Interviewees: This is par for the course. Most people can’t do a proper demo nor be bothered to try. They are fun to watch though.
Demos: These are so easy. Ask the interviewer what skills he is looking for and plan accordingly. If the interviewer doesn’t know, would you want to take the job anyway? Legality is such a loose term in Taiwan.
What sort of value is your boss hoping to gain by hiring for this position? While the idea seems good has it been properly thought out? That being said, the boss is the boss and if he tells you to mop floors you can do it or walk. The guy who signs/pays sets the rules.
One more prime example of why people don’t think on this Island. They simply aren’t allowed to. ‘Outside of the box’ is just not going to happen here. Just be a good robot, put the blinders on, and god forbid don’t think or ask any questions.
The candidates you got don’t sound too good, but we’ve all heard of disastrous interviews from the teacher’s point of view. Perfectly good teachers get rejected in Taiwan because they’re not white, or not good-looking enough, or because of some weird prejudice (my boss at one place actually told me she wouldn’t hire someone because she thought he was a spy, and another because his blood type wasn’t ‘right’). And demos are illegal.
[quote=“barfomcgee”]
I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one who finds demo lessons to be highly dubious. I never do them because, as others have said, it’s impossible to really gage someone’s teaching ability based on one short demo. When I’ve been asked to do them, I’ve just responded that I’m more than happy to provide references from past employers. I always wondered if I was putting myself at a disadvantage by not doing them, but I’ve still been offered jobs at the majority of interviews I’ve been to.
Though I would disagree about it not being the norm internationally. It seems it may be spreading, because various schools in Thailand had started asking for them towards the end of my three year stay there.[/quote]
They’re just pointless.
As an adult teacher, it’s my job to ‘do presentations’, up to 6 hours a day. I can use a bunch of little tricks to get you to hire me; with 10+ years’ experience, I can ‘fake’ a demo much more easily than answer, for example, difficult situational questions, such as ‘describe a time when you…’. Don’t get me wrong; I can bullshit my way through that as well, but with slightly less ‘slick’ than I would a 20 minute presentation. Maybe it’s one way a non-native speaking boss can get an idea of what the teacher is about? Who knows? It’s all a bit baffling.
May be spreading, I don’t know. I only did it once, in Taiwan, never in any other country.
Anyway, the OP is not asking whether demos are crap or not. Back on topic!
The advantage of going through a company is that they have responsibility or supervising the teacher and the course outcomes. If your company doesn’t have a framework for supervising tutors, it’s fairly likely to go tits up or lack effectiveness, no matter how well intentioned the teacher or other staff involved are. Also, the teachers involved are more likely to have a verifiable track record in teaching workplace English, not just be random buxibanners.
He’s already mentioned that the start date for this position was 1 Aug. it was even mentioned in the job ad. I’ve never ran across a job ad that mentioned when you were allowed to take vacation and I doubt few people have.
I agree that demos are a waste of time, especially in the situation described by the OP. What this company seems to think it is looking for is not just a teacher, but a curriculum designer and material writer. I wouldn’t even bother applying for a post that has a job description for curriculum designer but at the same time asks me to do something in the interview to demonstrate skills that are far subordinate to curriculum and material design and a given for anybody who is accomplished at that. It’s like HSBC asking interviewies for vice-president over mortgages and consumer lending to do an arithmetic test. This sort of request show that the company doesn’t really know what it is looking for.
From what the OP has written, there is really no good reason for this company to run its own program. It makes sense only for companies that are both large enough to have the economies of scale that would make it worth having in-house programs and specific needs that would not be covered in BULATS or BEC type courses. In Hong Kong, HSBC, the MTR Corp., and Cathay Pacific are three of the few companies that actually run their own original programs. They hire very experienced, well qualified people to maintain and teach them, and they pay these people quite well. Medium-sized companies like Marks and Spencer or Towngas that have specific needs but not the scale to run their own programs will sign a contract with the PolyU Center for Professional and Business English to write and teach original courses to them. Other companies that can’t afford their own program or a contract program but that still think their employees need to improve their English will just give employees money to go study at British Council. A lot of good companies will hire a consultant to help them decide exactly what they should do. I doubt there are many good consultants in Taiwan (by good, I mean will have both the qualifications and persuasive skills that will impress a boss) for business English, but perhaps the OP’s boss woud benefit from hiring one.
And then you wonder why foreigners don’t take interviews in Taiwan seriously.
[quote]
Interview 2: Arrived 20 minutes late in shorts and a T-shirt, unshaven. Confused [/quote]
Ha, that doesn’t beat the fact that on more than one occasion I went for an interview before and the interviewer didn’t even know what position they were interviewing me for. As well as a person who interviewed me for a job for a certain time that I had already told them I was unavailable do to another job.
Chinese bosses want to pay nothing but get someone good. A good teacher smells a rat (typical emperor-like chinese boss) a mile away and detects this by phone or email or quality of the job post. The better teacher will sniff you out and not waste his/her time/energy/money traveling to your school. These teachers self-select out of your interview queue. You never get to meet them much less say ‘buhaoyisi, we’re looking for someone who is amazing for 500-550NT’ a non-sequitur.
The OP wants to know why he can’t find a teacher? Actually, he found 8, but they weren’t “good” enough. The reason why, as Austin alludes to in his sagacious post, is that the pay is perceived to be lousy. But this isn’t the whole story. What is interesting about the OP is that 8 people rocked up for an interview and thought it perfectly acceptable to wear shorts, a t-shirt and be unshaven. Why? The reason of course is that they thought their attire was acceptable for the job in question. Most working environments here leave a lot to be desired and the interviewer often doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about when it comes to things English, so the interviewees behave and dress accordingly. If employers here were more professional and willing to spend more on their offices and facilities and offered their potential employees a decent salary, then “good” teachers might be interested. But then again cows might fly . . .
Pleasepleaseplease not another bunch of wittering about shit efl is in Taiwan? The OP posted about a specific problem, people made suggestions and I’m sure he has sorted it out now.
I did wear t-shrits, or oxfords, and shorts to some jobs in Taiwan, but I never showed up for an interview, any kind of job or private teacher arrangement, dressed less than professionally. I also got all but one job I interviewed for. Lots of reasons for that, I guess, but dressing your best for someone who might hire you just shows self respect and respect for a potential boss. Has noting to do with how lously you feel about the job you’re asking for. Asking for a job you feel lousy about does say a lot about you.
I recently heard a story about a teacher, who, like yourself, rocked up for an interview looking spiffy, only to be met by a potential employer who was wearing a white vest, white shorts, sandals and chewing on betelnut. Further, in the background there was the stench of uncleaned toilets and the ceilings and walls were in urgent need of a new coat of paint. I was told later that the employee felt he’d have been more comfortable wearing jeans and a t-shirt because he’d have blended right into that particular environment. Needless to say, he didn’t accept the position.
Well, the title of the thread is “Why is it so difficult to find English teachers in Taiwan?” This seems to be asking a general question about EFL in Taiwan.
Also, the specific problem mentioned in the OP has been spawned by the overall terrible conditions of EFL in Taiwan, and the bad practices of many employers here. So addressing the specific problem of the OP requires a discussion of how “shit efl is in Taiwan,” as this is what has caused the OP’s problem.
I find the comments on this thread about dress to be interesting. The majority of foreign teachers I’ve encountered here have been dressed in rather unprofessional attire. I was all but laughed at for actually wearing dress clothes and a tie. I see no difference between wearing shorts or jeans - both are generally unacceptable for an interview but seem to be adequate, even desired, for interviews here in Taiwan. Can’t blame the applicant in the OP who turned up so poorly dressed. He thought he was in Taiwan.
Funny posts. Folk dress like sluts at interviews because they know the pay’s going to be bad?
Or folks get paid badly because they can’t be bothered to make the effort?
Hmmm.
First impressions last. If you turn up scruffy and unshaven, it can be seen as a reflection of your attitude towards things in general and attitude to the potential job. Perhaps the employer may not care, but I bet 99 times out of 100 they do. And a person might just do this on occasion when it is a good job with good pay
School = smart casual, no sandals and wear a collar
Company = comfortable suit and tie. No need for the three piece of cravat
Well what I can is that just because they are trying to scrape from the the bottom of the barrel or cause they are talking shite, does not mean you have to reciprocate and sell yourself in this way
Thank you for all the responses and advice received. It is much appreciated.
Update: I followed the advice of one of the forumosans here and contacted a company which specializes in corporate classes. Less trouble for us and, of course, cheaper.
And then to those who are SO concerned about the appallingly low salary they assumed we were going to offer, rest assured. We were willing to pay in excess of NT80,000 per month for 20 hours per week + the benefits as listed in my OP. Not a bad starting salary with a company in the Science Park?
Lastly, it’s not a question about us not being willing to pay someone a decent salary. It’s about not giving the job (and money) to someone who couldn’t be arsed. :raspberry:
The salary and perks you offer are more than competitive for Taiwan, the point is that people just don’t expect to see jobs like that advertised here. This is simply a case of confirmation bias. Anyway, glad you found a “good” teacher for this “good” position.
