Job Discussion Forums

batman · Joined: 12 Oct 2003 Posts: 319 Location: china

i have had to re-examine myself lately, due to a couple of odd experiences. i have been here for getting on 3 years now, and have not had any (few) problems. until now. i quit the last job i had to look for greener pastures, but have hit a snag or 2. i started at this new school before christmas, and have just recently been 'fired' for poor teaching. i know there are other factors, ie, lack of suitable material, poor students who want someone to blame...etc. so i went job hunting, and found a part time job, taught one class, and just got a call saying the school refused to have me back. i dont think i did a bad job, i didnt talk about restricted subjects or whatever...but they turfed me after 1 class, when they had some alcoholic there for who know knows how many months. is it me? or are things getting tighter here? i have another new job to start next week, and i dont want any problems, so if anyone has some advice, im all ears.

lagerlout2006 · Joined: 17 Sep 2003 Posts: 985

Similar to what happened to me in Korea...After a while I had no more enthusiasm for the same type of kids same problems etc...Not saying it;s the case with you...Maybe a change of pace...If you have been teaching kids---look for adults or vice-versa. Just a thought...A mate is also in the same spot...He did a great job at 1 school for over a year...He went home for awhile and came back...2nd time around he just cannot last at a job...

batman · Joined: 12 Oct 2003 Posts: 319 Location: china

interesting. my new job that starts next week is more corporate clients, 1 on 1 adults, that type of thing. previously i had been teaching ielts, or post secondary. hope it does the trick. i just spoke with a friend i used to work with, and its her opinion that school are getting more demanding, and rejecting more people. anyone else seeing evidence of this? i think we've had it easy for a long time...maybe someone told them!

Kurochan · Joined: 01 Mar 2003 Posts: 944 Location: China

I heard my school used to recruit foreign teachers by soliciting white guys at bars. Confused

They didn't even ask for academic records. Now you have to have an MA, though. So, I don't know if it's a trend, but it happened where I work. I think partly it has to do with the retirees who come to China to teach for a little while. Quite a few at my school have PhD's. Now schools can be more choosy, b/c there are more potential teachers out there.

arioch36 · Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 3589

Depends where you teach, maybe. I've seen schools that just wanted someone cheaper. I think there are some schools (a small minority) that I seriously think didn't want good teachers, but teachers that would be submissive. The last school I worked at, China North Water Institute, supposedely a better college in Henan, has two Filipinno's who are totally submissive, no teaching experience, they are are willing two share a small one bedroom apartment. He is also not getting any winter or summer holiday pay. I guess they really care about teaching quality. Rolling Eyes

woza17 · Joined: 25 May 2003 Posts: 602 Location: china

Dan, let me say first, I admire your honesty. Look it could be many things, you have been here long enough to know it's not straight teaching you are a performer and if they don't see you bouncing around the room. You are not a good teacher, in most cases. How is your energy at the moment and your attitude? Look at your lesson plans, give them what they want. My school doesn't want formal teachers, they want performers. It's personality plus. I now know how a rock star feels.

Atlas · Joined: 09 Jun 2003 Posts: 662 Location: By-the-Sea PRC

A couple of weeks into the semester a couple of agents were so desperate they came onto our campus trying to recruit teachers between their classes, by posing as administrators from another branch of the school--might have worked too if the first person they hit up wasn't the DOS....

But then you have to wonder why there were suddenly open slots 2 weeks into the semester....

They fire you for the same reasons they hire you--things completely unrelated to character and ability.

Here's my suggestion: carpet bomb employers with inquiries, post your availability online, you'll get a bite. Job hunting is sometimes about a lucky break, but more often it's about volume of attempts and laws of average returns!

batman · Joined: 12 Oct 2003 Posts: 319 Location: china

thanks for the tips, but i can still find jobs easy enough, im just worried about keeping them. and i agree, they get rid of you for stuff beyond your control, things that have little to do with ability. too old, too fat, speaks too much chinese...get some young kid! ya, i know. still makes me edgy though.

kimo · Joined: 16 Feb 2003 Posts: 668

You're in the Beijing area, right? So it's all your fault!!! Ha! Ha!

We just need to keep reinventing ourselves to stay ahead of ourselves. A little shock treatment is good sometimes and we can't lose sight of the fact that our employers must pay attention to their customers, our students.

However, the market is changing and it seems many laowai want to come to the capital city. There are still jobs, but ads are swamped with replies from PhD's and sassy girls with no education and pretty smiles who are willing to work for peanuts just for the experience (%^@%!^!%^^). Employers here who want to be choosy can be if they take the time and I think there are not a few who will replace you in a second if they can find someone cheaper.

Today, I was offered a PT job where the rate was quoted as XXX RMB but that rate was subject to some sort of bi-weekly evaluation by the students - meaning if they didn't rate me well, I would only get two-thirds the highest level. Being risk averse when it comes to my efforts and income as well as knowing the fickleness of students and the chicanery of some employers, I declined the offer.

I'm thinking of looking elsewhere in China! Beijing is really losing its luster as a place to live!

struelle · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 2372 Location: Shanghai

batman · Joined: 12 Oct 2003 Posts: 319 Location: china

tell me about it!!!! (5 min conversation) there is a lady who drives a taxi near my house, ive seen her many times...she looks like she could be the mother of one of those students i had...so i asked her if her mother was a taxi driver. she got super offended, and marched into the managers office and screamed for my blood. its the stupid little things, that u never think would cause problems...i was just being freindly with her, before class.

struelle · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 2372 Location: Shanghai

yaco · Joined: 03 Mar 2003 Posts: 473

Why don't you try another country ?

MonkeyKing · Joined: 24 May 2003 Posts: 96 Location: Beijing

I agree about the performance thing being important, and it also includes stuff outside your specified teaching hours.
There was a major clear out at my Uni' last year, and all the teachers who didn't get renewed (like me) were the ones who too often refused to give up their free time to attend the regular Uni' publicity events (usually at night or on weekends). No matter if you worked your arse off to be a good teacher. If you actually made a life for yourself outside of campus, the powers that be didn't seem to like that much.

sojourner · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2004 10:16 am Post subject:

A few weeks ago , I submitted a message to Dave's "Lodge your Resume" site (or whatever it's called).In my message, I specified that I was looking for a uni/college job,to commence in Sept 2004, in the Hangzhou/Ningbo/Shanghai areas.I r'd only two replies - from language school recruiters offering jobs in some out-of-the province ! Maybe I was being a bit too early in submitting my expression of interest.Or,maybe there are simply no new vacancies in the three popular regions that I had specified.Or,has already been implied,the job market is tightening up everywhere !

Peter