Job Discussion Forums

Instana · Joined: 04 Jun 2005 Posts: 7

Hi everyone!

I would like to hear from anyone who has taught or is currently teaching in either of these areas. I just want to hear about your experiences and if you enjoyed/learned/would do it again...

Thanks!

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

First5 you explain the purpose of your post; working in these territories is the same as working anywhere else. Jobs are more scarce and you have to put up with potential political vetting. What else might be of interest to you?
Jobs in these areas definitely are not for backpackers!

SillySally · Joined: 26 Jul 2005 Posts: 167

I have just returned from conducting a 7 day teacher training seminar in Urumqi.

I got very sick towards the end. I think it was all of that clean air, clean water, rich lamb, great hospitality, fantastic hotel room etc., etc., etc.

It was like an Oasis, rich with trees surrounded by varied agricultrure, surrounded by sand.

Frankly, I loved it.

Unfortunately the winters are reportedly harsh and everything comes to a stop.

The cultural diversity is rich. Kashi is fantastic, like going back 2,000 years in time.

Work for a public uni. There is one recruiting two FEs now.

Pay is low but so is cost of living.

Did I mention that the people are fantastic.

I had 400 middle school teachers in one class and 30 uni teachers in a separate class. The suprise? 85% of the middle school teachers had fairly good English conversaion skills, 100% of the uni teachers and 80% of the uni admins I met. This was shocking!

By the way, like to sleep late?

9:00 a.m. breakfast
10 classes start
2 p.m. lunch
4 p.m. classes start
8 p.m. dinner

Instana · Joined: 04 Jun 2005 Posts: 7

Thank you for sharing sillysally. I find it fascinating that there are cities older than 2000 yearsold, here in the United States we think its old if it's 150 years or so! The energy there must be amazing. I was originally thinking that I would teach in Beijing (my boyfriend will be attending Uni. there next year) but I have already experienced Beijing (I do like Beijing, I found the people to be much more friendly than in Shanghai where I attended Uni.).....but I think I need to experience a different area of the world, somewhere I haven't been!

Roger, I should probably just ignore your post because certainly working in one town in china is not going to be the same as every other town. If that were the case I would have no reason to return to china...cause if I have experienced one place, then I have experienced them all. (sorry, I do not buy it). From what I understand, the two areas in question are rich with different peoples and cultures. I know Xinjiang has a large Muslim population, I don't believe there are large Muslim populations in the inland parts of china. I love people and cultures, I have a degree in Psychology and a minor in International Relations and I happen to love Cultural Anthropology as well. I don't care much for politics either....so really, don't get so worked up over there Roger. It's all good.

I would love to hear from anyone else: pointers, places to see, etc....

Instana · Joined: 04 Jun 2005 Posts: 7

Sillysally,

What is the name of the Uni? Can you provide me with contact information?

Thanks!

SillySally · Joined: 26 Jul 2005 Posts: 167

ShiHeZi University, Urumqi

Mr. Niu
Mobile # 13519931008

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

I have just been to Urumqi, and continued on to Kashgar and returned from there. My fourth visit to Xinjiang. I don't share Sillysally's enthusdiasm for Urumqi at all.
There are, admittedly, differences between individual cities in China; but as a TEFLer you are not going to uncover much beryond what you can read in a LONELY PLANET. And LP doesn't particularly recommend Urumqi, and no one calls it an "oasis".
If I sounded stand-offish in my previous post it was simply because people are asking questions of unfathomable import without giving away their particular interest in the place selected.
I too have special interests - I once studied ethnology (as a "minor"). In what way would this be helpful in understanding my Uygur students?
IAs it is, I travelled with Uygur students who were home-bound after one year of secondary school in Guangzhou. Visiting their homes in Turpan and Kashgar showed me much more than any teacher in Shihezi, which is an ugly urban speck north of Urumqi, can ever see.

SillySally · Joined: 26 Jul 2005 Posts: 167

I am not a backpacker and the Lonely Planet is not my Bible.

I was describing Urumqi as I saw it as a place for living and working a ten month stint, not a tourist destination that must provide daily stimulus.

There is a vast difference and different criteria. Clean air, clean water, friendly and helpful people. STOP right there! Most Chinese cities are polluted beyond belief and the people stare and treat you like a side show freak. Enough reason to choose Urumqi? You bet!

But it gets so much better!

Sorry Roger - we also probably do not agree on what is good art!

Volodiya · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2005 12:47 am Post subject:

SillySally, you were not far off the mark when you said, on another thread, that Roger was "jaded". He is, more often than not, negative on the topics raised- and the people who raise them- on this forum.

Roger, take this as well meant "criticism". You do seem to be unduly negative- too often for it to be anything other than a pattern of thinking. With so many fascinating experiences, and places, awaiting the willing, it's a shame that someone would discourage that impulse to do, and see, in others.

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

I am sorry but for me to stay put in any city I need stimulus. Urumqi doesn't provide that. And, Sillysally, this is totally untrue - Uruqmi stinks. It is one of the worst polluted towns in China. And more ugly than most.
Having said this, I appreciate certain face lift measures that are embellishing the town such as Erdaqiao Uygur Market (not far from where Reiya Kadeer has her department store that is right now eerilie empty).

SillySally · Joined: 26 Jul 2005 Posts: 167

"And, Sillysally, this is totally untrue - Uruqmi stinks. It is one of the worst polluted towns in China"

Roger if you really believe this then you have not been to many Central or Norther Chinese cities.

"for me to stay put in any city I need stimulus" I have known many people who could not stand to be alone with themselves. Peace comes from within, not without. I am sorry for you Roger.

struelle · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 2372 Location: Shanghai

Just my take on things, I've been posting on Dave's for 2 years and have seen literally hundreds of posts where people enquire about some far-off location to teach in, i.e. Urumqi. On the flip side, it is a lot rarer to read posts of people who are teaching in these locations to report back on their experiences.

While these places may not be 'bad' per se, you have to question why people want to go there. If the posters do their homework, they can see that such places are smaller and geographically isolated.

While the exotic appeal is high, there are huge logistical problems that come with living in them. The most obvious is what to do when culture shock sets in, say 3-4 months down the road. Are you prepared to cope with severe isolation and loneliness? What travel options do you have? What about things to do, entertainment, people to meet, etc.? Are you going to comittment to your employers 100%, despite when things get really tough?

For those who can hack it, more power to them. But in my case, I know myself too well and have done enough research to conclude that far-off places in China would be a disaster for me. Like Roger, I need to live in big cities with lots of stimulation and access to amenities, etc.

While there are problems to big city living, the problems of isolation are far worse.

Far-off places may sound more exotic, but I think posters need to take a more sober look at what they're getting into, that's all.

Steve

Volodiya · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2005 12:49 am Post subject:

Struelle, these are all very good, practical observations, and applicable to many. But, I spent eight years in Central Asia and the first few of those were in conditions that would not meet any of these tests.

I was in the west of Kazakhstan. Water supplies, both hot and cold, were intermittent, meaning you bathed, washed dishes, and flushed the toilet when you could (keeping buckets of water handy, collected when there was water). Electricity, likewise, was intermittent.

Mosquitos were abundant, English speakers, few. The better streets were potholed, the rest unpaved and often muddy. It reached lows in the mid-minus 30s C. in the winter, and highs in the mid 40s C. in the summer. For the month of April, winds brought fine dust from the Gobi Desert which filled our eyes, mouths, noses and ears.

Bread was available, likewise, intermittently, and then only to the first people who mobbed round the bread truck.

Yet, it was an adventure, everyday. Doing the simplest things became fun, and a reward. If you found some champagne, or chocolate, for sale in a shop, it was cause for a celebration! If you ate a mediocre meal in a cafe, on uncomfortable chairs, with indifferent service, you smiled to your friends, and remarked how good life was....

I preferred that life, to the ease I'd had in America. It was just the thing I was looking for, at the time, and I felt truly alive.

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

Volodiya,
I think you know I am not here to blackpaint Sillysally or to bad-mouth Urumqi.
She may truly be convinced of what she keeps saying but I have some nagging doubts about a poster who says she has been in the country for years and has only been posting since the end of this very month, and then at a staggering rate...
I have toured China like few have, and when I finally accepted my first job it was in a place I knew I could cope with.
Most newbies have zero or little tolerance for the vagaries of living in such a place. Wwhat's more, you need to find a place that keeps you enthralled - a place where going out to socialise with people is a reasonable option. Also, you will want to have opportunities to spend weekends away from home. I think Urumqi is not an ideal option on this score. It certainly is an interesting tourist destination - but little else.
And if push comes to shove and you need a new job then you will want to find a new employer sooner rather than later. There aren't many locales near Urumqi where you can hope to be employed should you fall on hard times... the nearest place might be xi'an, and that's about 2400 kms away.
i believe you that you survived Central Asia for a year or two, but that doesn't mean everybody is cut for the same mould. Especially IF YOU HAVE OTHER OPTIONS...

Volodiya · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2005 11:51 am Post subject:

I understand what you're saying about Sally. It almost looks like she discovered Dave's about five days ago, and there was a lot she had stored up to say over the years here! About Urumqi, it has a reputation as a fairly polluted place, but that may be a seasonal, winter phenomenon, mainly. Too bad Tom Selleck hasn't jumped in here, he's in Urumqi, working.

American Peace Corps volunteers are often sent to the end of the world. There will be just a few of them stationed in a place. To work in the outer regions of China must be like that. But, it could be an interesting experience for those with a sense of adventure.

When I see shots of Xinjiang on TV here, nostalgia wells up in me. I think I could be quite happy out there- hearing the calls to prayer, eating "shashlik" and enjoying the hospitality of the people. Central Asian people are much easier to get to know, in my experience, than the Chinese.