting.

[misteradventure]

Having lived/taught in small towns, I would reconsider Alex's recommendation. While I prefer 'country life', if you've never lived overseas and/or totally lack linguistic ability in the local dialect, you may find it to be extremely lonely as you work during their 'free time' and are free during their normal working hours.

So you can only socialize during weekends, if you get the chance.

It could make for some long, boring days if you can't really talk to anyone (in any language). Are you used to that much isolation? Szczecin isn't exactly an international commercial hub, either, but I found it difficult to find anyone outside of school to talk to in a town of 100,000! At least you'd have other native speakers...

Yes, if I was asked to review the school while employed there, I'd gush as well. No gushing could equal no paycheck, you know?

Then again, maybe you are trying to induce maximum stress in your life?

[laugh2]

It may well be that I'll feel desperately lonely and desperately flailing about in my teaching in the small town. The latter is rather likely I suppose. I'll have to chalk it up as a learning experience then. Maybe I'll become clear if I'm a country or city girl, among other things. But I think I can survive 9 months of primarily my own company, if that's how it plays out.

I'm not as concerned about feeling lonely as I once was. I'll probably do a lot of reading, which I love, keep up on news and doings back home, and research future destinations. I'm also pretty comfortable doing things by myself here in the states, like going to the movies and taking little trips. It will help that I really enjoy being outside. I hope to do lots of walking, hiking, kayaking, canoeing, cross country skiiing. In fact, the school owner said she'd like to join me kayaking. I'll probably get back into yoga. In that way, I may live healthier in Mragowo than in the city. In the city, I know myself, I'd hook up with the party crowd, try to keep up with the younguns (I'm 40), and drink way too much for my own good.

As for working when most people are off, with the town being a tourist spot in the summer, I imagine the shopkeepers and restaurant people will be pretty friendly and I can't be the only one who sometimes likes a beer or two at the end of the day. If I get to visit larger cities as often as I'd like, maybe I can find bars where other teachers hang out. I found out the other teacher at the school is American and am glad about that.

Besides, there's email and "friendly" sites like this.

Again, thanks for all the input. I found it really helpful and very interesting.

Until next time....

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