TESOL, TEFL and CELTA forum

Welcome to Questions, Answers, Comments and News (new courses, promotions, locations, schedules, prices, etc.) about Teacher Training. Also, you are welcome to visit our Directory of Teacher Training Schools (where you can add your school).

Advert: TESOL in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam -- Australia-Vietnam School of English 14 January 2014

TESOL certification with the Australian International College of Language (AICOL), working in collaboration with the Red Kangaroo Company Limited, Vietnam, provides the qualifications and hands-on ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 12 December 2013

Apart from a half-share in what was my grandfather's house, everything I have has been through hard work. I would say I am OK financially, as you are. First degree was part paid for by a local ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 12 December 2013

Fair enough, I didn't mean to make you annoyed, just sharing some life stories. I admire people who got everything through their own hard work.

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- Silverboy 12 December 2013

The thing is that many of those who moan all the time are already reasonably well-off. It seems some people are never grateful for anything. They have one house and want another one ( although I ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 12 December 2013

Yes, I agree. I did the white wedding thing at an exotic location with the ex-wife and it didn't end 'happily ever after'. But the divorce, although costly, provided with me an ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 30 December 2013

I'd imagine the reception was expensive then I would not know. However, best to make a contingency plan, china wont get easier

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 1 January 2014

The reception was not too expensive as I arranged a meal for about 25 close family (relatives of my ex-wife who were living in the resort), in a Thai restuarant. But tat was a long long time ago. As ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 1 January 2014

Fair enough, and thanks for the response. I do think China is becoming more difficult for foreigners with more hoops to jump through. Having a chinese wife helps though obviously.

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 13 December 2013

This is not to say that I don't empathise with those expats who have been shafted by bad employers or had bad experiences not of their own making. That is all I meant respectfully. Can't ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 12 December 2013

Oh true, I am of the belief we must always strive and work, but well sometimes it is hard.

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 8 December 2013

"Even China has this legal provision in her immigration law." What I know is that China is not an immigration country in the same way that say the UK or US is in relation to seeking "permanent leave ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 9 December 2013

This is true. I was even told recently, that if I want the visa situation to be easier for me, find a chinese wife. Otherwise, single FT's who want to do things honestly, will just continue to be ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 10 December 2013

Here's the link with 3 pages from China Daily on the new regulations (August 2013) for the granting of permanent residence. It gives figures for the number of expats in the country and the number ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 10 December 2013

It's all getting very difficult isnt it?

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 10 December 2013

I have yet to go to the PSB (within 30 days of arrival to get my residence permit for one year. So I will then know if it is more or less difficult. I have been in China for a little over two weeks ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 11 December 2013

Thanks for the update, everyone leads different lives, never been lucky enough to inherit or own property, the poor get poorer, the rich get richer it seems is true. Good luck with the visa.

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 9 December 2013

"Otherwise, single FT's who want to do things honestly, will just continue to be penalized." I don't see how this follows. I have done everything in terms of visas "honestly", before and ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 10 December 2013

Me too, yet I still get penalized. Honesty does not pay in you know where it seems!

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 8 December 2013

The problem is as an outsider in an asian country, I feel you will always be treated as just that...an outsider. We simply don't fit into their circles or the inner group and outer group, and so ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- Just an Observer 8 December 2013

It's the same in most countries tough, outside of large cities. In a small village, a guy marries a local girl and 30 years later, he is always referred to by his family name (never his first ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- cunning linguist 9 December 2013

Whilst it is true that Denmark has been the subject of a lot of criticism in relation to immigration law and human rights - notably the" right to family life" -the situation changed in May 2012. It ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 7 December 2013

Fair enough, I was merely trying to point out, that India too is not too dissimilar from China, they do have a hierarchy and you will be placed into that accordingly, deemed upon where you fit into ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- San Migs 7 December 2013

India and Nepal are much more relaxed. But aren't those societies also hierachical in nature, eg, the caste system left behind from the british and it's subsequent legacy? Where would a ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- Silverboy 4 December 2013

Spot on with that analysis Turnoi. There really is no such thing as "traditional culture" in China nowadays. [edited]

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- John O'Shei 5 December 2013

Spot on with that analysis Turnoi. There really is no such thing as "traditional culture" in China nowadays. [edited] Ooh, it looks like the board might be scared of a few little comments that could ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- John O'Shei 2 December 2013

I've actually heard bad things about that website despite the blacklist that looks to be pretty much correct. Apparently the 'union' is just a scam intended to entrap ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Curious 2 December 2013

About chinaforeignteachersunion: Be cautious! I heard that last year they were aggressively spamming a certain ESL website, using a Chinese recruiter as a scapegoat in their specially vitriolic ...

Re: Please allow me to clarify... -- Courtney 30 November 2013

You do not need to come to China to make that experience. Try Nepal or India; it is a bit harder, though. I'm curious, why, specifically, should I skip China and all of it's beauty, ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Amy Lambright 22 November 2013

Well I only have an Associate of Science in Early Childhood education and I am on my 5th teaching year. I really want to do this but I could never make it for under $1,000(US) a month. I still have ...

Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 21 November 2013

My experience thus far has included numerous interviews taking place late at night, only to find out later after the interview that the school is in a not so desirable area, they are dragging their ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- DeecherInChina 10 December 2013

Well, if you don't want to live in the cold then realize that summers in the south and even northern southern parts of China will get sweltering hot and humid in the summer months. If you can ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- tick tock 25 November 2013

The minimum age required for a genuine non guanxied visa is 25 thus you are too young. It may seem a stupid comment but it is very real for Chinese culture, if you are not white you will find it that ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- John O'Shei 25 November 2013

The minimum age required for a genuine non guanxied visa is 25 thus you are too young. It may seem a stupid comment but it is very real for Chinese culture, if you are not white you will find it that ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Silverboy 27 November 2013

I have also known 23 y/o men and women who obtained public university jobs in China. Not something I would do at that age, better to try and establish oneself and buy a house at home, but I guess ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 28 November 2013

lol. The curiosity that I have is more of a rebellious nature against normality and simplicity. The whole, get a house, settle down thing, is completely against who I am at this moment. I could ...

Please allow me to clarify... -- Courtney 29 November 2013

I think some of you may have misunderstood me or gotten the wrong impression of my motives for wanting to teach in China. Please allow me to clarify. I am not looking at teaching ESL as a career ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Darek 29 November 2013

Courtney, My name is Darek. I've been teaching in Xianju, Zhejiang China for the past 5 years. If you are truly interested in an ESL position in China shoot me an email. We can talk more and I ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- juanisaac 29 November 2013

If you will sign a one year contract and then see if you might like the work, please do not come to China. I was about to recommend to you some good public schools for employment. But it seems to me ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 29 November 2013

I never said I was going to come to China to see if I like the work and then leave if I did not. I am coming to china for an experience, nothing more, nothing less. I'm not expecting rainbows and ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Silverboy 29 November 2013

If you plan to go to China to teach, just remember it is not a career, and it leads to nothing. It is a dead end from purely a financial point of view, and looks bad on a resume in the West. If you ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 29 November 2013

I never said I thought China was going to be paradise. Nor that I was looking to do this for a career or as a resume boosting additive. I am doing this purely for experience. Life experience, not ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Darek 30 November 2013

China is not for everyone... When I came to China my intentions were to gain experience and then move on. I have been here five years now! I really like it here. I talk to others who have lived here ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 30 November 2013

Thank you Darek, I just emailed you :)

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Silverboy 29 November 2013

Just a bit more input from me: I think you could get a teaching job in China without much problem. I even knew a 22 y/o USA woman who had a uni job in Guangxi province. I don't want to put anyone ...

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Just an Observer 28 November 2013

I can TOTALLY relate to what you wrote. FYI, I am a woman in my early sixties, and this "thing" has not changed. It allowed me to have a very exciting life. It's a gift. Enjoy!!

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Courtney 29 November 2013

Thank you!! It makes me feel good knowing that someone out there understands this itch and has had amazing life experiences because of it. :)

Re: Finding a good teaching job in China = Exhausting -- Silverboy 21 November 2013

Which schools are you applying at? If you have been applying for jobs at private schools/training centres, yes they will be very vague, they will mess you around and waste your time. Better to apply ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Anton 21 November 2013

They do not ALL require a degree, thats just simply wrong. I know many teachers here working legally without a degree and I am one of them. I have also helped my schools do visa runs for new teachers ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Perfect Legit English 16 November 2013

Name one Chinese person who plays by the rules! Who really cares about the rules? The nicest people normally are the ones who get taken advantage of - especially in China. Sorry, I don't agree ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Even Better Than Perfect English 13 November 2013

I don't agree with you. I know many teachers without real degrees and are actually fantastic on the job. They make 8-12k monthly. However, you will need to be careful if you decide to come over ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Silverboy 16 November 2013

Wrong. I would say it would be very difficult to find a legal teaching job in China now without a degree. As for your "8 to 12,000" a month comment, that made me chuckle a little bit. Nobody should ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Amy Lambright 18 November 2013

The conversion may be off but all the information I am getting from TELF schools say that is an average income for teachers in China. It's about $1,000 to $1,500 a month. Also I find it very odd ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Silverboy 21 November 2013

The TEFL people will tell you that a degree is not needed in China, Russia, or Korea. You are right in your assertion that they just want your money. I did a TESOL course a long time ago before I ...

Master's project: I need English teachers’ perspectives and opinions about grammar teaching -- Caro 12 November 2013

I am doing a final project for my master’s degree of TESOL right know. In the project, I need English teachers’ perspectives and opinions about grammar teaching. I really need your guys’ help. ...

Looking for teaching job in China -- Amy Lambright 10 November 2013

Hello. I am looking for places in China that will hire without a Bachelors degree. I am working on my TEFL right now and I currently have an Associates degree in Early Childhood Education. I have 5 ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Anton 17 November 2013

Posters saying you need a degree to work in China are wrong. I dont have a degree and I have worked here legally for many years If you have a T.E.F.L cert then you can work here legally. However an ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- ICAL TEFL 11 November 2013

You need a degree to work in China legally. There are teachers without degrees but the authorities are starting to crack down more on this and you see illegal teachers being deported every so often. ...

Re: Looking for teaching job in China -- Silverboy 11 November 2013

Get your degree first. Don't come to China or other Asian countries without a degree these days. You will just get the illegal and leftover jobs.