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Texas ISD School Guide
Texas ISD School Guide







Travel, Teach, Live in China

Re: Harbin China California Sunshine International Language Center
By:Amanda

Not quite sure when this was posted, but decided to write about my experiences there. I worked there back in 2013. There are many pros and cons to the school.

Pros:
1) I found the training to be really good. You have one month of training before you are teaching classes all on your own. They slowly let you get used to teaching during that first month, starting you off with just 10 minutes of the class, to by the end of the month being able to run an entire class on your own. And after that first month, there are plenty of people for you to ask for advice from. You are also observed by more experienced teachers as well. I never felt like "Oh, I have no clue how to run this class, and no one to ask for help".

2) They provide you with a furnished apartment. They help sort out all of the visa stuff. They show you how to pay your bills. Basically, you won't have to worry about how to handle daily living in a foreign country.

*Someone mentioned it was a male-dominated company and that it was hard working there as a woman. While there are more men there than women, I personally didn't have any problems working there as a woman. Also, something to keep in mind is that as an ESL teacher there generally are more men than women teachers. Men seem more comfortable living abroad for long periods of time.

Cons:
1) Working hours. While I was there you only had to work about 22 hours a week. But those hours were generally split across 6 days a week. It's nice that the hours are generally small like this, but it can still be hard only have 1 day off. Or dealing with schedules when you have long breaks between classes.

2) Pay. You'll be able to live comfortably if you are single and have no major responsibilities (no debts, no need to send money back home). However, long-term, you wouldn't want to be paid that amount if you have a family to take care of.

3) Benefits. There are none. I think there was one week off during the summer, unpaid. No sick leave either. In fact, if you got sick, it was your responsibility to find a replacement teacher to take over your classes.

Overall, I'd recommend this school if you are just getting started and need somewhere where you'll get really good training and support. But I think once you get experience here, you'd be better off moving on to schools that offer a bit more in the way of pay and benefits.


Messages In This Thread

Harbin China California Sunshine International Language Center -- gmoore
Re: Harbin China California Sunshine International Language Center -- Amanda
Re: Harbin China California Sunshine International Language Center -- ChinaESLa
hey grace!!! -- jenn
California Sunshine Language Center -- worltour (Larry)

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