The Native English Speaking Teacher in Taiwan

Expatriate English teachers come to Taiwan to teach for a whole host of reasons and are of varying ages. There are many South Africans, Brits, Americans and Australians, New Zealanders and Canadians. Many South Africans currently view teaching in Taiwan as a means to making money as their position back home is not stable. Many Brits and others view Taiwan as a stop gap between university and starting a career back home. Of course there are exceptions to the rule amongst all nationalities; those who fall in love and want to settle in Taiwan see teaching as the means to do this, others just teach for the experience, the novelty or because they just happened to be passing through and well, just happened to stop.

Whoever the teacher is and wherever he/she comes from is unimportant, most bring with them energy and interest, enthusiasm and an open mind. Many leave defeated and empty others stay on over their time until they are too old to leave.

Many come with a Master Degrees in Education, years of practical experience in teaching positions back home and others come with a smile and a dodgy degree in some such subject as Humanities or Home Economics.

What many expect when the first arrive might not be what they get. To get a position in "Taipei" is vastly different from one in the countryside where they might be the only white face around. Jobs differ the country over, depending on who the employer is and this will effect the enjoyment and the outcome of the next months and years.

The New Teachers on the block ..

Generally the established schools cause no problems for the English teacher; they are well looked after, are given the correct documents for staying in Taiwan and generally have job security with a set curriculum and a set wage each month. Many though rely on the private schools and the bushibans for income and work and herein rest many a problem in the making. Private schools are often short of money so pay maybe erratic and lower than suggested when the position was accepted. Curriculum's maybe something that the teachers suddenly find is their responsibility and thus they are up at all hours of the night trying to make and prepare material for the next day. They may also find themselves teaching a varied mix of children without the backup of a local teacher thus finding control in the classroom a taxing task.

Many an agency has sprung up catering to the foreign teacher. They for a small percentage or to pay the full salary will find a school and a job for most arrivals. They have though often been accused of cheating by taking large sums of money to find positions, not paying teachers on time and generally making sure that jobs fail so that they can obtain another search fee. This may not be the case for all but it is hard for a new teacher to distinguish between the good and the bad.

So much depends on the school involved as to how a new teacher will survive and enjoy his time in Taiwan. For a newcomer it would be advisable to setup with an established chain school first to get the experience and an idea as to what is involved. After maybe two years and if the interest to remain is still with them then Taiwan is their oyster.

Lifestyle .

Life in Taiwan is generally good for all concerned. It is a first world country: slightly expensive, but all that is back-home can be found here. Attitudes towards foreigners by the Taiwanese are very good with English teachers generally being accepted into the community with a smile and friendly curiosity. It can sometimes be difficult to make oneself understood or to cut the red tape that surrounds government bureaucracy when one does not speak the language but a pleasant smile and patience often produces the desired results.

The Future .

English Teachers will always be in demand in Taiwan and this will probably increase as more emphasis is placed on increased language proficiency of the Taiwanese people. Attitudes at schools are slowly changing to a more practical and fun approach and this will help foreigners to settle in easier - the idea of lecturing five year olds would be hard to accept by anyone outside of Taiwan and the Kremlin. A smattering of Mandarin of course for any potential teacher would not go amiss and would certainly help to smooth over the buying of noodles or fresh milk.

So buy that "phrase book" now, sign up with a chain school and get your bags packed - for experience this is a good one to have under the belt.