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[leeroy]

Thought that would get your attention...

I've had my thinking cap on these last couple of days (pesky uni exams!) - but not to worry, it'll come off and be replaced by the "beer cap" again soon enough.

ELT isn't the only industry which thinks it isn't paid enough. Nurses, firemen, bus drivers - in face, everyone who isn't a lawyer thinks they don't get paid enough. At least that's the case in the UK, anyway.

But English Teachers really do get shockingly low wages. The average entry level wage in London for an English Teacher at a language institute is �10 an hour. Generally, sick days, pensions, paid bank holidays etc... are out of the question. It isn't really a "job", it isn't treated as such by either employers or employees. It's just something you do, which you happen to get paid for. Contracts are usually the work of fiction.

�10 an hour works out at c�1,000 a month, after tax - assuming you are teaching 6 hours a day. A 2 bedroom flat in central London costs more than �1,000 a month on rent alone. A beer will cost the better part of �3, a packet of Marlboro will set you back �5. On an entry level ELT teacher's wage, you cannot live properly - and, in fact, most don't. Supplements to income can be made from robbery, prostitution and the selling of one's organs - or occasionally from private classes.

(The next step up from Language Institutes is ESOL for refugees, for which (I am told) you now need a PGCE. Here, the money can double from the Language Institute area - but you can be faced with the unenviable task of being confronted with a class of impoverished, uneducated Bosnian, Afghani and Iraqi teenagers.)

ELT salaries in most of Europe, in fact, won't make you into a millionaire. The main places for money that exist, as I understand it, are the Middle East and KoreaJapan.

But money isn't the only common gripe of the jaded ELT professional. English Teachers, usually, would define their role as "To enable their students to increase their communicative ability in English."

Well, it seems fair enough. It is surprising, though, to see how common the validity of this comes called into question. English teachers' roles (in students' minds) can vary enormously, and are often in direct contrast with what the English Teacher thinks they are supposed to do.

* Often, students would prefer to be entertained by the "exotic looking westerner". On other occasions, the students have no intention of learning English - they are attending school due to outside pressure (maybe from parents who think it's a good idea, or because it gives them a chance to socialise outside of school).

The myth that "by being close to a white person, you can improve your English" is a head-ache for teachers worldwide. It is no easy task to improve your students' communicative English, when they don't respond to communicative (student focused) lessons, and when they have no desire to focus on English outside of school. When under-qualified, and under-experienced teachers are put in situations like this, it's not surprising that results can sometimes suck.

Even when motives for learning English are apparently genuine, sometimes students' understanding of how it is acquired can be faulty to the extent of seriously hindering the teacher. You cannot buy a language, and passing tests and translating sentences does not mean you are a fluent communicator.

It is also not surprising that generally ELT is seen as a bit of a "joke" by many others in mainstream industries. But the blame for this cannot be put solely on the lower-end teachers who are doing less than a bang-up job. The reason these people work in ELT is because they can. How are they able to? Because the market conditions dictate that cheap labour, white skin and basic qualifications are enough. And why is the market for English teachers like this? (See *).

As the world becomes ever more globalised, the need for "Communicative Ability" in English is going to become more prominent. At the moment, it is easy to question the integrity of English students studying English at Language Institutes. In the future, the need for English will have more authenticity. In short, it will become more of a "necessity", instead of just a "nice idea" considered by many at the moment.

Generally, Asian education systems (and cultures) are the staunch enemy of the committed English Teacher. Everything which we westerners consider to be sacred for an effective language learning environment is directly contradicted by Asian "education". But this is already showing signs of cracking under the overwhelming evidence that the western approach to language learning yields results faster.

All of a sudden, TEFL employers will realise the difference between good teachers and bad teachers, who until now have often been grouped together in the same categories for pay and professional recognition. Eventually, a degree in pottery and a CELTA won't be enough to land a job. When this happens, money will go up to those select few who are relevantly qualified. In short, those who deserve it will become better rewarded. Perhaps then, "backpacker-rage" will finally come to a halt.

"Chinese will become the new world language, there's one billion of them and it's a fast growing economy!" whine some, not realising that they are missing the f*cking point entirely. China may well become the world's "factory" - producing our goods for us because of their cheap labour and low ethical code of treating employees. As any seasoned teacher in China will tell you, innovation is not their strong point. And unless Latin America jumps out of the shadows pretty damned quickly - English will maintain it's dominance as "The World's Language". As the world becomes closer together, the need for real, communicative English will become ever more apparent. This will be good news for English Teachers, and those who train them.

Well, in my humble opinion, anyway.

[Roger]

Are "Asian cultures" inimical to teaching English effectively? In such a generalised way, I can't accept this statement. It is true of Confucian countries - Japan, Taiwan and China - but it is NOT true of countries such as the Philippines, India, Burma, Singapore.
I think the biggest challenge to the spread of the English language in the Far East stems from a traditionalist, confucian-type and highly chauvinist mindset!

The fact that native English speakers are wooed into this service to Asians speaks enough.
The fact, however, that native English speakers are employed in subaltern positions adds weight to the conclusion that there is not enough respect for English and for its facilitators.

[leeroy]

Roger

OK, I'll confess, I don't know what "subaltern" means!

And yes, you're right, "Asians" is also incorrect. "Confucian", perhaps, should have been the word... But do you agree with my overall argument?

And while we're in the business of correction, shouldn't it be "separate"?

[woza17]

Leeroy
Well said, you have put all my insecurities and wandering around in the dark feelings on paper. I am going to print this off and put it in my usefule tips for esl teachers file.
Working for a language institute, I can be working with primary school kids in the morning, junior high in the afternoon and a company in the evening.
More often than not the boss negotiates with the school or company as to which books will be used and you are not involved at all with choosing the curriculum.
As for Confusious, he is alive and teaching in the classrooms, I often rail against him in the classroom.
RegardsCarol

[Wolf]

I remember when I started EFL teaching in Japan, I had similiar thoughts. Not to detract from our esteemed OP, who has presented his thoughts very well.

[selmo]

Oh why wont people take me seriously ? I am a better teacher than the others! No really I am ! People just dont seem to realise how important good teachers are! I am not a back packer

Oh for Buddhas sake
Buddha said ' Do not listen to your teachers'

It is just a job its badly paid but so what if you want a lot of money go and work in telesales or something. The fact is that learning English to most Japanese people is a hobby so yes you are on the same level as an aeorobics instructor so get off your high horse and drink your milk.

[Roger]

Here is an example of how things often go wrong:

I got a new temporary job. The previous job holder disappeared before the SARS crisis hit China. That was 4 months ago. Thus, I took over 6 classes from another teacher, not knowing where the classes, and particularly, where each learner stood.
This is a kindergarten, so there are virtually no textbooks (I say "virtually" although there do exist some books, but CHinese often pick the wrong ones, i.e. books that suit students capable of decyphering words, that is pupils that can write and read!).
My kids have learnt how to write individual letters, and they have begun to write some words. But if they have to write a phrase or a sentence, they will string all words together. Thus they are not able to handle textbooks!
Thus we have to teach basics, which limits the scope of teachable topics and vocables to very few.
OK, I hit it off very, very well! The kids loved me from day one, and this was reciprocal! The same for my colleagues! I even had a new graduate come on observation, and she was wowed after the lesson, saying she had not expected me to run English classes with CHinese 4- and 5-year olds WITHOUT USING CHINESE NOR WITHOUT ANY ASSISTANT TRANSLATING AT ALL.
Isn't this a major success - you can instruct your learners to DO things, they understand and can repeat every instruction down to a comma? That's what they are capable! Thanks to the previous expat, an Aussie, who taught them the ABC first thing (exactly as it is in my personal book!).
BUt what ideas would you have ofor teaching young learners for 6 weeks? Talking about tourism and travel? Sports? Classrooms? Fruits and vegetables??? I did not think I should add new topics at all. I thought I should consolidate their established skills and knowledge, correct a few mistakes and add as little as possible. Yes, we talked about TIME (there are so many things to talk about time!), and it struck me the children should learn to talk about something that had happened in the past, like what did they do last weekend, did they ever go to a McDonald's or have they been to the swimming pool yet?

Teaching them to use the simple past tense proved to be, nay, don't anticipate anything wrong! EASY! Yes, they grasped the structure ("add 'ed' to most verbs"). THey quickly acquired a stock vocabulary of irregular verbs ("yesterday we ran 5 laps in the music hall!"). I tell you, it was plain sailing!

Until I heard mumblings from some parents!
It was brought to me in a roundabout way that some parents thought the kids were not memorising enough new vocables! They check on the latest additions every week even though most of them speak not a word of English!
My colleagues tried to shield me from this criticism, but it has reached my ear nevertheless.
Just shows what's wrong in China: it is the parents' feudal, backward, Confucian, unimaginative retro mind!
And note this: it is them that will prevail, not myh boss (who is on my side), nor the kids!
And, do not forget: there has been a huge paradigm shift in China - the change from a normal family to a triad of couple and one child!
How "modern' couples perceive their one and only child - and how beswt to 'serve' him/her! - is horrifipfying!

[guest of Japan]

The wonderful thing about teaching in a high school is that parents don't care anymore.

The terrible thing is that neither do the students.

Roger, your post was very interesting. It's too bad it ended like Hamlet.

[selmo]

Roger have you tried prozac?