Job Discussion Forums

[twototeach]

My husband and I are looking into possibilities in China (and elsewhere). Neither of us has a university ed. but he is a registered dental technician by trade, and will have completed an EFL course. I also have EFL certification. He could teach full-time, while I would be available to teach part-time as we are also homeschooling our child. I was thinking that perhaps a middle school would be good, as then there would be young people our daughter's age. Can anyone point us in a good direction? Thank you.

[Minhang Oz]

One of the big cities would be best. Some kind of school involvement would be a must for your daughter. Local girls her own age would "adopt" her. Some of them speak surprisingly good English, and her Chinese would rocket ahead of yours. When you talk to schools re employment, mention this aspect and ask if they can assist, as most will have a relationship of some sort with local high schools. Another option would be to look for work in a middle school - a lot hire foreigners nowadays - and your daughter could attend the same school [in this case forget the big city proviso]; far more convenient for all. An EFL qual. should land you something reasonable: husband may need to be the home teacher, but that's a different question.

There will be "nay' sayers. I've got a child in a local Shanghai kindergarten however.

[Roger]

How does your own child see this transfer to a foreign country? It might be traumatising for her! I am not so positive about her socialising with Chinese of her age - she will be the odd foreign person, and she will be linguisticially challenged at least in the beginning.
It is hard enough for adults, it is many times harder for kids to get used to foreign environments, natives, food, climate. Note I am by no means saying it is going to be disastrous - but you must be realistic: in the majority of cases, moving abroad is not ideal!

Come to think of it - your hubby being academically educated will perhaps find his work repetitive and not intellectually stimulating enough. Middle schools in China - jeez!
How long would you want to be here anyway?

[MyTurnNow]

Let me second what Roger said. I can't recommend bringing a child to this country unless they are too young to know the difference.

From your child's standpoint, the interest will wear off in about 15 minutes, and they'll be left only with the smelly weird boring uncomfortable parts. They couldn't possibly care less about Tang dynasty artifacts etc. etc. etc. Your child will have social difficulties...and will be seen as a walking free English lesson to be exploited by every parent here. The public schools suck donkeys. The private international schools are horrendously expensive AND usually suck donkeys as well. Many things here, from crossing a street to opening a can of Coke, are rather dangerous here by our standards. The bathrooms are a disgrace and so is medical care. Heating and air conditioning are different and in many places housing is rather uncomfortable during some seasons. Chinese people, so lovely individually, in public have the manners and social graces of a tribe of baboons that has just carried out a successful raid on a jungle warehouse full of prescription drugs...your child will constantly be stared at, commented on, etc. I could go on and on....

These things are tolerable IF you have some maturity and perspective and a burning desire to experience China. I'll tender a wager that your child doesn't have them.

A foreign experience may be great for your child, but IMHO this is not the right country.

MT

[Jess_Laoshi]

I think a child can adapt to a new situation easier than an adult can in some cases. They are, by nature, more flexible, and exposing your child to another language and culture at a young age could be a positive experience.

Try and choose a big enough city where you will be able to find more work if your initial job doesn't pan out. Teachers in China tend to move around a lot until they find that one school that fits. It will be more traumatic for your kid if he adjusts to a new place, language, school, etc., only to be uprooted and moved away if the school you're working for turns out to be a bust. I also think it would be unfair to your child to move him/her to China if you don't intend to be there very long. Then again, if you intend this as a really long term thing, education will get tricky. Unless you intend to homeschool your kid straight through high school, international schools will be too expensive for EFL teachers in most cases.

Good luck, I know people living in China with their children happily (one couple teaches, another runs a cafe), it's just trickier. One upshot is that the locals tend to love the kids to death, and they'll get a lot of attention. Good luck.

[Kurochan]

I think you kid's age would be a big factor in whether or not the experience would be good or bad. Like, will she be leaving behind a lot of close friends, a boyfriend, THE MALL, her favorite TV shows, etc.? Or, is she still pretty young? I think under middle school age would be best.

I did know some people who brought kids to China -- one was a couple where the dad was American Chinese and the mom was white, and the other was a divorced woman with one half-Chinese/half-white son and an adopted Chinese daughter. They all sent their kids to the local school. I think the dad did tutor his daughter in oral Chinese before they came over, so she went to school at grade level, learned Chinese and had a pretty active social life. The Eurasian boy didn't speak Chinese, so the school put him in first grade, although he was like nine, so he was bored. But I think he got along okay with the other kids.

I also had friends who brought their three-year-old to Taiwan. He didn't know the difference, really, because he was so young. He was so spoiled by people that eventually when he met new people, he'd just hold out his hand like, "OK, give me candy, already." Actually, Taiwan might be a better bet, because there would be more foreigners around to ask for help if you ever were in a crisis (like your kid got sick). Plus, I think you'd have access to more things in English, like English city guides and stuff.

Another important thing is knowing how YOU will handle living abroad, because the attitude your kid sees will rub off on her. If you hate it, and think Chinese people suck by the time you go home, that's what she'll probably believe too.

[twototeach]

child is very aware of the situation and also interested and eager. She will not be leaving behind much of what we consider important in this society, as we are already adverse to TV, malls and the like. We are planning to homeschool all the way through High School, but will probably plan to involve her in some capacity locally wherever we go, so that she can more quickly aclimatize to language and so on. Any further positive feedback is more than welcome. Thanks.

[khmerhit]

Try Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Superb place for kids. That's where mine is.

[Capergirl]

I've thought about going to Japan with my daughter (she's 3). I may go when she is a bit older, but am exploring other options now (England, New Zealand, and other parts of Canada). I wouldn't dream of taking her to Taiwan or China. Having been involved in a motor vehicle accident in Taiwan and spending some time in a Taiwanese hospital, I can say that I think they are far behind other countries when it comes to medical services. Far, far behind.

[beerdang]

This topic has been talked about many times. It is the reason I came to this forum at the first place.

I went back to China in August with my family to visit. My son is 2 (terrible 2).

He did ok for his age. There were a lot of staring, touching and attention. Everyone calls him foreign kid because he does not look like a chinese.
We went to Shanghai first. That is where I went to college and I have connections there. City at that size is no difference than anywhere else. Life is a constant struggle. All my friends are working hard to make money get a decent housing and a car down the road. For those who have babies, I doubt they will be able to spend much time with them. It is not easy even for a chinese unless you really get a good job and make good money.
I am the native chinese. I think it is great if they can experience the culture and get the language. But there is a different side to it. The chinese school show much less respects to the kids and encourage little independent thinking. It is very
pragmatic. While we were pushed hard to do many things growing up, I can't helping thinking to give my kids a chance to develop on their own. If your kids are foreign, the attitude could be totally different. I wouldn't know.

Yes, the medical system sucks. It is a lot worse than what you can have at home. It is also very inconvienent.

It will be great if you can visit the place first. If you do decide to go, make sure you save enough emergency fund, up to six month at least.

For the chinese I know who go back, they either get good jobs or have good connections (guanxi). This is no way trying to discourage you from going. Jumping into it right away is really a bad idea.

[MyTurnNow]

Guys, you're being negative again. Remember- it's important to only hear happy, positive feedback, especially when children are involved.

MT