Eden English I haaaaaate you!

Just a quick rant, please other angry people contribute  

So, I really thought I was achieving something here in China. Working hard, planning lessons, spending time finding new ways to teach and assess, showing up early to do extra work staying late, hanging out with students blah blah blah

Now after talking to a previous employer (which was not such a positive experience) I finally get that all of that was a waste. Aside from achieving personal satisfaction because I know I worked hard and did a good job (measured improvement in all areas for all students thanks to frequent assessment and observations), I get that this is a business and not a school.

Fool am I for showing up to work after a good nights rest instead of a night of partying, stupid me for making sure I dressed respectably, stupid me for spending countless hours preparing, grading, marking, and buying things for my students!

I should have kissed ass,   and maybe that way I wouldn't feel like I just ate  

STUPID STUPID STUPID!

I hate that school because they have put everything into a perspective that I don't like.

What the hell am I doing here if it's not teaching?

P.S. I'm at a new school now which is amazing, supportive and where the students are overall pretty fantastic... But still this line of thought is ruining it!  

I do think that doing your job well is a reward in itself, especially in this sort of job because there is an element of cultural exchange as well, I bet there were some nice students even if the 'school' was  some money making scheme....


I've just 'graduated' from private schools to a university (not a great university but still a university...) and I'm kind of amazed at the difference in their attitude and my attitude as a result

The students aren't even that great and I didn't even realise how bored I was working for a language mill until I got this job and remembered what education is like. Even though university is even more commercial in China than the west it is least an educational institution not a business....

I did work for one nice language school in Korea right out in the countryside which was just me and a really nice Korean lady but I'm convinced that that was a freak thing

yeah i agree that it sucks that you cant climb a ladder by being a good proffessional teacher, however i will say that by doing so i have made some great relationships with students and seeing them flourish due to correct guidence rather than struggle by closely observing to rules set down by the businesses (usually dont deserve to be called schools)

I'm so sorry, love.

It's often those who care the most about teaching and their students, who get the worst psychological mind-job working in China. I had to go through this myself as well, as have many others of us here on The Saloon. The sad fact is that educational diligence not only doesn't generate any loyalty, but it's often like Teaching A Pig To Sing: It wastes your time, and annoys the pig.

The message I'd want to come from this is: Come to China to experience China, not to teach. Teaching is just a way to support yourself while you're experiencing China. Of course you should still do your best for your students' sake, but all you can do is the best you can do. You can't expect to influence the corrupt, incompetent, baijiu-swilling buttheads who own or manage most Chinese schools.

When you're ready, please tell us more details about your experience at Eden. If you can help someone else avoid the same horror, then at least some good can come out of what I know is a painful experience...

When you're ready, please tell us more details about your experience at Eden. If you can help someone else avoid the same horror, then at least some good can come out of what I know is a painful experience...

Ah, I see you already done that. Good job, too.

What the hell am I doing here if it's not teaching?

Dance foreign monkey! Dance!


Glad you have a job you enjoy more now.

MK. Glad you got away from there and landed a nice gig.

My first year was a mixed bag. Too much too go into now, but we can swap
 horror stories by PM if you want the nitty gritty details.