Job Discussion Forums

milfred · Joined: 05 Sep 2006 Posts: 1

Hello
I have just finished my CELTA and would like some information about China.
I have looked around at some jobs for a few Schools and have received a few offers.

I have noticed that there are alot of posts about English First. The majority of the people on this fourm don't seem to like this company at all. I don't have 3 weeks to go through every post and see what people have said. What is so bad about EF.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Milfred

KES · Joined: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 722

EF is a chain school. There are several chain schools in China.

Unlike in the west, chain schools here are not managed and operated uniformly, hence, the quality of service may vary quite greatly from one school to the next.

What this means for you is that you must investigate the school you are interested in and focus on that particular school when making a decision.

You may find shills on this board touting a chain of schools. You will certianly find "haters" disgruntled former employees (usually fired) who never miss an opportunity to blast the entire chain.

Both camps seek to misinform you.

Just focus on the school of interest and do your homework before making a decision.

Good luck.

cj750 · Joined: 27 Apr 2004 Posts: 3081 Location: Beijing

no_exit · Joined: 12 Oct 2004 Posts: 565 Location: Kunming

Go back and read the posts. Seriously, so much has been said about EF, some of it good, some of it bad, that I don't think there needs to be yet another thread hashing out the same old issues (if you take the time to read the posts, you'll see that I formerly worked for EF and have no complaints about the time I spent there). It is a fairly touchy topic which easily degenerates into arguments and flaming on both sides, and I, for one, don't want to get into it again.

DaXiangLouis · Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Posts: 30

EF have over 60 schools all over China, most of which are franchises. Since the franchises are all owned by different local business people, there is naturally a variation in approach and quality (this being the nature of franchises in China). The corporate-owned schools in the larger cities are more closely controlled by EFBC (the headquarters).

Probably the best way of finding out about an individual school (and this would apply to any school with a foreign DoS) is to find out how experienced and qualified the DoS is. An experienced, qualified DoS is likely to be at a better school, since they should be better at the job, and less likely to be party to any dubious practices. If a school has a DoS with less experience or qualifications, there may be a question as to why the school would want to employ such a person in such a position (although the answer to this question may simply be that it is difficult to recruit highly qualified staff in some regions of China).

What I would certainly say in EF's favour is that for a new teacher, one of the better EF schools is a good starting point. The classes are small, the courses are structured, the school will be well-resourced and the DoS will provide structured professional support in the form of regular workshops and feedback from lesson observations.

Full disclosure: I used to work for EF, but no longer do - I worked as a DoS at two different schools, and later at EFBC in Shanghai.