Job Discussion Forums

[chuckd74]

usually, I don't go so far as to call a place evil, I simply state the facts, as I did when I taught at TINS in Saudi Arabia

I am looking for a new job now, so I will explain the details later, but please understand the followiung facts, which are not in dispute:

a) they fired us today with no reason, no cause with no warning

b) we must vacate the villas and leave tomorrow, althgouh they stated thhey dont know where they sending us yet- just returning us where ever we flew from, round trip ticket

funny thing is, I left a good job in Korea to tkae this job, and they haven't decided if I go backl to korea of LA

c) they still haven't paid us for December

d)they are hiring, supposedly, 20 new teachers this month, at a new rate

e) at no time did we ever get a contract, just an offer letter- then they lied about this said it was an offer letter, and we have bene working illegally on tourist visas for the past 3 months

f) the school gets 200,000 AED per student to take the courses and they will not allow them to fail = they are all passed, so the school gets paid

g) one of teh veterans has bene here for 6 months, he said he has seen 28 teachers come through here

h) the teachers share villas with 5 teachers per villa- this creates all kinda of political tensions and this is another reason why I am being asked to leave


I was fired today along with 2 other teachers from Abu Dhabi University Tawteen/IED program- 7 teachers left this month, 2 did runners and they fired a gal on day 14 at the beginning of the semester over "student complaints"

if you confront a studnet, you will lose

the students will call their parents and have you fired, period as money is more important than teaching here


the reason for my departure was stated as "lack of group dyanmics" and this occured, instrestingly enough, right after I wrote my other comment on Daves ESL about what was happenign at ADU-

45 mins later, I was fired- I am pretty sure tehy are monitoring these posts, FYI


now, my student reviews we exceptional, as were the other teachers who were fired- if it was just me, i'd say ok my fault, but this seems to happen a lot


the fact is , they are cleanign house and getting rid of anyone who doesn't tow the party line


UNDERSTAND THIS, THEY LURE YOU WITH $3000 A MONTH AND A NICE APARTMENT, BUT IF YOU COMPLAINT THEY TARGET YOU AND THEY WILL FIRE YOU PUBLICLY JUST TO PROVE TO ALL THE OTHERS THEY CAN, TRYING TO INSTILL SOME FEAR


I HAVE TAUGHT FOR OVER 10 YEARS IN 7 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, AND THIS ONY HAPPENED TWICE BEFORE


BE VERY VERY CAREFUL HERE AND DO NOT ACCPET THIS JOB UNLESS YOU INTEND TO LEAVE RATHER QUICKLY

good luck

[veiledsentiments]

Since you are not the only one cut this time, it wouldn't seem to be because of your post here. I can't imagine a place as inefficient at everything else, could catch your post within 45 minutes. (unless someone saw you posting it)

This place has been a complete disaster since day one as the many threads show. It has been a 'buyer-beware' job... take only if you are desperate for an income right now - but the fact that they had to go to 6 month contracts truly showed the extent of the problem.

Sorry you got caught up in their latest purge and hopefully people will read here before they take a job there.

Good Luck finding a new position.

VS

[chuckd74]

thanks VS

just be aware, I was alerted within 309 seconds after you posted via my email alerts

so, yes, they can post a sneaky line like "how is the housing there?" and then have the reply sent directly to the boss..

granted I thoguht about this after posting, but when I realzied, I just didn't care anymore as this place really is the worst of the big money

eh, I a better off some where else anyway

i just really hope I save a few people out there the trouble of finding this stuff out the hard way

Chuck D

[MissMao]

Okay, I would be considered an old timer here and I will agree that things are disorganised here, but overall, I find working here isn't all that bad. If you read around the other posts, you'll find a lot of people complaining about their work situations- it's like this all over the Gulf.

Things might take a while to get done here, but it has always been my experience that things get done eventually, and if you are reasonable, management is also reasonable.

Generally, the people who have been fired have had reasons to be fired. No one has been surprised that certain people have been let go. There have been some certifiable nutters hired here, and the fact that you have to live and work with these people makes it that much harder. I'm not speaking specifically about your case at all, but I actually applaud an administration who would be willing to get rid of unsuitable employees especially when they are short of employees.

Hiring unsuitable employees (again, not talking about your case) is something that goes along with having to hire people over the phone and not being able to properly weed out the good candidates from the bad in a ten minute phonecall.

As for vacation, I have found the admin to be reasonable. I know of a few people who have taken time off for personal reasons and the admin has been good about it.

New teachers are being hired because there is a new large intake coming. Hence more teachers are needed.

It's possible that 28 teachers have come and gone through here. I'd actually put that number higher. That is the nature of the previous 2 month contracts.

I have personally failed lots of students, and they have stayed failed. I know it hasn't been this way in every case though, to be fair.

Five strangers thrown together in any villa, from all parts of the globe, are the makings of many a reality TV show. You need to expect that. Some people are better at communal living than others. Other times it's the luck of the draw as to who your roomates are. I believe the university is working on solving this problem.

Good luck to you. This isn't the place for everybody, and it does have a lot to improve. But if you do look closely there are a lot of people who are doing their best to make this a more healthy and efficient workplace, but like all other places here in the Middle East, it isn't an easy task.

[chuckd74]

well, I totally disagree

I haev bene there on the ground, and unless you have actually been there oin the last 6 months, then you don't know

and, if you are with a certain "clique," then you life is simple: kiss their ass, and you keep your job

I had a direct conversation with Mohammed Islam, the director of the Tawteen /IED Prgogram (which, by the way, is not really ADU, they arre a seperate branch- they lie to people saying they are with the universty, they aren't)

I aked why I was being fired- he sid becasue of "disfunctional group dynamics"

I said "can you be specifc, as this is my job you are talking about"

he then said "people in your villa have bene complaingin about your weird behaviour"

I said "what behaviour?"

he said "moving furniture and cooking utensils"

I said" I moved a few cahirs to the balcony for a New Years gathergin, and I was cooking upstairs with my hot plate, this is not weird, this is normal"

then he says "well, these events are not allowed"

I said "no, drinking beer, having ladies over- this is not aloud. The housing contract donest say I can't move chairs or I can't cook upstairs- and the housing supervisor knows I have refirdgerator up stairs and a hot plate, he said these items are accetible"

its was at this point where Mohammed says "see, this si exactly what I am talking about, your negative attitude"

then I said "what, you mean disgareeing with you about facts- you don't like the fact we disagree and I am allwed to to whatI wnt in my ow personal space"

then he says he doesn't want to discussthe issue any more

the point is, at no time was my skill as a teacher nor professioanl ability at the office ever questioned- only my "weird behavior"at the villa, whihc is relly none of his damn business as that is not the school

so, lets be very clear here as I am talking about this- I was fired becasue 2 of the teaher who share the villa flat are friends with Moihammed (or tehy have some dirt on hi, we haven't figured out which it is) and they got 2 etachers fired this time and 3 before, becase tehy are over dominant agressive queens and they are afriad of anyone who actually shows competancy in the job as they are completely incompetant

one of tehs teachers, Sam, did such a bad job at teaching, they pulled him from 2 differtn classesin 3 weeks, then they promoted hlead teacher (what the hell?!)

and then, he was promoted to Mohammed Islam's number 2 right hand mahn (spy) and he m essed up the new studnete placement exam so bad, the exam was delayed 4 hours and the skipped the entire listenning part because they had the wrong CD, and many tesing cenets didnt have sound anyway-

thus the students were placed improperly, but nobdau seems to care, as they all pass anyway, becasue the school is about momney at 200,000 AED per student, not about teaching


and this is the same guy who created all the problems for the leve 2 adn level 3 etachers as he was teh head teacher for Level 1, who allowed all tehse studnets to pass and for bad habits in the first place

and that is the short version about all this

(hahaha, after reading this as I type, I am so glad I have a new job offer -- ahahah!)

yeah, I know sounds like a damn soap opera, and I am omitting many detials, i jsyut dont wanna wste my time anymore desribing all this

use you imagniation, assume this is beverly hills 90210, just worse, and you got the picture


short answer- dont work here, duh

^)

[kiefer]

Says VS "hopefully people will read here before they take a job there."

I agree. Much of your rant sounds justified; however, may I suggest you do a quick edit and submit your post to some sort of spell checker? This will add more gravity to your argument, especially since you're an English teacher.

Great that you have a back up. Best wishes wherever you end up in the new year.

[veiledsentiments]

To put this all in perspective... ignoring the views of these two particular posters - one obviously upset at the circumstances and one seemingly happy enough with conditions - what we have is a university that has been in chaos since the day it opened. A phenomenal number of teachers have come and gone with many of them posting their bad experiences here. Many of them had sincerely hoped to help cure the problems.

But one fact remains... ADU is the ONLY university in the Emirates (or Oman and probably others) that has had to lower its standards and policies to do very short term contracts. It is the ONLY university that forces its staff into communal housing. This is the ONLY university that has its teachers illegally teaching on tourist visas.

The situation is breathtakingly bad.

VS

[kiefer]

Miss Mao:
I'm glad to hear things have worked out for you. I recall you posting last fall when you were first housed in Khalifa City A--which is smack dab in between Bum Freaked Egypt and Middle of Nowhere.

You have finished two semesters, and that makes you a veteran.

For future reference, what would you say has been the key to your success there? So much negative has been posted about ADU that I bet you can present a paper at a conference on how to make it work for you.

[chuckd74]

VS is right on and cuts the BS here- the simple fact is, ADU should be avoided- period

mayeb this never occured to anyone, I am using a pbulic terminal at an internet cafe as i was kicked out of teh villa and have no internt access when they fired us-

my apologies for less than stellar typings skills, I just don't wanna spedn a lot of time doing this

a note about the teachers at ADU/Tawteen- the origianl set were really below standard (the ones, funny enough, which have kept their jobs by kissing ass)

the new ones are actually rather impressive with their skills and backgrounds- PhDs, MAs, 15 years teaching in highschools, etc

I actually made over 7 good quality friends at ADU/Tawteen, and this is the most ever (I am really picky who I call "friend")

anyway, this is good news as one of my new friends (who quit ADU and got a job in Dubai with the Ministry of Aviation, UAE) has helped me find a new 1 bedroom apt in Dubai for 2000 AED a month!! HA

this means I can stay and do job hunting in the UAE, so I aint leaving

and, ADU was so desperate to get rid of us, tehy spent over $6000 USD bying 1 way non-refundable ticets out of teh country

needles to say, I won't be leaving-



good luck and email me if ya want a buddy in Dubai

Chuck D


PS- yeah I put my name here, what are they gonan do, fire me again?

[veiledsentiments]

Actually not a good idea to use your real name on public boards. Better that no employer knows. As you said, you are typing quickly with no proofing... so they don't put you in the best light as an English teacher...

Good Luck...

VS

[eha]

"I actually applaud an administration who would be willing to get rid of unsuitable employees "

Famous last words. Many people applaud such administrations--- until it's THEIR turn to be found 'unsuitable'.

[melt]

I've been at the ADU for a few weeks now and I must say that many of the comments about the ADU are as a result of ignorance and racism. Chuckd74 in particular, seems to be carrying 'excess baggage'. Travelling to work on the mini-bus, I've heard numerous pseudo-racist comments by 'teachers', I've even heard a male teacher asking another (male) teacher about 'the women in his class' in an innuendo-laden and leering manner!

The answer is simple, these 'mercenaries' came to the UAE to earn money, not out of any humanitarian urge! If they don't like it and are principled about their dislike, then they should leave (even if it is financially draining to do so). ADU rules pertaining to alcohol, dress code and the mixing of male and female teachers are FLAGRANTLY flouted on a regular basis.

Overall, a job is what one makes of it. I have not personally found the management (which is quite heavily British) to be any different then any other Gulf/KSA institution).

[chuckd74]

first of- your are lying or simply mis-informed
inituially, I will assume the later

second, some of my best friends at ADU and here are black, Islamic and women- i ahd the secdon high teacher evaluations in the school last semester- we checked-

funny thing, the 2 teachers who were fired had the top 2 evaluations in the school- go figure

maybe some people felt very threatened by their own lack of ability

oh, and how many schools do you who will promote a teacher 3 times after they were such horrible teachers, they lost ehir classes, not once but twice-

only then to be promoted to lead teacher at age 25 with zero teaching nor leadership ability, which they then mismange the Level 1 classes so bad, that by Level 3, all we could do is fix other peoples mistakes/lack of action- as in students could even write a simple sentec after 6 months

and the, this teacher is promoted to the Director assistant, and on day 5 of this new promotion, he messing up the placement exam for the entire new batch of students, all the results were labelled invalid and the student were all assigned to teh worng levels- create a bad situation worse

all these facts are true- they are not in dispute

so before you open your mouth about somthing you have absolutely no idea about what is true or not, think again


whatever you think your are accomplishing by writing here is a complete waste of time- I now have a better job for more money with my own studio and a car and I do x4 days a week

of yeah, by the way- I just started my new job in Dubai, knowledge Village, at 13,200 AED a month, working 4 days aweek

so, I am glad to be gone


and, lets be very clear about ignorance not being an excuse- ADU is so very highschool cliqueish, I am soo much better off now anyway

and, most of the Villa rules are flagrantly violated, but, if you are in the "cool" clique, no problem- if you aren't, then you are tagret


anyway, I am too busy celebrating my several big wins today as I got a new car as well (rented)- so I won't waste any more time explaing this drivel


I was there, I know what happend, you don't period- either your information is innacurate, or your are simply lying- which is it?

I put my name here- do you have the honor to sign yours?

[veiledsentiments]

ADU has put themselves into this situation. Their past mis-management has meant that they have had to lower themselves to hiring anyone that applies on short term contracts. They are the ONLY university in the Gulf that has been forced to do this.

Again... it has been their poor management and poor conditions for teachers.

If they ever manage to clean up their act, they will be able to get more professionals on the staff. Chuckd may or may not have made his own problems there, but forcing teachers into shared housing will very often bring out the worst in people.

OH... and ADU is the ONLY university in the Gulf that forces its faculty into shared housing. I don't know many (any?) professional EFL teachers who would accept that.

VS