Employment & Professional Development

Your guide does not seem to provide for someone (such as myself) who did not attend college but has had decades of experience in business, huge personal travel experience, and has already been teaching ESL very successfully and effectively for 10 years. I am wondering what my chances are of teaching English in China.

My experience includes a 30 year hitch in the travel business, a personal travel history of over 40 countries, decades of life-experience including raising two spectacularly successful children, a life-long love affair with the English language and more recently, 10+ years of teaching the spoken language to foreign nationals in the USA -- most of whom with formal educations far beyond my own.

I am in personal conflict over the prospect of doing this -- assuming they approve me. On the one hand, I'm hot-to-trot and on the other, terminal cold feet! I've been on a relentless internet search for someone who has actually experienced living in China -- found your website and a wealth of information therein. I have zero doubts about my ability to be of value to the students assigned to me. What gives me pause is the living situation. I'm not eager to meet my first bedbug and love Chinese cuisine though I do, how do you contend with Chinese food for breakfast, lunch and dinner for 4 months? And other such niggling questions.

I ran myself out of copy paper last night gathering material from your website -- did you ever publish it in book form? I'd be happy to buy a copy. Is there any other particular piece of written material you might recommend? I'd be most grateful to stay in touch with you -- a coherent voice in the wilderness!


Diane Singer

Dear Diane,

In our chapter on "Teaching English in China," in which we discuss the vocational, sociodemographic, and personal aspects of teaching EFL in China, we state (in the first paragraphs of the last two sections, respectively):

Overall, those who report the greatest degree of personal satisfaction with their decision to teach English in China are those who are either recent college graduates—that is, ones who are looking for some cultural diversity and travel experience before returning home to pursue their "real" careers—or retirees: those who have finished their careers, have some money saved and are simply looking to stretch their pensions (by spending Western-earned dollars in an Asian country).

and;

If you are young (or, conversely, are a senior citizen with kids and grandkids) and are seeking either a short-term personal adventure or a working vacation, are old enough to retire with some money in the bank (without strong family ties and other obligations back home), or are a fully credentialed and career EFL teacher, then moving to China to teach oral English can make a great deal of sense.

One of my main goals or agendas in writing this chapter was to advise those who are professional and certified educators in their native countries that their function in China, as oral English teachers, will be no different than for those who had no formal education and teaching experience prior to moving to China. In fact, given the manner in which the job function has been de-professionalized, experienced, mature and non-degreed people such as yourself are far better suited for most teaching positions in China than, say, someone who taught English in a Western high school for 20 years (although there are a few notable exceptions to this rule as stated throughout the guide).

I had taught for over 25 years at the university level before I moved to China. In the four years that I worked for Hainan University in Haikou, my teaching responsibilities were absolutely no different than those assigned to the 24-year old teachers just out of college. That is the nature of EFL teaching in China. That’s not to suggest that my students didn’t benefit from my extra years of education and experience (at least I'd like to think they did), but neither my education nor experience was required to get hired or to get the job done to the school’s satisfaction.

Foreign teachers who are not certified as either primary or secondary school teachers back home or, in the alternative, do not hold advanced degrees in TESOL, DELTA, or some other field-related discipline, e.g., linguistics, education, literature, etc., will be quite limited in their job function as English teachers in China regardless of former teaching experience and education. And, unfortunately, even those who are highly qualified as career EFL teachers can easily find themselves grossly underutilized unless they go through great pains to find an institution that actually values what they have to offer and assigns differential teaching responsibilities to them based on those higher qualifications.

I am curious about one thing: When you wrote "assuming they approve me," in the first sentence of the third paragraph, whom are you referring to? Are you working with a recruitment agency?

Gregory -- I so appreciate your suggestions, advice -- general enlightenment, but I do not want to be a nuisance. Please send up a flare if and when you've had enough.

"They" is VIP China and the following is a list of questions I sent them several days ago -- is there anything I should add to it? They emailed this morning to say that answers would arrive in a separate e-m later in the day. One more for you: Is it usual for these recruitment companies to NOT pay the airfare NYC/PEK/NYC?

QUESTIONS/CHINA-DSinger

1. Do I have any choice of city in China?
2. When will I know in which city the teaching assignment is?
3. If the fly-in, orientation, etc is in Beijing, what is the transportation on to assigned city? Is that responsibility yours? Or mine?
4. Where would I be able to ship a trunk – to what destination?
5. Your pay scale is broad. What qualifies a teacher for lowest? Highest? Anything in between?
6. Can you refer me to several teachers in USA who have recently participated in your program?
7. Where, in relation to school, are living facilities?
8. What are they? An apartment? A hotel? A dormitory?
9. Single occupancy? A must!
10. Are they secure – are possessions safe? Clean? Linens supplied?
11. Is there a computer hookup? Internet access?
12. Is there a western style mattress?
13. Approximately how far from school? Bus or train ride? An easy walk? Which?
14. Are the living quarters in an active and safe area of the city?
15. Are they multi-storied? Is there an elevator? Is there a back-up generator in case of power failure?
16. Can you forward photos of housing quarters?
17. What protects me from you changing your mind after I fly to China?
18. Is there a contract?
19. How often are stipends paid? By whom? In what form.
20. Will my Citi-Bank card work?
21. Is there a classroom dress code?

Thank you and again, I so appreciate your assistance. This is all new territory for me and I'm feeling very babe-in-the-woods.

Diane

Hi Diane,

Your greatest protection and answer to a few of your questions lie in the Z-visa. A Z- or work visa locks the school into a legal commitment to provide you with a job and take care of you once that plane lands on Chinese soil. You do not want to travel to China for the purpose of earning income without that Z-visa. Your contract must be with the school directly and NOT with the recruitment agency.

The school should reimburse your airfare after you have completed a six-month contract (or six months of a one-year contract). At the completion of a one-year contract, your return airfare should also be paid. Different schools handle this in different ways, as discussed in the guide. Perhaps I misunderstood you but I remember reading that you are seeking a four-month assignment only. If that is the case, then airfare reimbursement would probably not be an option.

Your American ATM debit/credit card will work at the Construction Bank of China (only) for withdrawing cash. However, the banking system is still quite primitive in China and you will not be able to transfer monies or directly access your accounts from within the China banking system. Aside from using your Citibank card to withdraw money, the only other practical way to send and receive money is through Western Union.

There is no dress code to speak of for foreign teachers in China. Dress is entirely at your discretion.

Diane, with your teaching experience, you do have options other than to sign up with a recruitment agency. However, the four-month duration might be a bit limiting. If you were willing to stay for six months, then working at a private English language school would be a very viable option. Check the job ads on eslcafe.com and eslteachersboard.com. Take a look at the unit on applying for jobs in the guide for some ideas about how to approach the application and cover letter.

Don’t worry about wearing out your welcome or tiring me—I am happy to do this.

Hi Greg,

I received a response from VIP to my questions -- replies all seemed more than reasonable. I'll attach them here if you're up for it.

Would you tell me a little about living in Guangzhou. My venue concerns have to do with many things -- but, for starters, elevation (clearly, not an issue in G) and debilitating temperatures & humidity. What's the weather expectation between March and June. My focus is on Guangzhou or Chengdu for totally UN-erudite reasons -- LOL! You're in G and my friend and ex-student, Jian lives in C. You definitely have the edge on that contest. It would just be nice to know that an occasional lucid conversation in English with a fellow NYer is available. How about the availability of other such Americanisms in either city: A caucasian haircut, ice in my scotch, bacon & eggs, the NYTimes, CNN, an American movie, and other such creature comforts. Another consideration would be weekend travel -- G accesses HKG, Shanghai etc; while Chengdu does Vietnam, Tibet, Burma and other places I've long longed to see. The distances don't look overwhelming from the maps I'm looking at -- maybe deceptive. The train service to most everywhere seems reasonable. Any arguments with any of that?

ds

I could probably devote several pages to answering your question adequately, but I’ll give you the Reader’s Digest version for now because, in a way, given your requirements, the answer is a fairly straightforward one. If creature comforts are important to you, then you should only be focusing on China’s three international cities: Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing (probably in that order, but for different reasons). In that context only, Chengdu would probably be eliminated although it beats Guangzhou hands-down in terms of culture and charm.

While it is true that China is a developing country, it would be fair to say that Guangzhou is a fully developed city, in the Western sense of the word. However, having just written that, real Scotch is probably out of the question. I am a Scotch drinker from way back and I’ve tried every option and route I know but I have not been able to find real Scotch anywhere in China, including Hong Kong. “Spirit counterfeiting” (among most other types of pirating and counterfeiting) is a major problem in China and, besides, most Chinese suffer from varying degrees of alcohol intolerance syndrome so the bottled “Scotch and water” they sell here is fine for them. Bacon and eggs, good steaks, and decent pizza are all very doable in Guangzhou but anything “Western” comes at a premium.

For example, a single can of Campbell’s cream of chicken soup costs 12.9 yuan, which comes to about $1.87 USD. I’d pay twice as much for it if I had to. A 1.1kg (about 2.3lbs) tub of Maxwell House coffee runs 90 yuan or $13.14. I’m happy to get it because Colombian brand name coffee was unavailable in the other two cities I had lived in (Haikou and Shenyang). Until I moved to Guangzhou, I was drinking NesCafé Instant coffee and was happy to get even that. One of the first things I bought in Guangzhou, as soon as I moved here, was a drip coffee maker (also unavailable in the other cities I had lived in). A single 8-inch pizza pie (small) with extra cheese, which is about as close to NY pizza as I am going to get in China, runs 88 yuan or $12.85 (although there are less expensive alternatives that are acceptable). That should give you some idea. If your plan is to closely replicate the life you know and are comfortable with in New York here in China, a salary of 5,000 yuan is not going to do it. So plan on having access to monies from home. On the other hand, if you choose to live and eat like a Chinese, then the salary you earn will be just barely sufficient.

As for other Americans or foreigners, there are a couple with whom I socialize on occasion but, aside from that, I’m pretty isolated here now because I only teach professional courses for the medical school so my foreign colleagues are mostly Indian physicians. I understand there is one other American professor who teaches chemistry but he lives off-campus and I’ve never met him. I’m sure you’ll find plenty of foreigners you can talk to besides me as I am told there are over 320,000 foreigners in Guangzhou.

There is a lot to be said for being a relatively short bus or train ride from Macau and Hong Kong. The bus to Macau leaves right in front of the university I am told and the trip takes about two hours: the duration to Hong Kong is about the same by train. Hong Kong is a different world altogether: far more of a London China Town than an SAR (special administrative region) of China and the prices prove it. Eating at restaurants in Hong Kong is far more expensive than anything you will find in New York City. During our wedding trip (my wife and I were married last December in HK), we went to Morton’s of Chicago for a steak dinner. With a couple of drinks each, appetizers, two steak dinners, and dessert, we ended up leaving $321.00 on the table (without the tip, that was extra). That is more than three times what it used to cost me in South Florida at the same restaurant. You’re paying heavy and extremely punitive import taxes for the privilege of eating the same way halfway around the world.

As for traveling extensively (long distances) by train, some people see it as an adventure, while others (like me) would rather go to the dentist for a root canal. The only way to travel long distances by train is to purchase a “soft sleeper” and the prices for that are only a few dollars less than it would cost you to travel by plane. In all my time here in China, I’ve never once taken the train and would never consider it because of the relatively filthy conditions. In addition, the trains are like rolling brothels: Prostitutes service men on the trains and those who don’t want to pay are constantly hitting on the younger women (my wife had a terrible time fending off the men when she took the train down to Haikou from Guangzhou and I’ll never let her do that again). I wouldn’t recommend the trains in China especially for a woman traveling alone. On the other hand, the subway system is superlative in Guangzhou: The trains are relatively new, clean and highly efficient. The subway system in Hong Kong is probably the best in the world: puts New York City’s transit system to shame.

If you’d like include VIP’s answers to your questions, I’d be happy to look at them for you.

WHOA! That was enlightening! Thank you for your candor. I don't think of myself as "spoiled" but, I'm sure there's a certain level of it that just comes with the territory -- having lived in NYC for the past 40 years with unobstructed access to virtually anything I could, in my wildest imagine, want at any hour or day -- I would hesitate subjecting myself the 'Brat Litmus Test."

But, at the same time, I'm consciously trying to not romanticize any aspect of living in China. Apparently I failed in the travel department -- I saw myself nipping off on weekend train excursions to the equivalent of DC one weekend, Boston, the next -- maybe Montreal another, etc etc. Are the trains actually as hideous as you describe? On the various websites, they look like the NY/DC bullet service. Spotless dining cars and all. Hookers and bedbugs!?! Not part of my Big Picture! That's a real disappointment. However, being hit on by lecherous Chinese traveling salesman -- those days are long past, thank god! My wallet may be in some jeopardy, but not my purse anymore! (ooh, bad joke, sorry.)

Do you do much travel within China? I would hate to see nothing of China but Beijing and my assignment city.

I do envision myself living frugally with minimal creature comforts in exchange for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Does even THAT concept require a reality trim? Safe, clean and relatively comfortable accommodations is my criteria. Expecting only minimal relief from Chinese food and other things Chinese.

To answer your question re alternate teaching opportunities. It's the time thing -- I don't want to be away for 8-12 months -- too long for me. I have children and my children have children and we're all quite close. Three months plus, is about it for me.

Here's the question/answer exchange. Do the answers sound reasonable to you: (I'm black; VIP red)

QUESTIONS/CHINA-DSinger


1. Do I have any choice of city in China?
The list of our partner schools will be released within two weeks, we can choose a school for you from the list, based on mutal agreement. Most schools are in larger towns or cities, since very small and remote towns cannot afford a English speaking teacher.
2. When will I know in which city the teaching assignment is?
We will offer you some choices within two weeks.
3. If the fly-in, orientation, etc is in Beijing, what is the transportation on to assigned city? Is that responsibility yours? Or mine?
When you arrive in Beijing, we will arrange to pick you up at the airport and ensure you are taken good care of during your stay here in Beijing, then we will help you get the train ticket to go to our candidate high school, it will be our responsibility.
4. Where would I be able to ship a trunk – to what destination?
Could you make it more clear please?
5. Your pay scale is broad. What qualifies a teacher for lowest? Highest? Anything in between?
The patment is based on our teacher's background education, work experience, the workload and the location of our parner school. The payment for most of the native speakers from USA, UK, Australia, Canada is on the higher end of the scale.
6. Can you refer me to several teachers in USA who have recently participated in your program?
Definitely, not a problem, we have a lot of Amerian teachers, some of them are in USA, some of them are still teaching in our partner schools. Wally, He used to be one of our teachers, now he is in USA, he also had a wealth of teaching experience in China. If you have any other concerns, if you wish to speak to an American about the prospects before you come to China, he will gladly speak with you and help as needed. His American cell is 650-773-0596, home phone in CA is 650-570-5567, and e-mail address is whc2@rcn.com We can also refer some of American teachers teaching in our partner schools right now, if needed.
7. Where, in relation to school, are living facilities?
Regarding the accomodation, Well-decorated accommodation and meals are typically free and on-campus, private kitchen and bathroom, TV set, desk, chairs, sofa, computer with Internet ADSL connection, kitchen utilities and so on. Electricity, water and gas are free of charge. we will try our best to maximize the support from our candidate high school.
8. What are they? An apartment? A hotel? A dormitory?
Most of our teachers are living in an apartment on campus.
9. Single occupancy? A must!
sure
10. Are they secure – are possessions safe? Clean? Linens supplied?
definitely safe. Before you arrive at the school, everything will be ready for you.
11. Is there a computer hookup? Internet access?
computer with Internet ADSL connection
12. Is there a western style mattress?
western style??? I have never used any western style mattress, I just can not tell the difference bettwen western style and chinese style mattress. Anyway, you can consult some other American teachers of VIP China about it.
13. Approximately how far from school? Bus or train ride? An easy walk? Which?
the apartments of most of our teachers are on campus14. Are the living quarters in an active and safe area of the city? definitely safe.
15. Are they multi-storied? Is there an elevator? Is there a back-up generator in case of power failure?
There is probably no elevator in the buliding, most of the building have 3-5 stories.
16. Can you forward photos of housing quarters?
Please do not worry about the living conditions, I am pretty sure you will be satisfied, if not, we will ask the school to make improvement.
17. What protects me from you changing your mind after I fly to China?
We can sign the contract before you are coming to China.
18. Is there a contract?
Yes.
19. How often are stipends paid? By whom? In what form.
VIP China will pay all of our teachers in the first week of each month. When you arive in Beijing, one of my colleague will accompany you to the bank(ICBC) and apply for a bank account, in the first week of each month, we will put your salary in your ICBC bankaccount.
20. Will my Citi-Bank card work?
Citi- Bank??? I am sorry something you mentioned that I could not understand very well, anyway, you can consult some of our American teachers. I think they know it much better than I do. Thanks
21. Is there a classroom dress code?
You can wear some casual clothes, it is ok.

Dear Diane,

The bottom-line is that you are approaching this trip in the best way possible: A short-term adventure and once-in-a-lifetime experience. In that context, one can tolerate just about anything for three to four months, but you also need to be very realistic about what you are getting yourself into.

My only real concern in what I read from VIP China's answers to your questions is that I think you are going to need to check the work hours very carefully. If I am reading VIP’s responses correctly, you will be an employee of the agency and the agency is going to contract you out to the highest bidder (so, in that respect, you are going to be given a “forced choice”). In these types of situations, the hours and exploitation tend to be the greatest. Personally, I don’t think you should agree to anything more than 16 hours of face-to-face teaching per week and even that will be very tiring.

The Chinese have been known to oversell themselves on occasion (cough, cough). According to various websites and brochures, Sanya (in the southernmost part of Hainan Island) is the “Hawaii of the East.” Nonsense. Sanya is a terribly overpriced, oversold, and overdeveloped tourist trap and in no way compares to Hawaii in any manner, shape, or form. You have to take all of that with a grain of salt. Yalong Bay, in the southernmost part of Sanya, compares favorably to some of the very popular public areas of Jones Beach or Island Park, on the south shore of Long Island, but there isn't one beach along the entire east coast of Florida that doesn't dwarf Sanya City and Yalong Bay by comparison.

Having just written this, I am sure there are “special trains,” like bullet trains, offering limited service in the three international cities but this is not how most Chinese travel from one part of China to another. For example, there is no such “bullet” train from Guangzhou to Shanghai that I am aware of. But it’s cheap enough to fly and your time constraints would limit you to flying anyway.

Given that I’ve been in China for almost six years, I’d say my domestic traveling experience grossly pales in comparison to most. I’ve been to Hong Kong several times (because my wife's mother and sister work there), Macau once, and a few other cities as a result of personal business but, no, I haven’t made it a special point to visit the major tourist destinations—for several reasons.

Keep in mind that China has over 1.3 billion people in a geographical space slightly smaller than that of the continental United States. That’s more than four times the amount of people and they are all traveling at the same time during the holidays. So, for me, about the last thing I want to do is travel when the rest of country is.

In addition, maybe your stamina is a lot better than mine but teaching 12 to 16 hours per week is very tiring for me. In the United States, professors teach two 2 ½ hour classes per week (this is a normal load). In mainland China, full professors teach a minimum of three to four classes per week. Between my face-to-face teaching hours and the time I need to prepare for each class (no less than two to three hours per class), I am way too exhausted by the end of the week to even consider getting on a train or a plane to visit some site of historical or other interest. I am more than happy to learn about it on the Discovery Channel. Smile.

If you are looking at this as an opportunity to experience something of a paid vacation, you may want to rethink that. At the very least, traveling about is something you will need to plan on doing mostly either before you start teaching or after your contractual commitment ends with the agency. Despite your great interest, I just don’t think you are going to find either the time or the energy to do much traveling, and you should plan on being thoroughly over-utilized by any school you are assigned to. Of course, there is nothing preventing you from hopping on a bus to Hong Kong or Macau if, for example, you are in Guangzhou, but do you think you will really be interested in sitting on a train for a total of 20 hours over a two-day period in overcrowded and less than hygienic conditions when you have to teach 16 to 22 periods per week at a junior middle school with 50 bored and rambunctious kids in each class? You are going to be TIRED, very tired—I guarantee it. And, of course, those 16 to 24 hours per week of classes don’t include any prep work or grading of homework you might be required to do.

As the Greeks are fond of saying: “Your eyes, four times!”

Greg -- Another Arctic blast of reality:

"TYPICAL RESPONSIBILITIES (variable by location):
1. Work schedule will be from Monday to Friday
2. 18~24 classes per week, each class lasting 45 mins.
3. September through December, and March through June terms, with possibilities to teach during semester breaks
4. Arrival in Beijing two weeks prior to the term commencement" (From VIP website)

If my arithmetic is correct:
18 sessions (minimal) = 13.5 hours face to face (2.5 hrs per day)
24 sessions = 18 hours (3.5 hrs per day)

You said "50 bored and rambunctious kids in each class"
I replied "Are you serious? Could it actually be that high? My fantasy was 15 blue-pajamaed ala-Mao-eager-to-learn submissive children."

Just had a reply from VIP; You were right again! Classes run 40-60 students at a time. This is getting less enticing by the minute. I'm not ready to bail; I'll wait until I see which city they assign me to. What can you possibly teach 50 kids in 45 minutes?

I'm also questioning VIP's description "oral English" -- I've assumed that that was the Chinese locution meaning "conversational English" but beginning to think not so. I've asked them to make that clearer. I will not drill rules of grammar all day -- if that's what it means.

Dear Diane,

There is an old expression that I first learned from my 10th grade history teacher: "Figures don’t lie, but liars figure!"

Yes, if you do the math, 18 45-minute periods equal 13.5 hours of face-to-face teaching but unless you are aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise with Capt. Kirk and Mr. Spock and can “beam home” during each 10 – 15 minute break between classes, what difference does it make? Smile. All that means is that you’re not getting paid for down time even though you must still remain in the school between classes. So, in effect, you will have to be at the physical location for up to four hours each morning (or afternoon) in order to teach those four 45-minute classes anyway.

Is overtime mandatory or voluntary? You should ask. If the school says “Oh Diane, we know you agreed to 24 periods but the other teacher is sick today, so, please, we need you to teach four more," can you say no? Also, see if you can negotiate single shifts per day only, i.e., not having to teach for four hours in the morning (i.e., four periods) and then return in the afternoon. That is very exhausting because you won’t be able to relax during your break, not mentally.

You are only expected (and permitted by law) to teach oral English in China. Technically, it is illegal for a school to hire a foreigner to teach anything that a Chinese national can unless it can be demonstrated that an attempt was made to staff that class with a Chinese national who can also speak English well enough to satisfy the specific needs of the students (in the case, for example, of a foreign professor who is hired to teach professional courses in his field to international students)—so don’t worry about having to teach grammar. And, no, of course you can’t properly teach oral English to 40 to 60 kids at a time. The “good news” is that you are not expected to (nor do most really care). You are being hired solely to satisfy a highly contested and bitterly resented national education requirement that compels all schools to expose their foreign language students to a native English speaker. If all you do is teach them to sing a song in English and the kids are happy, and you can somehow manage to make relatively few demands and "go with the flow" during your stay in China, both the school and VIP China will be thrilled with you.

I wish I had better news.

In the end, this may be a very “costly” way for you to visit China, but only you can decide that for yourself. Like I said, expect to be over-utilized and exhausted by the end of the week. If you do decide to do this, do NOT agree to more than 18 periods. I also guessing that you are not going to be thrilled with your assigned location either. This is a Chinese business, very much for profit, not a social service or a philanthropic organization. What they do is bid out their B.A./M.A. degreed and younger teachers to the schools in the far more desirable locations for a lot more money and then offer the older and/or non-degreed teachers the far less desirable locations that the younger degreed kids won’t agree to. You're planning on doing this in the winter, so don’t agree to any location north or too far west of Shanghai. Shanghai has a New York-type of winter. Anywhere else, you will freeze to death before the southerly winds kick in.