Do jobs where students actually want to learn exist here??? Am I meant to go to public school??? Teach adults??? I can’t with kindy/cram BS that isn’t actually teaching anymore. I want a real teaching job but I’m not even sure they exist here. Btw yes I understand kids don’t want to be in school blah blah blah. The thing is we can’t even give an actual grade or a real lesson. It has to be kids playing with balloons and “exciting” to please parents.
kids in general dont like sitting in class.
focus on classes where students are motivated to achieve something , like pass a tofel test.
Build up your qualifications and apply for international schools and/or universities. Even those places have classes with motivational issues, especially when it’s done online.
This is an issue you’ll probably just have to endure to varying degrees no matter where you teach, and if you can’t it might be time to try a different vocation because with how addicted kids are to their phones and an even greater push for remote learning it’s only going to get worse.
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Yeah I get no kid really “wants” to learn. The issue is we can’t actual teach because the parents aren’t even encouraging them to learn either. 
ETA: for example: I want to teach science or PE here. Those are the “cool” “fun” classes in the states. I feel like here they don’t even enjoy classes like that and have zero motivation.
I see my job as a teacher to make learning fun, interesting, and useful. When I’ve done my job well, motivation levels are high and students learn and everyone is happy. I try to have at least one game or activity per teaching session. I have lots of techniques, I even made a board game this semester.
When I have not prepared effectively, and it is difficult to always do so, I can see the difference in the students. In my current situation, basically all of my learners choose to be in my classes and when they’re not satisfied it affects my numbers which is an issue for me. I haven’t done anything with balloons, do you have any good ideas?
We can’t teach the students we want, we have to teach the students we get. Making it fun and interesting and useful is always a good approach.
As others have said on other threads, almost anything with the little ones can be educational. Them wanting to learn isn’t the issue, if you give them the right things to do the learning will happen. When making learning exciting is your job, you have an exciting job.
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@stinsonlover might be able to point you in the direction of a PE job, I seem to recall that was one if his issues
But generally, I think teaching PE and science to kids does have a safety element that means you should have some training to get the job. As @DrewC points out, you might need to improve your qualifications if you want different opportunities
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If you have teacher’s license you can easily teach PE at public schools.
I’ve got the answer, some of you might not like it, but you’ll all agree.
Real teaching exists, but you are going to need a real license.
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international school - a real one, not the moronic religious private schools that are under the guise of being an international school. I’m talking about the ones that require you go have a PROPER teaching license with prior experience, preferably in your home country. I only know Taipei American School and Kaohsiung American School, and no Dominican international school isn’t an actual international school. Of course you’ll still have shitty kids and parents, but you’ll have a proper school to teach at and not have to pop shitty baloons and throw sticky balls, oh and from what I hear the salaries are quite damn nice.
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university- I think you need a PHD now. Not sure maybe @DrewC knows more about this? think he’s an actual university professor.
I honestly think you should just go ahead and complete a proper teaching license in your home country, not sure where you are from, but if you have a BA in a subject you can usually get certified to teach with a full license WHILE working at a public school in America.
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How are people using balloons? I have large and small balls I take to classes for different things, always looking for new ideas…
Depends. I got my uni position with only a Master’s about 6 years ago. It’s a pretty decent, pretty well-known private university in the south. Some private unis, usually not in Taipei, do still indicate only Master’s are required when advertising for positions. There’s a guy on the forum who used to post uni hiring ads (can’t find the thread, but it’s recent) and many of them only required a Master’s. However, yes it would be much harder than it used to be due to the birth-rate issue. And my chairperson did let it slip last year that they’d only be hiring PhD holders for full-time positions now (I think a Master’s would still get you part-time).
Oh, and I’m not a professor. Only a lowly instructor. But I don’t correct my students when they address me as “professor” lol.
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I can get a subs license but I think they require bachelor’s degree even if you have sub licenses. I basically finished all my education classes and will finish my safety classes this summer (9 credits fml). I just have filler classes left but I don’t think Taiwan government cares.
I also already teach science at my current school but it’s not playing with gas etc lol.
Yeah this is what I want to know. I feel like I’ve definitely seen complaints on here about public school too though. Like you can’t actually grade the kids. Still focus on game not activities and learning. Maybe it’s where they work.
Sorry for slow replies I got distracted at wastons 
The “best” teachers at my school and previous basically only play games and their students don’t speak English well. I prefer activities and actual teaching like I was taught in my teaching classes. It really irks me my school makes it out like uneducated people that only play games are real teachers. I’m the only one that has a degree let alone teaching degree and it really irks me. It took everything in me not to laugh when she suggested they know more about education than me. Like I just finished getting As in all my teaching classes taught by people with a high level of education. Sure they’re good at playing along with the tefl teacher nonsense but that’s not teaching especially when they have learned almost no English.
Also, I’m the only teacher that lesson plans. They don’t lesson plan and I know damn well if they worked at a real school they wouldn’t know how to find the standard nor how to make a legit lesson.
ETA: I should honestly just stfu and get my license so I can laugh in their face about how I’m not a real teacher. I hope my 2020 taxes get figured out so I can be on my way
You don’t even have this?
Lots of people with PhDs in education are terrible teachers
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I have a Associates in teaching and finished all my education classes for my bachelor’s.
Your statement contradicts itself lol… also none of the teacher have education passed HS. They’ve never taken a teaching class period. They don’t know how to lesson plan and think games are teaching.
Taiwan has a lot of very “tiger mom” type of families. This means no children want to do anything apart from playing video games. Basically the only thing that motivates them is sticks, as in they don’t achieve a certain grade they get the stick.
That means you will have to really motivate them… I’m not sure what’s a good solution.
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Yeah I’ve read complaints about even public schools here being bad too. I can count on one hand how many times my teachers played games in school. Plus I’ve met people here that have taught TEFL in other countries but hated it here. I don’t get why people get so touchy when I bring up kids and parents here. I’m not doubting anyone’s abilities on here. I’m not talking about any of the kids or parents on here either. I’m literally asking if there is an actual place here where you can legit teach and somehow people find a way to be offended lmao.
ETA: Legally in my state you can’t even work at a daycare without taking yearly education classes. They’re obviously required for a reason. Just saying.
What age group?
He teaches older kids lol
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Yes, good luck finding classes full of bright, shiny faces eager to plunge right into chapter 8 today… just about anywhere. I would say just about anywhere anyone teaches in Taiwan (and elsewhere) you are going to have mixed levels of both ability and interest. But you do find at least some good students in most classes and even some gems. Some of the most rewarding teaching experiences I have had is individual coaching for speech and other types of contests with those gems. And I’ve had plenty of good students over the years but on average you get middle class kids who just want to get their passport stamped.
Amen! And I have seen it get worse. I have been teaching at my uni 20+ years and several years ago I started saying this: “When I started teaching here, students had to make the teachers happy, now teachers have to make the students happy.”
With the low birthrate and dropping enrollment combined with draconian teacher evaluations, teachers can’t pressure students, let along criticize them or more. And lots of only children spoiled by indulgent parents. Many more now with ADHD and worse mental health challenges.
But, I digress. This is starting to sound familiar: 
“The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.”
Socrates
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I think what works is find out what the children is interested in and train them in that area. But that requires that they have autonomy which is a tall order in Taiwan. Or reason with their parents, but again, it’s a tall order.
People want to learn what they feel called to do. If someone really wants to be a machinist for example, anything related to that is interesting to them.
But according to Taiwan’s assumption, children have no right to pick their interest, and therefore those choices are all made for them.
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This reminded me of my favorite student. He loves asking questions and telling stories but the other kids try and make fun of him. I love answering questions and even researching things if needed. I wish more kids were like that in general lol.