Job Discussion Forums

[majew]

Hello and thank you for stopping by, I am currently working in Casablanca and I don't like it, I am leaving in June at the end of the school year.

For me, I find that it's hard to live in Casablanca, the city is not well organized and expensive. At school where I am working, we have students behavior problems that suffered for years. Students are ignorant, lazy and rude. They are the worst group of students I ever met (I previously worked in 2 schools in Asia, and I found that most of Asian students are respectful, thoughtful and hard working). However, what makes me decided to leave is the people's mentality. It reflects ernormously on children attitude and, as I mentioned above -- for me, Moroccan children are the most difficult group to work with.

This is just my opinion so I apologize if I offended to anyone. I feel like I need to let you know what kind of situation/scenario I am in now. So now you probably see my problem. I can't stand the Moroccan students/people.

At this moment, I got a job offer from a school in Izmir, Turkey. I am not sure if I should take it. I am worried that it's going to be the same old thing in Morocco. I have done some research on internet about Izmir and found only good things. But what I really want to know is what are the Turkish (Izmir) people like? Here are my concerns :
Do they que up or they just cut the line?
Are they aggressive?
Are they loud?
Do street fight considered normal as it happens all time?
Do they treat woman nicely?
Are they racial, do they yell/call names at foreigners?
Are they selfish when driving on the street and causes horrid traffic?
Have you ever had Turkish parents yelling at your face, if you did, is it common there?
What are the character of Tuskish students? Do they give you non-stop attitude?
Are they willing to learn and work hard in school?

I am sorry if the questions sound silly, but my current experience makes me a paranoid. My friends say a lot of nice thing about the country (Turkey) and I am very eager to go there. However, I wish I could have some more information about the people mentality before I make the decision, or at least I can be prepared. I would really appreciate you advice/input. Thank you in advance.

[matthew156]

Majew. Where do i begin? All I can say is ......... no

Matt

[orhanveli]

Izmir will be great. It seems more secular and relaxed than Istanbul. It's way too hot in the Summer. What line of work will you be in?

[Otterman Ollie]

Ok lets take this from the top. Sorry to hear your situation, comparing Moroccan and Turkish students is not really fair, chalk and cheese comes to mind. Basically you are living in an Arabic country at the moment.
Turkey is completly different and Turks would be highly offended to be considered any thing like arabs.
I have lived in this city for more than 12 years and would not have stayed that long if those traits you have mentioned were evident in my students or their parents.
I would be interested to hear the name of your new potential employer as I may be able to give some inside information.
Izmir is a great city and I think the people are fine, naturally there are always exceptions but that is life. I think you will enjoy the country and this city.

[matthew156]

I was wondering majew......
What is your nationality?
Were you born in an English speaking country or did you move there later as a specialist in a profession?

Sorry if this is personal but I am and/or maybe we are curious.

Regards

Matt

[ossie39]

Hello all. It is such a pity that you have had poor experiences lately. You are going to enjoy Izmir, I am sure of that. It is such an attractive city, so much to do, and the people are friendly and helpful. The vast majority of Turks (90%) are friendly I have always found. They are curious which can come over as directness and nosiness. They are brittle and can be maybe too sensitive about some delicate matters. My advice is, if something upsets a Turk, apologise anyway and it will soon be forgotten. Life is for enjoying. I think Turks are very generous people.

In your teaching your students will be affectionate to you and other students. You must be very patient and systematic. They are not used to problem solving in learning. If teacher says all cats are brown then they must be.

Watch out for mad drivers.

[TeachEnglish]

Well... the University students I have experience with seem..for the most part.. are ignorant, lazy, and at times.. down right rude. They would rather cheat than do something on their own. They wait for the answers to be spoon-fed to them rather than seek answers for themselves. I don't think they are taught how to learn.. It seems they are taught to pass however they can..and I often wonder if they ever get to feel proud that they actually did something.. accomplished anything..on their own. This is what i have experienced and observed. Of course.. this is the majority of them.. the minority of them is hardworking.. and wants to feel like they have done something on their own. And then there is the "system"..

[Otterman Ollie]

Well T. E you sound like you have been around the block once or twice. I agree with only a small part of your comments, they are not generally hard-working I will concede, but I have only seen university students who are polite, informed and who seek knowledge but lack the motivation or have uninspiring teachers/ professors to lead the way. My place of employ is no secret, where have you worked to gain such a pessimistic viewpoint?

[ossie39]

Some of the points raised are valid I feel. Students sometimes cheat in games, communicative learning. Laziness is generally a feature. Otterman has a point about the calibre of the teacher. A teacher needs to continually encourage and gradually set degrees of challenging activities. Some teachers don't try to motivate students.I think English Teacher friend might try a LANGUAGE SCHOOL or prep. My feeling is you have been working in a bad private lise. Yes the system has many faults but it is the system that has the responsibility and power to change. Students are naive.

[matthew156]

Dear majew,

[Smeagol]

Majew

I've taught in both Morocco (three years in Tangier, spent almost a year in the Middle Atlas mountains) and Turkey. Spent three months in Istanbul and got out as fast as I could. There are derogatory comments on here about Arabs. I've lived, studied and worked for varying periods of time in four Arab countries so far (unlike you, I'm a native English speaker). Arabs are my favorite people in the world. Children of any nationality are my least favorite, especially to teach.

Morocco is one of the best places I've ever been (that includes 20+ countries in Southeast Asia, North Africa, the Middle East, and Western Europe). Turkey is the absolute worst. You will not have to worry about parents getting in your face, because you will be able to communicate with precious few Turks unless you speak Turkish. What language were these Moroccan parents screaming at you in? Be thankful that you could communicate with anyone. Enjoy Turkey! (ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...)

[Greg 09]

[orhanveli]

No smeagly hates Turkey because he could not bring himself to put the verb at the end of a sentence. Lets ditch this thread. Hey guess what MAMUSLIM. Am I the only one who thinks there are more people who do not have a clue about much than people who do in this forum? Where are the forum police? Ossie thought said 4500 ytl was a low salary on another thread. He should be banished for this in my humble opinion. I made a similiar amount in Istanbul a few years ago and it was like a year long P-diddy video. MAJEW is not an English Teacher and Teach English needs to proofread his posts.

[Smeagol]

[Sheikh Inal Ovar]

Find out more about Smeagol in Istanbul ...

http://members.cox.net/azsoutheast/CryBaby.gif