[quote=“GongChangZhang”]This is a little harsh for those who try school after school and face the rejection nearly everyday. Slighly disappointing post from a poster I usually enjoy so much.
I guess we all have our moments.[/quote]
Sorry, GongChangZhang I don’t want to disappoint you! Ahh…the pressure!
Like I said, people looking for work: persevere, persevere, persevere. Don’t let something like color/ignorance hold you back. One school won’t take you? You’re better than that, move on to another school or other opportunities. Those of you that know me know I can say this.[/quote]
[quote=“bob”][quote=“Woodchild”][quote=“bob”]I hope you didn’t teach writing…
[/quote]
:raspberry: :raspberry: :raspberry:
My writing is much better than lots of native speakers.[/quote]
Please don’t take that too personally. I never teach writing either. Also I think you should get paid “more” for your Chinese ability not less.[/quote]
I know! I was just being a resentful perfectionist, hating you picking on my mistakes.
So do you have duel citizenship? If so is your Chinese completely fluent? The reason I’m asking is because I’m curious if you are a true Chinese-English bilingual why would you want to limit yourself to teaching English in Taiwan? Man, people like you are suppose to be hot commodities here! Unless you really enjoy teaching or have some sort of certification I can’t figure why you would want to continue working in a profession that you acknowledge has a “deeply entrenched” prejudice against your enthnicity? If you are looking for a “place” that makes full use of your biligual abilities why not try some multi-national corporation? The pay is supposedly good in these multi-nationals (comparable to English teaching, but with a 40 hour work week), with better benefits, better chance of promotion or getting a raise, and offers some sort of career path (this is especially important if you intend to return to the US and hope to find any kind of job that pays better than entry-level wages).
DW
PS: Like bob says your writing is not exactly up to par. You frequently mess up your tenses and make subtle grammar errors. Still do not take this as a diss; you’re writing is decent enough and I’m sure you speak just like a native.[/quote]
Yes I have dual citizenship and also am completely fluent in Mandarin. The reason why I teach English is because I do love teaching English and I enjoy the shorter working hours. This way I can actually have a life.
My profession was in the building industry. I don’t consider working here as an architectural designer because one, the regulations are totally different here. We do mostly timber construction back in NZ and in Taiwan it’s 99.9% concrete and steel. Two, the pay is really low compared to English teaching. I do miss designing houses, though.
[quote=“Dead Wizard”]
So do you have duel citizenship? If so is your Chinese completely fluent? The reason I’m asking is because I’m curious if you are a true Chinese-English bilingual why would you want to limit yourself to teaching English in Taiwan? Man, people like you are suppose to be hot commodities here! Unless you really enjoy teaching or have some sort of certification I can’t figure why you would want to continue working in a profession that you acknowledge has a “deeply entrenched” prejudice against your enthnicity? If you are looking for a “place” that makes full use of your biligual abilities why not try some multi-national corporation? The pay is supposedly good in these multi-nationals (comparable to English teaching, but with a 40 hour work week), with better benefits, better chance of promotion or getting a raise, and offers some sort of career path (this is especially important if you intend to return to the US and hope to find any kind of job that pays better than entry-level wages).[/quote]
Oh boy. Where do I begin? First, I also have dual citizenship and I am multilingual. I teach because I enjoy it and I do not think teaching is limiting. Yes, there are barriers to climb over and break down and I was turned down several times due to the fact that I am Chinese, ignoring the fact that I have taught professionally elsewhere. Nobody gets a free ride in life.
Second, the “bilingual-hot commodity” link is a myth here. There are very little high paying (non-teaching) jobs here that actually require English/Chinese speakers. I have also applied for non-teaching positions with comments such as “you’re overqualified” or “we don’t know how to classify you (racially)” :loco: .
I don’t want to go into detail about my previous job but it was high paying, secure and in the US. But not everyone wants to live in the US as not all of us are US citizens nor care to be. So my point is if you see teaching here as a “get rich quick” scheme then you are not helping those of us that truly want to make a difference and give back to our community.
Um, Yi in case you haven’t realized my original post wasn’t addressed to you. You seem to be lacking some vital copy & paste skills. You see that “Hey Woodchild,” part in my original post? Yes, that was who I was trying to address, not you. If you read Woodchild’s post you will see that he expressed frustrations at being discriminated and lamented the fact that his bilingual abilities were not put to better use. I was trying to be helpful by informing him that with his bilingual background he can expand his horizons and pointed to working for multinationals as an example.
No you clearly seem to have some frustrations with your experience here in Taiwan, be it discrimination or finding high-paying non-teaching jobs. I’m sorry about that, but please don’t use my post as a precursor for some rant/self-dignified BS extolling the high-minded virtues of teaching in a foreign land.
Hey, if you don’t like the US, by all means, leave. But what does that have to do with not having US citizenship? You don’t need citizenship to legally reside and work in the US (duh). I mean how many English teachers here do you think have ROC citizenship?
Perhaps my frustration-sensor is turned off.
Actually I agree with everything WC has wrote and if she truly is as frustrated as you say then yes, she should get out of teaching now.
As for me, I love teaching in my native land. Of course, teaching in a foreign land is (and should be) fulfilling too. These kids don’t just stop existing once you leave. Some remember their teachers, good and bad, well into adulthood.
What’s sad is when people come to Taiwan and see “teaching” as “easy money” or when XBCs come assuming they can practice Chinese or that everyone who is bilingual can instantly get a high-paying job without obstacles. These are some of the myths that lead to distorted facts and further division between “foreigners” and “locals”.
Teaching English is one of the best ways to learn Mandarin if you ask me (but then perhaps you wouldn’t want to ask me because I have never studied Mandarin in school). Anyway an opportunity to learn Mandarin is certainly one of the things that keeps me teaching English. Of course I can’t be asking my students how to say things in Mandarin (except when checking for understanding) but I can try to anticipate the things that they will have difficulty with in English and then learn that material in advance in Chinese. It is enough to keep me busy that’s for sure and it doesn’t interfere with my students learning English.
Of course, language learning should be mutual. I also believe that LEARNING English as a foreign language would be more beneficial if some grammar points can be explained in the native language. However, this is not the reality of many English buxibans here. Most bosses have “English only” rules and frown upon those that use Chinese. Your case is obviously different but that’s a good thing. The more of us that try to change the system from within, the better. For the newbies, just don’t expect to come here and have the system change for you…it could get you fired or not even hired.
I get away with it because I teach mostly low level adults, a group of people that definitely benefits from a “bi-lingual” teacher. I can only hope that one day that illustrious term describes me…
Just depends on who you will be teaching: kids/adults? At a school or corporate? Through agency or private?
No worries, you’re only at a disadvantage if you view it that way. And remember, it’s a different culture here, so don’t expect everything to be pc. As long as you come here with the expectation that hiring practices might differ, then you’ll do fine.
Just depends on who you will be teaching: kids/adults? At a school or corporate? Through agency or private?
No worries, you’re only at a disadvantage if you view it that way. And remember, it’s a different culture here, so don’t expect everything to be pc. As long as you come here with the expectation that hiring practices might differ, then you’ll do fine.
Good luck![/quote]
so teaching which is more ok to be FBC?[/quote]
In my opinion, yes. And that applies to teaching adults. The reasons I find are:
They work all day, they like it better if you can explain some difficult words/grammar points in Chinese. Saves them and you time.
They’re not looking to learn grammar, they want someone who can chit chat about everything with them.
They open up more to you and generally have the guts to speak up more if you speak the same language as them and look like them.
I hope that’s what you were asking, ironfist. (And btw, I applesolutely hate the label ABC/CBC/FBC/XYZ. Yes, it’s a convenient term, but it sounds dumbass. To me.)
Off topic point of order: I’ve lived and worked in the USA and here in Taiwan. It’s a hell of a lot easier to do so legally in Taiwan. You may not need citizenship to legally reside and work in the USA but it is not easy if you’re a foreigner. Most of my American friends were amazed and even a little outraged at how unwelcoming the USA is.
I know of one guy with jaw-droppingly fluent English who went to interviews for almost 3 months before finding teaching work.
His school changed hands and he’s being let go because he’s not white.
If you know of specific places looking for teachers in the morning, that don’t mind if the teacher is from Taiwan, and are towards the central/south part of Taipei please PM me.
Thanks.[/quote]
Plenty of ads the local southern newpapers looking for teachers. I take it your friends reads Chinese . Pick up a paper and make some calls. The other trend is to have female teachers, so a sex change may be in order as well.
I dont’ think TW employers are racist…it’s just that they prefer white skin, blond hair to teach their students English. and they are not exposed to multi culture as much as us from the states…I mean in TW they mostly see and talk to Chinese people…so they automatically think that real foreigner that teaches their students will be better…unlike us that grrew up in the states we exposed to many cultures…we have more understanding for more things…I don’t think they are racest they just feel better when a real foreigner is teaching and he is white. I mean how can you be racist to your own people…it’s just that they prefer white teachers
So many contradictions in your post, man. They’re not racist, they just prefer people of a certain race regardless of qualifications? Sounds like racist to me. However, like you I don’t think Taiwanese are malicious in there intentions. They have a distorted view of western culture and society.
I don’t want to disappoint you! Ahh…the pressure! 
I was just being a resentful perfectionist, hating you picking on my mistakes. 
. Pick up a paper and make some calls. 
The other trend is to have female teachers, so a sex change may be in order as well.