Hi everyone, thank you for all of your help in the past. I honestly do appreciate it.
May I please ask you a question? Today is the final decision day I am going to give myself, I have put my life on hold to long, I think that’s one of the things that led me to feel down. Depending on how you guys respond, it will be very helpful in making a decision. I was offered a 1-on-1 tutoring job in either Shanghai or Xiamen, but I really do like Taiwan. I have try to reconcile this loop of not initially like teaching at cram schools in Taiwan vs a better teaching job in the mainland that I’d like more, i.e. a more ideal locale vs a better job.
My question is does teaching in cram school ever get better that you feel really comfortable and like your job or do you just see it as a means to an end? Also, I would it be good to get experience in the mainland and maybe come back?
For me, it got better. But not all cram schools are equal. My school was pretty good to me actually. But I never wanted to do that full time. But you do get better at it, just takes time. Not everyone is good with kids and able to command a room full of kid which is harder than a room full of adults.
Here’s what I know about teaching English on china. It’s easier as in if think the English learning system is bad here, china is worse. It’s a dog a pony show and you’re there being the white face dancing around being a fool most of the time instead of teaching. But I’m sure some are more serious. But in general, my time there in chengdu and Beijing, English teaching is just for show. The kids are even more spoiled than taiwan with their one child policy. Parents don’t expect you to be harsh or even give them to much work. You’ll be there to entertain the kids. But of course maybe your situation is different.
Thank you for your response JB. Did you ever get to liking your job as a cram school teacher or was it like you said, something you just get numb to?
Also, I will always do the best job I can at any job I get, but do you think being a cram school teachers is worth it until I can gain enough skills to find something else or find something else.
If I stay and if I do become a full time cram school teacher, I wanted to study computer coding on my free time so as to have a job I can transfer to.
If I go to mainland, it will most likely be Xiamen. That is where the job is for 1-on-1 teaching and my English friend wants me to teach Jiu-Jitsu at there academy. This would be in hopes of getting experience and a job at a place like GVO, Elite, or AMC when I return. Do you think this would this would be a good strategy?
Hi Andrew, thank you for your advice. I really hate to leave Taiwan. I feel in love with it about a year ago, when I was flying to Narita, I had a layover in Taoyuan, I saw the neat culture and Chinese opera on the TV, and I thought that I really want to participate in that culture, and learn Chinese.
Did you like your time in the mainland? Do you think teaching would be as bad there if it was just 1-on-1? Did you initially only work as a part time teacher in Taiwan? Is working part time in Taiwan a good option? Did you ever like working at a cram school in Taiwan? How long did it take you to find another opportunity?
Yeah. You just go with it. Like getting a teeth drilled after 10 shots of novocain AND still feeling it, at some point you just have to go through with it.
I have heard stories of “gaijin” working in the science parks, or doing other things other than teaching English, or owning their own businesses, but I have yet to actually see it. I am an old LAN jockey with experience in db maintenance and coding. (although my degree is PolSci) Not exactly the teacher type. I think certifications would help, but those can get pricey.
Talk to those who worked in Chinese Beijing. The only thing I know about those other places is…not much. I did demo/sub at AMC. Seemed very fast-paced, and the kids were OK, but 2 days is hardly a chance to make a judgement.
I would recommend Eagle if I had to. There is a lot of wiggle room at that school, a lot of improve in teaching. You will get the hang of it eventually. The thing is the kids, parents, and admins.
Thank you for your help JB. This is all solid advice.
How long did it take you to be proficient in coding enough to get a job in it? Also, do you think not having a teaching personality makes me a bad person?
I feel so dumb! I could have got an ALT job in Saitama in may, but I dragged my heels because I thought I would have found a job I liked here. I could have eased into teaching and gained some experience. I should have not been so idealistic, took a longer view, and maybe came back after experience. But I guess that life is in the right here right now, mistakes and the past are useless to worry about.
I just kinda fell into it. At first it was hooking up networks and getting them to work. Then I got into DB admin and started coding at the same time. As with anything, how fast you pick it up is depending on how much you use it.
Welcome to adulthood. I will give you a piece of useless advice. Do not fret on missed opportunities or bad decisions. There is no point. Also, there is no point in anyone saying this sense, human nature being what it is…you will do it anyway. There is always that missed investment opportunity that your finance friend was trying to get you to go in on, but instead you went to the Bahamas. Now, he and everyone who went in on it has their own house and a comfortable nest egg and I have to this bullshit for a living.
That makes a lot of sense JB. And without your experiences that shaped you into who you are, you would not be the good person you are today.
You are absolutely right, I have only been here for 4 months, nothing has really changed, it is just that 4 months of less than ideal things can cloud your perspective, but nothing has changed, nothing physically or mental, just my perspective, but I need to know I am the same person as before I started to get depressed and move on and get out of this loop of regret. Thank you for your advice, it is much appreciated.
Anyway, don’t look at a cram school as “something that gets better.” You either like it or you don’t, and if you don’t then it’s foolish to pretend one day you’ll do. Rather see it as a stepping stone to something greater one day. I’ve been teaching ESL for almost 10 years, and now I teach at a university. But I probably wouldn’t have advanced to this point if I hadn’t put my time in cram schools in the beginning. Everyone has to start somewhere and it’s usually at the bottom. I can’t recommend you go to mainland China, since I’m not a fan of the place, but if you like it, sure. You could also try Korea, Japan or even a less tapped-out country like Vietnam, Indonesia, etc. I’d recommend just doing a year at a cram school, and doing a TESOL cert course and making friends in the meantime so you can climb that ladder to a public school or something later on.
Do you have to have a license to teach at uni? Were/are you a licensed teacher? Did you have it going in, or did you return from whence you came and got it at some point? I mean seem snarky by asking this, but it is a serious question. I am asking because I really want to get out of the cram school nonsense. I would love to do my former jobs, but I have had no luck in that over here, and I am afraid that life is long gone. Tell me your secrets, man!
If I ever meet Fate, I am gonna punch him in the balls.
If it is a woman, well, I do not believe in violence against women…so I will just look menacing and think really nasty things as she looks and rolls her eyes at me and sighs “whatever” and goes back filing her nails.
I also used teaching as a stepping stone for just a basic salary part time. I used all my other time perusing other things. Work at night life, entertaining, promoting restaurant and bars and events, marketing, event management, sports management and met so many people. 3 years ago I didn’t even watch MMA or any combat sports. I ended up runnning operations at a gym here and I just got a call to come work at a new gym in shanghai. So my advice is, go out there and meet people and fail and struggle and try new things. Stop freaking out like every decision is so huge. And stop making drastic changes so fast. I felt like you set yourself to fail here. 4 months is a short time to struggle and you’re already moving to a different country. Which is fine if thats what you want to do. But I have a feeling the same thing is going to happen where ever you go. No offense I feel like you think everything comes easy. And if it doesn’t you freak out and try to find something thinking it’s going to be better. That’s not how it work. Successful people struggle and struggle and fail and fail big and eventually they find more and more opportunities. It just sounds like you have zero self confidence that things will work out. If you don’t have confidence in yourself. Believe in the law of averages. You might fail 99 times. But it takes one time to for a opportunity to come to get you started.
I’ve lived in Taipei and in Shenzhen. I moved there for a better job, and although the job situation was better, there was no shortage of challenges on other fronts. Don’t forget that the PRC is still a developing country - more or less - and its also not democratic. Some basic expectations about food or medicine, or immigration procedures, or safety or sanitation or pretty much anything you care to mention might not apply anymore. Most foreigners living in big cities in China also have something to say about daily annoyances like crowds, pollution, manners, etc…
So yea, there are opportunities in China, but you might not want to wander in there thinking that it is going to be just like Taiwan but with a better job. Its a totally different and I would say more challenging overall. Hope that helps!
Hey, JB. I have a TESOL cert, and I went home for 2 years to do a Masters in Education. My wife also has friends at the Uni I teach at, so that may have helped. I feel pretty lucky to have the job I do, as there’s stiff competition and I had to beat out a number of other applicants during a three stage interview process (demo lesson, meeting with hiring committee, meeting with English department). Unis usually don’t advertise on job boards and they never go through recruiters. Make a list of unis you’re interested in, and check their websites to see if they’re hiring. Then give their English depts a call. Can’t hurt and that’s how I first touched base. Also, Unis in other smaller cities like Taichung, Kaohsiung (where I am), etc., will be much easier to get considered than a Uni in Taipei.
I also have to say this. Why are you so set on teaching English. You seem to hate it and don’t seem to have a knack for it. Did you ever try finding a different job?
This actually really hit home. You are right. Absolutely right. I realize now that I don’t really want to be an English teacher. I think I am like you and a lot of others in the sense that I just want it for a means to an end.
I really don’t want to go back to the States. There is nothing there for me.
Do you guys think I should just take a month off, study online coding course and give volunteer english lessons? Maybe get comfortable at teaching while, while preparing for another job? And try my hardest to lose weight for another job I was offered, a job that is dependent on my weight and an ARC? And kind of like a sabbatical, except work hard everyday from sun up to sun down? And take all of the pressure off myself and just focus on working hard. What do you think?
I never thought I would feel so lost. But you are right, it’s only been 4 months. I thinks it’s just years of being lost that was culminating and 4 months of relative idleness messed up the situation.
I could also go teach at my friend’s Jiu-Jitsu academy in Xiamen, and teach English part time (but just to pay the bills ).
).