Don't become an English teacher overseas | |
CleanisticGirl
User ID: 75021608 United States 11/19/2017 06:27 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I did it for a few years after college because I was entitled and didn't want to settle for a desk job. Let me tell you, there is nothing adventurous or lucrative about doing the TEFL thing. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75443447 I did my time in Thailand and Japan, and if I could do it over again I would have gotten a steady job and simply gone on vacations to those countries while working a real job. Spending your days with screaming kids who can't speak your language makes you want to pull your hair out. You also aren't a real teacher as there is no real curriculum or accountability, so you just kind of make it up as you go along. Then you have to deal with idiotic bosses who care more about selling a White face to the kids' parents more than anything else. You get paid just enough to live at your host country and not save much of anything. Wages are also trending downwards due to the hordes of delusional adventure-seekers flooding these countries. I'm now back in the States, and I'm working at a warehouse for peanuts because TEFL experience doesn't exactly lend to the perception of professional career development. Most employers just see it as a working vacation or slacking off. Then there's the issue with not paying in to Social Security and Medicare abroad. I know some guys in their 60s who taught for decades, are being forced out of TEFL due to age and won't be eligible for Social Security or Medicare when they get back home since they haven't paid into it. They'll literally work at Walmart or McDonalds until they drop dead. Just forget about TEFL and get a real career. Thanks for the info. I've thought about teaching in another country before but havent. |
Anonymous Coward (OP) User ID: 75443447 United States 11/19/2017 06:48 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | As far as the adventure aspect goes, it's kind of neat at first but wears off quickly. After a while, you realize that you are surrounded by buildings, cars, and people going about their daily lives just like anywhere else in the world. They just speak a different language than you do and you are always "the foreigner" or "the American." You are also on the other side of the planet from your friends and family. If you really want to try out TEFL, I'd only recommend doing it at the very end of your career when you are planning to retire anyway, but before you are in your 60s and won't be accepted. Better yet, just invest well during your working years, plan for an early retirement, and travel the world on your own dime. "Teaching" classrooms full of screaming kids for peanuts isn't all that great. |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75820605 Canada 11/19/2017 06:53 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75632946 United States 11/19/2017 06:57 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
beeches
User ID: 74276477 United States 11/19/2017 06:59 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 73162439 United States 11/19/2017 07:19 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 73138183 United States 11/19/2017 07:31 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | a-fuckin-men, been there, done that and it sucked, and don't forget to mention your competing with every other asshole foreigner for the same piece of pussy, when it comes to the one foreign girl who likes to hang out and thinks it's cool to speak English, and she sucks at it, especially in an Asian country. |
Your Crazy Mom
User ID: 39845140 United States 11/19/2017 07:31 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Undestroyer
Truth User ID: 74982393 United States 11/19/2017 07:35 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | That is interesting. upon graduation BA in hand. I had a few options. TEFL was one of them but doing the math at the time I decided I would not be able to afford it. One person from my highschool class did it. He is in Korea. He seems to be doing ok doing some art stuff on the side. Not enough for me though. You cannot destroy my vision when you see my vision undestroyed because I am just an undestroyer. Thread: Food Combining Made Easy by Herbert Shelton a progenitor from the Natural Hygienist Movement "I am a hunter of peace, one who chases the elusive mayfly of love... errr something like that." -Vash the Stampede |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75869995 Belgium 11/19/2017 07:39 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75845250 United States 11/19/2017 07:41 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75861346 Canada 11/19/2017 07:49 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | likely not as good as it used to be... I know a guy that went to Moscow years ago after the communist collapse. He taught English in a high school and slept on the classroom floor at night because the flat they game him was horrible. He did this for several years and returned home and had enough teaching experience to make it through teachers college. Today he is the principal of a High School in one of the richest neighbourhoods in the country. Mind you his father used to be a CEO of a company... |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 70124356 Ireland 11/19/2017 07:58 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75872404 Mexico 11/19/2017 07:59 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | i gave 5tars i have my masters in english worked for 2 months with harmon hall besides i was long hair teaching suits i realized they all want to move to usa or canada i realized i facilitate that by teaching them i got my degree online and was set for yet my 5th carreer then dropped out i donr want them ruining my culture they run over pesdestrians drive eat and live without respect like white trash hillbi;llies i dont want them around me |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 73748682 Singapore 11/19/2017 08:07 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75845250 United States 11/19/2017 08:09 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | i gave 5tars Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75872404 i have my masters in english worked for 2 months with harmon hall besides i was long hair teaching suits i realized they all want to move to usa or canada i realized i facilitate that by teaching them i got my degree online and was set for yet my 5th carreer then dropped out i donr want them ruining my culture they run over pesdestrians drive eat and live without respect like white trash hillbi;llies i dont want them around me Yeah, you are a shining example of English skills and Western culture. |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 19876247 United States 11/19/2017 08:13 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Thanks for posting OP Many countries that advertise for retirement havens for those still needing to work tell couples adapting to their future to recommend middle-aged couple have one of the two teach TEFL for a base in the country while they get used to it and learn the language. Sounds horrible They say the pay is good and affords a VERY nice apartment. |
Anonymous Coward (OP) User ID: 75443447 United States 11/19/2017 08:16 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | i gave 5tars Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75872404 i have my masters in english worked for 2 months with harmon hall besides i was long hair teaching suits i realized they all want to move to usa or canada i realized i facilitate that by teaching them i got my degree online and was set for yet my 5th carreer then dropped out i donr want them ruining my culture they run over pesdestrians drive eat and live without respect like white trash hillbi;llies i dont want them around me I think you wasted your money on your English degree. No offense, but you didn't learn much. |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75872404 Mexico 11/19/2017 08:18 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | i gave 5tars Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75872404 i have my masters in english worked for 2 months with harmon hall besides i was long hair teaching suits i realized they all want to move to usa or canada i realized i facilitate that by teaching them i got my degree online and was set for yet my 5th carreer then dropped out i donr want them ruining my culture they run over pesdestrians drive eat and live without respect like white trash hillbi;llies i dont want them around me Yeah, you are a shining example of English skills and Western culture. i guess in serbia you dont get ppl of all colors flooding in driving like drunk monkeys slaMMING doors in old ladies faces making lots of noise and ruining order for those who enjoyed it ive seen lots of esl teachers overseas sppent most my life abroad they often intermarry bring a piece of 3rd world home ive asked many to their face '''''' couldnt you find a mate within your own species'''''? yeah it all contributes to globalization overpopulation and cultural amnesia for everyone |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75093940 United States 11/19/2017 08:30 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Relativity
User ID: 67754016 United States 11/19/2017 08:41 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I did it for a few years after college because I was entitled and didn't want to settle for a desk job. Let me tell you, there is nothing adventurous or lucrative about doing the TEFL thing. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75443447 I did my time in Thailand and Japan, and if I could do it over again I would have gotten a steady job and simply gone on vacations to those countries while working a real job. Spending your days with screaming kids who can't speak your language makes you want to pull your hair out. You also aren't a real teacher as there is no real curriculum or accountability, so you just kind of make it up as you go along. Then you have to deal with idiotic bosses who care more about selling a White face to the kids' parents more than anything else. You get paid just enough to live at your host country and not save much of anything. Wages are also trending downwards due to the hordes of delusional adventure-seekers flooding these countries. I'm now back in the States, and I'm working at a warehouse for peanuts because TEFL experience doesn't exactly lend to the perception of professional career development. Most employers just see it as a working vacation or slacking off. Then there's the issue with not paying in to Social Security and Medicare abroad. I know some guys in their 60s who taught for decades, are being forced out of TEFL due to age and won't be eligible for Social Security or Medicare when they get back home since they haven't paid into it. They'll literally work at Walmart or McDonalds until they drop dead. Just forget about TEFL and get a real career. “In finding balance between lies and trust there will never be a better source than to speak your truth or make your peace some other way.” ~Sully Erna Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise cannot see all ends. -Gandalph "A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool." - William Shakespeare |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75856658 United States 11/19/2017 08:49 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Kids in Thailand and Japan do not behave that way at all! Spending your days with screaming kids who can't speak your language makes you want to pull your hair out. You also aren't a real teacher as there is no real curriculum or accountability, so you just kind of make it up as you go along. I've done the same and it's simply not in their nature to be disrespectful. Sorry OP. But I can hardly believe from my many experiences overseas. Where exactly did you find such a situation/students? |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75775126 China 11/19/2017 08:57 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I did it for a few years after college because I was entitled and didn't want to settle for a desk job. Let me tell you, there is nothing adventurous or lucrative about doing the TEFL thing. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75443447 I did my time in Thailand and Japan, and if I could do it over again I would have gotten a steady job and simply gone on vacations to those countries while working a real job. Spending your days with screaming kids who can't speak your language makes you want to pull your hair out. You also aren't a real teacher as there is no real curriculum or accountability, so you just kind of make it up as you go along. Then you have to deal with idiotic bosses who care more about selling a White face to the kids' parents more than anything else. You get paid just enough to live at your host country and not save much of anything. Wages are also trending downwards due to the hordes of delusional adventure-seekers flooding these countries. I'm now back in the States, and I'm working at a warehouse for peanuts because TEFL experience doesn't exactly lend to the perception of professional career development. Most employers just see it as a working vacation or slacking off. Then there's the issue with not paying in to Social Security and Medicare abroad. I know some guys in their 60s who taught for decades, are being forced out of TEFL due to age and won't be eligible for Social Security or Medicare when they get back home since they haven't paid into it. They'll literally work at Walmart or McDonalds until they drop dead. Just forget about TEFL and get a real career. Good post. I have been in China since 2008. Nearly everything OP said is true, unless you make it on your own. I bought a a nice car for cash 3 years ago, I bought a small property 1 year ago, now saving up to buy a property abroad Only trouble is, it's difficult which country to choose. The US, Canada and Europe all have serious issues. Australia not that great either. The point is, you can make it on your own. hosfordjaredqc at yahoo. Its not rocket science, but you'll need a thick skin, thicker than a rhinos |
KIT User ID: 74626281 United States 11/19/2017 08:57 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | So you invested your time, youth, and labor to service foreigners in a foreign land. And shocker the forefingers don't give a a fuck about you and your not going to get a pension. And you come back "home" whine about it to us. Well grasshopper hope you had your fun. |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 73760317 United States 11/19/2017 09:01 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
beeches
User ID: 74276477 United States 11/19/2017 09:09 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I lived abroad for a decade. so I know a little about this. OP is a lot more up to date on it than I am. the world was far safer then. that alone would make me change my plans, if I were young today. Last Edited by beeches on 11/19/2017 09:09 PM Liberalism is totalitarianism with a human face – Thomas Sowell |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75562738 United States 11/19/2017 09:13 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | i gave 5tars Quoting: Anonymous Coward 75872404 i have my masters in english worked for 2 months with harmon hall besides i was long hair teaching suits i realized they all want to move to usa or canada i realized i facilitate that by teaching them i got my degree online and was set for yet my 5th carreer then dropped out i donr want them ruining my culture they run over pesdestrians drive eat and live without respect like white trash hillbi;llies i dont want them around me You have a Masters in English yet seem incapable of using punctuation, capitalization, or "the sHiFt kEy". Okay, you bet, sparky. You are a master of the language of princes and paupers. |
I'm From TEXAS y'all
User ID: 73938027 United States 11/19/2017 09:21 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 75445468 United States 11/19/2017 09:37 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Rev Woo-Woo
User ID: 74524491 United States 11/19/2017 09:45 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Several of my cousins have done it and have nothing but great things to say about their experiences. Some have even taken off across the world with young children. South Africa, Ukraine, Thailand and Mongolia. “If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can smile and blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace.” Thich Nhat Hanh, Being Peace "But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you." - Job 12:7,8 "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." - Hunter S. Thompson revstargazer (at) hotmail.com |