Today's post is different. It's not about activities, lessons or inspiration. But it's still connected to it. I've worked with 4 language schools in Russia (one of them is my present employer) and I feel I have a good understanding of how they work. The main advantages of working for schools for me are a chance to work with groups (I love teaching groups) and being connected to other teachers. However, language schools in Russia (like in many other countries) are far from being a perfect employment for TEFL teachers. So I decided to write about all of my places of work as it is. Why? Maybe I hope it inspires some change in the industry, or maybe a rant is easier to write than a substantial blog post about teaching :)
While writing this post I noticed main categories that influence my impression of the school: Schedule, Pay, Possibilities for Professional Development, Group sizes, Class Equipment, Course Requirements, Employment Status, Atmosphere. So I'm going to go through them as I describe every school.
School #1 (and the last one). I got there quite by a chance. I applied as a secretary for the school (at that time, I didn't want to be a teacher he he), it was close to my place and I went for an interview. I was chosen as one of the three candidates, worked one day and then called back later to be invited to work as a teacher. At that moment, I changed my mind and decided to give it a go. I was very scared, of course, never having taught a group of students. On the first meeting with the DOS I was given books and quickly briefed on the groups, that's all, no more guidance, showing the ropes and all that stuff. I had to figure out even the simplest things by myself
Schedule: My first year I had 4 groups twice a week. 3 of the classes were 1,5 hours long and all of them were back to back. I don't think I went to the toilet my first day working there. When I brought it up (the tight schedule not my peeing habits) in the conversation with the DOS, she suggested talking with the students and working around it with them, because "there was no other way for her to change it". Of course, students liked their time slot and didn't want to change. Up until now (this year I have 3 groups twice a week) I have no breaks, the only way for me to get out of the class is in between classes (1-3 minutes) or by giving teacher-involvement free task (which is always undesirable for me), but the desire to eat or relax for at least 5 minutes wins in the end of the day. The school is open from September to June. Most of the groups are school students, so they normally finish in the end of May leaving the teacher job-less for the whole summer.
Employment Status: The school does not offer an official employment for everyone, it means I don't pay taxes, which is a not satisfying situation for me. You have to work a considerable amount of hours and be lucky. Still I haven't figured out why some of the teachers are registered and some are not.
Class Equipment: The school is not great on a technical side either. My classroom is equipped with a CD-player and a board, while others have TVs in them. It seems a bit unfair to me but the administration is promising changes... My first three years I spent changing the classesrooms every lesson which was of course annoying, this year a new system has been introduced and now I finally have my own room where I can keep my books and other stuff.
Possibilities for Professional Development: There are no teacher trainers or professional development seminars. The DOS (the working teacher herself) often suggests coming to her with the questions. However, our schedules do not always match and I do not feel comfortable coming to her before classes when I know she is preparing for her lessons.
Course Requirements: On the positive side, the school does not enforce any time-slots for a course, you're given a book (actually, a teacher also can choose the book herself) and you work at your own and group's pace towards the end of the book. With a typical "slow" group it takes about 12-13 months to cover the book. And I can include virtually anything in my classes. For example, having home reading classes or doing project work. This is something I really value there, as it seems like such a rare thing nowadays.
Groups: there is a maximum of 9 people in class, but average number is 6-7 which is quite a comfortable number. Groups are formed according to the level and age not always spot on (has it ever?) and, by comparison with other schools, quite successfully.
Pay: is also satisfying and prompt. Although it depends on the number of the students in the group, the administration always tries to keep the number high (up to 9). That allowed me to build close relationships with my students, some of them I've been teaching for over three years. Another nice thing is that the cost is also kept relatively low for students.
Atmosphere is generally nice and friendly. I know and communicate with most of the teachers working there. It occupies two floors of a block of flats in the outskirts of the city and may seem gloomy but it also shapes the audience. There are no random passers-by, the majoiruty of students live nearby and many of the of them have been attending the school for many years. Couple of teachers (!) had gone to this school in their time and employee turnover is extremely low.
Overall, I grew fond of the school and learnt to cope with almost all of the drawbacks. Most of it is due to the fact that I work there only twice a week which is a very comfortable schedule for me. If I worked there full-time I don't think I would find them that acceptable.
(to be continued)
While writing this post I noticed main categories that influence my impression of the school: Schedule, Pay, Possibilities for Professional Development, Group sizes, Class Equipment, Course Requirements, Employment Status, Atmosphere. So I'm going to go through them as I describe every school.
 |
| a uni in Hamburg |
School #1 (and the last one). I got there quite by a chance. I applied as a secretary for the school (at that time, I didn't want to be a teacher he he), it was close to my place and I went for an interview. I was chosen as one of the three candidates, worked one day and then called back later to be invited to work as a teacher. At that moment, I changed my mind and decided to give it a go. I was very scared, of course, never having taught a group of students. On the first meeting with the DOS I was given books and quickly briefed on the groups, that's all, no more guidance, showing the ropes and all that stuff. I had to figure out even the simplest things by myself
Schedule: My first year I had 4 groups twice a week. 3 of the classes were 1,5 hours long and all of them were back to back. I don't think I went to the toilet my first day working there. When I brought it up (the tight schedule not my peeing habits) in the conversation with the DOS, she suggested talking with the students and working around it with them, because "there was no other way for her to change it". Of course, students liked their time slot and didn't want to change. Up until now (this year I have 3 groups twice a week) I have no breaks, the only way for me to get out of the class is in between classes (1-3 minutes) or by giving teacher-involvement free task (which is always undesirable for me), but the desire to eat or relax for at least 5 minutes wins in the end of the day. The school is open from September to June. Most of the groups are school students, so they normally finish in the end of May leaving the teacher job-less for the whole summer.
Employment Status: The school does not offer an official employment for everyone, it means I don't pay taxes, which is a not satisfying situation for me. You have to work a considerable amount of hours and be lucky. Still I haven't figured out why some of the teachers are registered and some are not.
Class Equipment: The school is not great on a technical side either. My classroom is equipped with a CD-player and a board, while others have TVs in them. It seems a bit unfair to me but the administration is promising changes... My first three years I spent changing the classesrooms every lesson which was of course annoying, this year a new system has been introduced and now I finally have my own room where I can keep my books and other stuff.
Possibilities for Professional Development: There are no teacher trainers or professional development seminars. The DOS (the working teacher herself) often suggests coming to her with the questions. However, our schedules do not always match and I do not feel comfortable coming to her before classes when I know she is preparing for her lessons.
Course Requirements: On the positive side, the school does not enforce any time-slots for a course, you're given a book (actually, a teacher also can choose the book herself) and you work at your own and group's pace towards the end of the book. With a typical "slow" group it takes about 12-13 months to cover the book. And I can include virtually anything in my classes. For example, having home reading classes or doing project work. This is something I really value there, as it seems like such a rare thing nowadays.
Groups: there is a maximum of 9 people in class, but average number is 6-7 which is quite a comfortable number. Groups are formed according to the level and age not always spot on (has it ever?) and, by comparison with other schools, quite successfully.
Pay: is also satisfying and prompt. Although it depends on the number of the students in the group, the administration always tries to keep the number high (up to 9). That allowed me to build close relationships with my students, some of them I've been teaching for over three years. Another nice thing is that the cost is also kept relatively low for students.
Atmosphere is generally nice and friendly. I know and communicate with most of the teachers working there. It occupies two floors of a block of flats in the outskirts of the city and may seem gloomy but it also shapes the audience. There are no random passers-by, the majoiruty of students live nearby and many of the of them have been attending the school for many years. Couple of teachers (!) had gone to this school in their time and employee turnover is extremely low.
Overall, I grew fond of the school and learnt to cope with almost all of the drawbacks. Most of it is due to the fact that I work there only twice a week which is a very comfortable schedule for me. If I worked there full-time I don't think I would find them that acceptable.
(to be continued)
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