Job Discussion Forums

[Babala]

There are several teachers such as myself who work for chain schools. Most schools branches have been franchised. We all know that even though the schools are supposed to follow the regulations laid down by the head office, some do not. Here's my question, should the whole chain be brought down by a few (or in the case of EF, numerous) bad franchises?

[Volodiya]

I would think not. Take EF, Kunming, about which no_exit has had a number of nice things to say. Does it matter to her students that an EF in another city has a bad rep?

[latefordinner]

Good question, Babala. For myself, I've already decided to stay away from certain chains because of my own past experiences and those of people that I've known. If one school from that chain has already stolen from me or threatened someone I know, why should I give another a chance to show that they'll do the same?

Is this unfair to other schools of the same chain? Possibly so, but then are they doing anything to correct the bad reputation of the chain they belong to? And for that matter, no one that I know of forced them to buy into a chain with myopic management. That was a business decision, and I didn't cross 12 timezones to fix their business mistakes. If franchise school B actually is a decent employer and is still having trouble getting qualified FTs because the chain istelf has a bad rep, then perhaps they should take it upon themselves to complain to head office and lay it out in terms even EF honchos can understand. "Your inaction is costing us"

[go_ABs]

I think one of the hardest things in the world to regain is a good reputation.

I know that I, like lfd, avoided certain chains because of their reputations. Quite possibly the schools I was offered positions at were fine, but all I really had to go on was the general reputation.

Volodiya - Yes. I think that no_exit's praise for her school matters all the more because it is unusual to hear praise for her franchise. If the franchise didn't have such a reputation, would she offer such praise? I don't think so (but then I'm - of course - only speculating.)

In my opinion, one bad apple does spoil the bunch. (Bunch? Bunch of apples?)

It is also the same for FTs in general. I believe that the antics of a few FTs in China can cast a poor reflection on the rest of us. Perhaps this is hard to see on a wide scale, but easy to see on a small scale. If one teacher at a university dates his students, drinks constantly, gives crap lessons, then the local people are hardly likely to expect much better from his replacement. Why should they? Multiply experiences like this across the nation, and some of the general opinions of Chinese about Westerners become understandable.

[Babala]

I don't think it does. The school I work for has a few franchises that I would not work for, that doesn't mean that every school in the chain is bad. I think it does deter some teachers from taking a chance on them. Take EF for example. Now to be fair, I wouldn't go to EF in the first place because the pay compared to hours just isn't enough in my opinion but suppose I did choose to go teach there. I definately wouldn't take a gamble but if I knew someone who worked at a particular franchise and they could vouch for it (such as no_exit for the Kumming EF) then I wouldn't let the bad reputation of many EF's deter me from working there.

[bubblebubble]

i don't think so. if that's the case, more effort should be put on standarizing things and keep up the standards.

[no_exit]

I'm answering this kind of late, I know ...

Obviously, my answer is no, one bad apple doesn't spoil the bunch. I think that you have to look at schools on an individual basis, and I often find that comparing schools in different cities is like comparing apples and oranges. Some of the things, for example, which make EF unattractive in other cities (salary, for example), are actually good points here. Kunming has one of the lowest pay rates in the country for FTs, and the full time packages which EF offers are quite competitive compared to other schools. Also, the number of schools which can legally employ FTs in Kunming is very very small, which is another mark in EF's favor. If I live in Kunming, and I'm not open to relocating, I can only compare my school to the other options which I have available to me here.

If I were have to said to myself, well EF Huizhou is a terrible place to work, so EF Kunming must suck too, I most likely would not have found another job which could give me a new visa, and I would have ended up back in the states, not a place where I want to be. So for me, the choice was easy. I talked to the other teachers there first, and made up my own mind. I've been in this city for close to two years, and I know my options here in Kunming. While this board can often offer some valuable advice, there nothing can beat good old first hand info and experience as far as I'm concerned.

[englishgibson]

My answer is NO. But that refers to the thread's heading.

With regards to EF English First centers in China, the question is different. "Do a few good apples of a rotten bunch make it good? "

Cheers and beers

[Chris_Crossley]