Hi all,

I will be flying to Wuhan China on August 15. I have signed a 2 year contract, but this contract marks the first time I will be teaching in a classroom (without the guidance of a mentor teacher). During my field experience I did many 8am-9pms so (I think) I have a real raw perspective of how demanding our profession is. As for related teaching experience, I have taught at my University as an instructor, ran science camps for kids, and worked at various tutoring agencies. My first field experience was placed at a school which defied inclusive education, as the school only enrolled students with cognitive or physical impairments. I also have about a years worth of experience tutoring ESL students during my intensive mandarin study in Taiwan. I've also got 1TB of resources on my passport (portable HD). These resources range from English, all to Math and Physics (if you ask nicely I may share these resources =P ???????).

If you've read this far then ask me for resources =D.
I need tips (from the trenches): what should a first year teacher do? How demanding should I expect the workload to be? From my understanding, I start school at 730, and leave by 340, but I have a spare (prep period) every day. So I'll only be teaching 3 courses out of 4 blocks (I think). Is it illegal to "borrow" the school's resources? Can anyone on here share their resources, as I assume many of you are experienced educators. I also have things to give as well =D.

Please let me know educators! Essentially I am just asking for tips, warnings, or expectations from first year teaching. I am sorry for not asking specific questions, but I think its becuase my teaching experience is quite limited, so I truly do not know what to expect, or what to avoid.

Thanks again,

Be well

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Where are you located? I think it varies from school to school. In Canada if you have any sort of masters you're compensated for it.

Well I am still up in the air about doing a masters. I have a two year contract in the way right now, so two years should give me plenty of time to muse over my options. If I were to do a practical degree it would not be a masters, but a Computer Science degree. I think a lot of schools look for IT workers, plus I think Comp programming is useful to have. If I was to go for interest, it would be Chinese as a foreign language, being taught in Chinese. I am not sure if my Chinese focus would help my employment chances, I guess it shows I am well assimilated into the culture, which I think MANY schools value. I've heard the hardest part (about working in China that is), is teacher burnout, coupled with having a tough time adjusting to the environment in China.

Thank you all for the advice: its great to see a wide array of opinions.

Some of you mentioned doing a masters for interest, not for beef on the resume. If I could do a masters degree for interest it would be in teaching Chinese as a foreign language-- but I don't feel this specialization will make me very employable. If I couldn't do a masters in Chinese, I'd probably do a comp sci degree or something. Thoughts? Opinions? I mean logically speaking, if a school wants Chinese to be taught as a foreign language, then they would just hire a local, correct? The Chinese masters (in this case) would be solely based off interest (and maybe some bragging rights too ;) hahaha).

Be well all!

Hi all,

I currently hold a Bachelors of Education Secondary (high school and middle school). I am wondering: is it worth pursuing a masters degree in education if I want to teach abroad in China? Will a masters assist with getting me into a tier 1 school?

Thanks in advance! =D

Thank you very much for the luck! What is a normal schedule (2 months summer off)? Do you mean a school that honours the Chinese calender, or the Western calander?

First year teacher here (so what do I know really)?
Here's my take on it-- how many people honest to god want to spend the rest of their life abroad? Away from family? Etc Not many. So you're in luck

Build connections.
Buddy up with your principal, deliver wicked lessons when inspectors come in (if your school has inspectors (then again, shouldn't you always be delivering awesome lessons? =O)). Edit, prune, and redit your CV. Make sure it is polished. Pay a professional to look it over for you.

I am a firm believer that connections get you hired, CV's only get you noticed (but then again, what do I know?) Yes: take person's advice above, make sure you make the recruiting fare! Handout your resume to EVERY single school. Photo copy your CV 50+ times.

When at the fare ask questions. Show keen interest, don't just drop your resume, and move to the next booth (cause the recruiter will see you wondering about). If he asks: can you teach Math?" You smile and say: ABSOLUTELY! IF she asks: are you willing to do A,B,C, and D? you say "yes!" "Can you coach boxing?" YES FOR SURE, I LOVE Boxing... Once you get home (after the job fare) I would suggest educating yourself about " Math, A,B,C, D, and boxing."

Perks (for the resume...):
Get IB certified
Have some sort of Volunteer work with kids on your CV
Write down your PD on your resume
Can you speak Chinese (or can you speak the language of the place where you are hoping to work)? If so, mention it, but be clear that you WILL NOT use it in the classroom (shows you have assimilated well into the culture)!

Ultimately, You need to do things that make you stick out from the crowd (now I can't share ALL my tips on here, cause I want a job in a tier 1 too (once I put my time in, of course) =P).

But I think it boils down to three things really: connections, pleasing CV, and a keen (raw) interest in a position. I think employers can tell if someone doesn't TRULY want the job. Anyways, I hope my tips help, but like I said, whatta I know (first year here)!

Be well, and good luck!
?????

Has anyone heard of Wagnor?

Which school are you at,if you don't mind me asking? Depending on the region, you may want to contact a lawyer, and ask them about fleeing a contract. Have you talked to the principal about the issues you are experiencing?

Also: I would consider the kids as well.

Hello folks!

I hope the international teaching job search (or job...) is going well!

Anyone know about reputable international schools in Taiwan? Tier 1s, 2s, and 3s? Do the international schools count the experience I will gain in China? =D Thanks!

grdwdgrrrl wrote:
> So, you speak Chinese? Good. I did like some things about Wuhan, the
> traffic wasn't one of them. I went there often on for conferences. Things
> have improved a lot since.
> I would say it's a second tier city in China. People are used to seeing
> foreigners, it's a popular part of the cruise up and down the Yangzte River
> and three gorges. The food is great!
> Wuhan has had a long tradition of foreign educators coming. Princeton has
> a program there, for example. Did you ever read Iron and Silk? That was
> the eighties of course, things have changed. It has an old foreign
> consession area there, from colonial days. It's HOTTER than hell in the
> summer, worse than Nanjing in my opinion.
> It's not Guangzhou but then again it's not Guizhou. Speaking of Guangzhou,
> there's a high speed train. Takes 4 hours from Wuhan to Guangzhou South
> station. The it's an hour by subway to Tianhe and the embassy district,
> but it's a good route.
>
> Hope that helps!

Excellent advice! My girlfriend currently lives in Guangzhou, so the convenience of the high speed rail is going to make our long distance more bearable! I'm really excited to go to Wuhan actually-- perhaps I' am naive, but I can't wait to interact with the culture! How hot does it get in Wuhan? +50? =O

Why is limited English considered a disadvantage? And moreover, why do some people advocate for English being the language of convenience? After all, we are guests in China. Why do we expect Chinese people to cater to us? I say we (as foreigners) should try to assimilate ourselves into the environment.

I am by no means arguing that everyone who goes to China should learn to speak Chinese, but its not difficult to write down a few common phrases, and at least make an effort to use the language-- especially if you're in a place where English is scarce. I am basically saying this: I don't think it's reasonable to expect one of the world's richest, and most historical cultures to bend the knee just to cater to some western international teachers. Its not going to happen. Instead, we need to do our best to adapt. For some people adapting is too difficult, but some are Asian at heart.

Hardest I ever for asked: if we talked to your worst enemy, what would they say about you? Why?

Does anybody know anything about this city? Ever worked in Wuhan?

Best
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HereThereEverywhere wrote:
> Shadowjack, it means they will publish this information online and/or to
> all potential staff members. You know what you are walking into prior to
> ever having a real offer.

Ok. I get it, thanks! =) But I fail to see how this transparency has to do with the possibility of being overqualified for a job. After all, many schools are businesses. I'm not sure about the American Sector, but in Canada, public schools are paid by the student. Some international schools also run like a business, and at the end of the day, education is just another business. The students/parents have the power, because they are the paying customers (I hope this opinion doesn't spark debate)...And if a student is coded (with cognitive, or physical impairments), the school makes more money. From a business perspective it seems there is a possibility that you may be too qualified to shift to a new location (unless your school offers an exchange program?) I say this because I think an employer would rather hire a teacher who has less experience, simply for salary reasons. Plus there is the possibility of your age, and retirement.. I mean you've been in the field for 16 years! Thats a lot of time.

I think the core of the issue here is that you have 16 years experience-- now whether that experience is consistent (IE: did you spend 8 years teaching Math at the same school)? And moreover, I think you need to ask yourself this question: when do I plan to settle in a school? In other words, when (if ever) are you going to accept you will teach in a particular institution until retirement? Personally, once I hit 16 years experience, that experience will be generated from one school-- the school I will be spending the rest of my life in. My gravestone will be in that school (wherever that is). I guess that's just me though-- feel free to disagree.