I was looking for additional statistics about the overseas teaching industry and how the changes will affect Canadian ESL English teachers.
I read a Guardian article dated December 2007 and it has provided some intersting numbers.
The Guardin article stated
"South Korea responds to fears about bogus foreign teachers with draconian visa rules ...
The rules will affect an estimated 17,000 foreign English instructors...
teachers... will be required to provide an affidavit of any criminal convictions, undergo a medical and drug test, provide sealed academic transcripts and have their university diplomas inspected.
...English teachers residing outside Korea will have to have an interview at a Korean embassy or consulate before they take up their teaching posts...
...a report from the ministry of education stating that more than 106 foreign English teachers in Korea's public school system are working illegally ... between 2001 and August 2007, 1,481 foreign language teachers have been caught for a range of offences including forged degrees, visa violations and general lawbreaking."
And a quote "Many teachers are wondering if the experience of working in South Korea will be worth the burden of the paper-work and increasing restrictions."
You can read the entire article here:
http://education.guardian.co.uk/tefl/story/0,,2228821,00.html
Our opinion is that this is a mixed benefit and problem situation.
Getting rid of the perverts, fakes and frauds is great.
Locking teachers into single employers contracts is very bad.
Having less civil rights than ordinary Korean citizens is very very bad. The middle east provides no rights to foreign teachers but pay twice the salary. Good teachers will go to Korea at the low salaries offered only if they have their civil rights.
Having an interview and providing documentation is manditory for all North American teaching jobs - its no big deal for an international teaching position.
I did not see any numbers for illegal education and recruiting agents or illegal school owners going to jail. These criminals will go out and hire another 1000 illegal teachers and bring them into Korea causing more trouble unless they are shut down and put into prison. Getting rid of the current illegal teachers is only one-third of the problem.
If you have current news - send us and email.
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ESL in Canada NEWS Blog URL
http://eslincanada.blogspot.com/
ESL in Canada Directory of ESL English information articles, reports, opinions, observations, warnings about ESL schools, English programs, classes, ESL teaching jobs, teacher resources and teaching materials.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
ESL in Canada News
Some interesting "2008" facts for ESL English teachers, schools and students. The world has definitely changed since September 11, 2001. Overseas travel is still down 20% (7 years later). Teachers interested in Middle East positions has declined 75%.
Good News for ESL Teachers
Worldwide demand for English language training has increased by over 15%.
Samsung uses English as the head office language in Korea
China needs another 200,000 English speakers for the 2008 Olympics
China announced "Bad English" is no longer acceptable in Beijing especially during the Olympics.
China wants 300,000,000 English speakers by the year 2020.
Worldwide requests for overseas teachers up 300%.
Teachers' salary in China - 2001 was $2500 RMB now is $7,500 RMB up 300%.
Bad News for the ESL Industry
Estimated % of individuals using fake certificates to get overseas jobs 70%
Best estimate for fake certificates sold in Asia to native English speakers since 1980: 142,000 and non-native English teachers 1,500,000.
Number of Asian agents selling fake University certificates and degrees charged: 3. Yes finally in Canada the OPP raided a very large scale Chinese forgery operation that specialized in Canadian University and College Degree sales to foreigners.
Unfortunately Canadians who have worked years to obtain a coveted Canadian University degree will have their hard work diminished by the lazy, incompetent, screw-ups who get jobs using fake Canadian credentials and then mess up.
As the value of University degrees plummets because of fake degrees - This makes life very difficult for real university degree holders to prove they are a university graduate, took the listed courses and can perform.
Most real Canadian University graduates have over $20,000 in student loan debt and having their investment in a university education diminished by criminals is a double blow.
Cost of fake degree, TESL certificate, transcripts and special university hotline phone number to "verify fake degrees": $600.
Estimated % of worldwide illegal ESL language schools that are not properly registered, licensed or operating will illegal teachers: 65%.
In the mad rush to get a good TOEFL score before the speaking section becomes mandatory - the cost for a Korean pro test writer to create fake ID and write a 600 score: $1,500 USA. The cost to bribe a Chinese TOEFL test proctor to complete your test (increasing your score) after the exam: $10,000 RMB.
Most obvious nonsense ESL school ads: good looking English teachers to teach older gentlemen English at their home during the evenings.
Most brutal stories of Middle East ESL teacher mistreatment include: locked up in apartments with no food, water or heat, strip searches, robbery, assaults, death threats.
Most evil fraud: using J1 program to send underage prostitutes to the USA.
During 2007 two big sex pervert cases were splashed all over the Media. One was a Canadian ESL teacher arrested in Thailand for sex crimes. The second was a BC man (one of 37 the other 36 were Americans) in another child porn sweep and the only one featured on the USA national news.
Again ESL teachers involved in international sex crimes creates real problems for the honest hard working dedicated teachers and casts an extra cloud of suspicion and distrust.
Original Post; ESL in Canada News
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Blog URL
http://eslincanada.blogspot.com/
Good News for ESL Teachers
Worldwide demand for English language training has increased by over 15%.
Samsung uses English as the head office language in Korea
China needs another 200,000 English speakers for the 2008 Olympics
China announced "Bad English" is no longer acceptable in Beijing especially during the Olympics.
China wants 300,000,000 English speakers by the year 2020.
Worldwide requests for overseas teachers up 300%.
Teachers' salary in China - 2001 was $2500 RMB now is $7,500 RMB up 300%.
Bad News for the ESL Industry
Estimated % of individuals using fake certificates to get overseas jobs 70%
Best estimate for fake certificates sold in Asia to native English speakers since 1980: 142,000 and non-native English teachers 1,500,000.
Number of Asian agents selling fake University certificates and degrees charged: 3. Yes finally in Canada the OPP raided a very large scale Chinese forgery operation that specialized in Canadian University and College Degree sales to foreigners.
Unfortunately Canadians who have worked years to obtain a coveted Canadian University degree will have their hard work diminished by the lazy, incompetent, screw-ups who get jobs using fake Canadian credentials and then mess up.
As the value of University degrees plummets because of fake degrees - This makes life very difficult for real university degree holders to prove they are a university graduate, took the listed courses and can perform.
Most real Canadian University graduates have over $20,000 in student loan debt and having their investment in a university education diminished by criminals is a double blow.
Cost of fake degree, TESL certificate, transcripts and special university hotline phone number to "verify fake degrees": $600.
Estimated % of worldwide illegal ESL language schools that are not properly registered, licensed or operating will illegal teachers: 65%.
In the mad rush to get a good TOEFL score before the speaking section becomes mandatory - the cost for a Korean pro test writer to create fake ID and write a 600 score: $1,500 USA. The cost to bribe a Chinese TOEFL test proctor to complete your test (increasing your score) after the exam: $10,000 RMB.
Most obvious nonsense ESL school ads: good looking English teachers to teach older gentlemen English at their home during the evenings.
Most brutal stories of Middle East ESL teacher mistreatment include: locked up in apartments with no food, water or heat, strip searches, robbery, assaults, death threats.
Most evil fraud: using J1 program to send underage prostitutes to the USA.
During 2007 two big sex pervert cases were splashed all over the Media. One was a Canadian ESL teacher arrested in Thailand for sex crimes. The second was a BC man (one of 37 the other 36 were Americans) in another child porn sweep and the only one featured on the USA national news.
Again ESL teachers involved in international sex crimes creates real problems for the honest hard working dedicated teachers and casts an extra cloud of suspicion and distrust.
Original Post; ESL in Canada News
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Blog URL
http://eslincanada.blogspot.com/
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Stop Crippling our Kids
"D" wrote to question the results of a recent poll indicating that 70% of the teachers support grammar instruction. Then through some innuendo that didn't make much sense to me, he posited some kind of relationship between 70% of the professionals who support various degrees of direct grammar instruction with 70% of the human herd who supported Bush's invasion of Iraq. I don't get it. "EB"
It is interesting to note that both the Greeks and Romans each developed and refined philosophy, grammar, logic and the argument formats where premises supported conclusions.
Grammar added logic, purpose and meaning to language.
Logic was used to determine the difference between truth and fallacy.
Instead of comparing grammar to war or swimming lets use people.
People who say "we don't need grammar" are using the same logic as people who said "the earth is flat".
For centuries these "Flat Earthers" could say the earth is flat - you can not prove it is round.
First "we don't need grammar" theory was - humans are built with grammar already installed.
Careful scientific testing since the early days of the 1980's have proven this wrong.
Second "we don't need grammar" theory - Students will just pick up the grammar with massive English input.
Which is why so many post 1985 high school and college grads can not write a correct sentence.
"Flat Earthers" did not take kindly to their pet theory being proven wrong - they really tried to demonize the earth is round believers.
Listen to this from an anti-grammarian" For those on the grammar translation side it is a formal system of rules first developed by a bunch of monks in the middle ages and based on Latin." And more from this guy: "languages come from usage, and usage follows no rules".
The new learning research is like the early round earth believers who developed methods and experience to prove their theory. People actually sailed around the earth - people used balloons to show the earth's curvature - progress eventualy proved the theory correct.
Eventually everyone learned the earth was round and eventually the new learning research will prove how people learn languages best.
I am betting on grammar - after all the last 15 years of real science have proven it accelerates learning and should not be ignored. In the next five to ten years I really hope we have the conclusive evidence of how people learn languages best.
Now for my throwing back the demonization "so we can flush out the flat earthers who are crippling our kids".
ESL in Canada
**********
Blog URL
http://eslincanada.blogspot.com/
It is interesting to note that both the Greeks and Romans each developed and refined philosophy, grammar, logic and the argument formats where premises supported conclusions.
Grammar added logic, purpose and meaning to language.
Logic was used to determine the difference between truth and fallacy.
Instead of comparing grammar to war or swimming lets use people.
People who say "we don't need grammar" are using the same logic as people who said "the earth is flat".
For centuries these "Flat Earthers" could say the earth is flat - you can not prove it is round.
First "we don't need grammar" theory was - humans are built with grammar already installed.
Careful scientific testing since the early days of the 1980's have proven this wrong.
Second "we don't need grammar" theory - Students will just pick up the grammar with massive English input.
Which is why so many post 1985 high school and college grads can not write a correct sentence.
"Flat Earthers" did not take kindly to their pet theory being proven wrong - they really tried to demonize the earth is round believers.
Listen to this from an anti-grammarian" For those on the grammar translation side it is a formal system of rules first developed by a bunch of monks in the middle ages and based on Latin." And more from this guy: "languages come from usage, and usage follows no rules".
The new learning research is like the early round earth believers who developed methods and experience to prove their theory. People actually sailed around the earth - people used balloons to show the earth's curvature - progress eventualy proved the theory correct.
Eventually everyone learned the earth was round and eventually the new learning research will prove how people learn languages best.
I am betting on grammar - after all the last 15 years of real science have proven it accelerates learning and should not be ignored. In the next five to ten years I really hope we have the conclusive evidence of how people learn languages best.
Now for my throwing back the demonization "so we can flush out the flat earthers who are crippling our kids".
ESL in Canada
**********
Blog URL
http://eslincanada.blogspot.com/
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