There really isn’t anything terrible about the school. I have been with the school for quite a while; long enough to see it grow and plenty of people come and go.
A lot stay and work hard to make it a good place. I’m a strong believer in things are what you make of them.
People who leave do so for many different reasons. Some never intended to teach in Taiwan longer than a year or two, others move around schools, others leave because they discovered they weren’t cut out for a genuine teaching job and then others leave because they feel they got burned for whatever reason.
Most of the people who feel they got burned made poor choices or were not doing their job well, then they turn on everyone saying crazy stuff.
Admin are not there trying to mess with people. When the teachers are happy, it makes their job so much easier. Why make trouble? The pay for foreign teachers is actually very, very good.
I used to teach in a public school program in Taiwan and the pay was liveable, but barely. There were no benefits really. But at Yuteh, I’m making enough to pay a mortgage, take care of my family and save. The bonuses are decent and they only deduct if you are habitually late or don’t show up. Performance bonuses are almost never touched. Everyone I know there has always been given the full bonus. There are other schools who will gnaw away at your bonuses for the slightest infractions. Yuteh is not one of those places.
Foreign teachers have it made there compared to their Taiwanese counterparts. Foreign teachers get to clock out an hour earlier, don’t have to deal with answering parent phone calls, get more bonuses and higher pay, don’t have to attend evening field trips, are off the clock during nap time, and they get their own offices if subject teachers or their own desk and computer if a homeroom teacher. Taiwanese teachers get none of that except the desk and computer for homeroom teachers. But they work later and have to do way, way more paper work and parent communication.
If you clock in on time, teach, manage your students, grade things on time, cooperate, help when needed and do the job they are paying you to do, then the place is really a good place to be.
The website hasn’t changed much since the school first opened. Many of those pictures date back to the first couple of years. I think it could be better, but it’s fine.
The programs they have going on and the curriculum is pretty solid.
As I said before and as I say to my students…nobody and no place is perfect, there is always room to improve. Which is another thing I like about Yuteh. They listen to teachers about changes to curriculum to help make it better. They are open to suggestions and discussions about improving where things need improvement.
I’ve put a lot into the school, my students and my career being there and it has paid off.