Help us build a free find-a-teacher database

Work Teaching English in Taiwan
1

Hi folks,

I have always wanted to add a database that schools in Taiwan could browse to find English teachers in Taiwan.

My original idea was to have a people directory where there were no names. There would be the usual sections describing qualifications, preferences, skills – but there wouldn’t be any names (to keep things private) and the prospect would be able to select what information they could choose to reveal.

Obviously, it behooves the candidates to be as honest and open as possible – since their goal is to secure an interview/position. At some point in an effective recruiting process, good employers will be able to smell a rat.

Now, maybe we could build in certain restraints to discourage abuse. Maybe require a certain number of posts on the forums? (Ugh, linking to the user database here sounds really complicated) Or possibly use some kind of registration policy so that if you are discovered to be abusive, you would be barred from using entering your information in the future (some how :unamused: )

What’s cool is that the door swings both ways. Schools (large and small) are granted free access to this database without names. If they are reported to be “bad” employers (Lord knows how we could verify this – sounds like a headache), then they would lose access to the pool.

I was aiming for a database that pushed candidate qualifications ahead of other factors. It would reward experience, but also give new arrivals a place to be seen quickly.

I hope this kind of database would be built using PHP/MySQL or PHP/PostgreSQL (spelling?). We could propose to Maoman and his teaching moderators that we link it to Forumosa.com (I’m hoping to build a ‘tools’ page in the next few weeks). If you know someone who will be interested in taking on this project pro-bono, I’d make sure that they get due recognition (uh, fwiw :slight_smile:)

Obviously, I haven’t been able to get this done. Now with Forumosa.com a bit more popular, I hope that it can reach people who will find this kind of project relatively easy to put together.

Please post your wishlist of features, functions, policies here, too. What I described above may simply not be manageable – but I would like to see a useful database that can really help both candidates and employers.

2

Gus,

Interesting idea, let me think about it some more.

I don’t know about the central and northern sections of Taiwan. but it seems to me that the job market for teachers in southern Taiwan is a bit tight. Schools down here really don’t need to look for teachers. I get folks coming into the school all the time asking for work. Would the work involved building the database justify the usage it would receive? From a southern Taiwan viewpoint, no.

However, it seems that a lot of the job postings in Taipei are for a few hours here and a few hours there. If teachers up north are working at 3-4 different places, then there might be a demand for the kind of database you are talking about.

Hmmm…

3

Some kind of rate-it feature could be used by visitors. It would if used properly allow some users to post different feedback but would allow a general average overall. Ebay uses a feature like that for it’s purchasers/sellers, overall works well.

Kenneth

4

It should be a people-finder, not just a teacher-finder.

How great for anyone here to be able to find a translator, bilingual computer nerd, mechanic (OK, we know ehere to find him), marketer, manager, etc.

If forumosa is a place where you can come not only for a chat or some advice, but also to find whatever you need to get on in TW, then its uselfulness increases massively.

On that subject, there should be a business forum too!

5

Gus:
Do you need help on coding/setting up the DB or just on coming up with ideas?

6

I’m hoping for both.
At the moment, I’m still trying to figure out how best to work on the DreamHost heavy usage problem (it ain’t looking good).

7

I still feel that forumosa needs to get the message out more. This will be essential if you want teachers and schools to use formosa instead of (at least as well as) tealit.

Not THAT many foreigners know about forumosa, and few schools know about it. If you have some kind of database of teachers you will HAVE TO do some kind of promotion/advertising/awareness campaign/something/anything to spread the word.

Otherwise you might hear a big echoey sound in the ‘find teachers’ forum. :mrgreen:

8

deleted

9

Gus:
I know SQL & PL/SQL…does that help? I’ve never used MySQL tho…