Quality vs. Quantity

From darrenkaltved.wordpress.com

This has to do with TEFL just bear with me.

Some people live for quantity, take Wal-mart for example. More and more people want more bang for their buck, but as a result quality is suffering. You know how women open their bulging closets and whinge that they have nothing to wear? That's because they have quality vs. quantity issues.

I did the same thing. Now I've got a few clothes, but they're good quality. They were more than I paid for clothes before, but I wore them more and felt good in them. I also got more bang for my buck. So before I'd spend, let's see $25 on a top and wear it twice a season, making the cost per wear $12.5. Now I'd spend $50 on a top, but wear it at least 10 times per season, making the cost per wear $5.

Now I'm not saying that more expensive items are better quality. Cheaply priced items can be good quality and expensive items can be of crappy quality. Many times items are more expensive because they have higher advertising costs, like luxury brand items (Prada, Burberry, etc).

Ok, so how does this relate to TEFL?

Time in class: Simple, schools tend to go for quantity rather than quality. Take classes for example, you have to teach for X number of minutes. Sometimes teachers finish early but aren't allowed to let their students go because the class time isn't up. So what do they do? They use fillers. The name alone should tell you that often their only purpose it to fill up time (Hangman anyone?).

Books: Another example is finishing the book. Students might have to work too slowly or rush through a chapter simply so that it can be checked off the list. The admin isn't too concerned about the results so long as they finish what's on the syllabus.

Teachers' salaries: How about costs? That's pretty simple. Schools often want to pay a teacher as little as they possibly can. Lesson quality can suffer because of that. Teachers can suffer as well since they get into pricing wars. Well-qualified teachers are having to take pay cuts simply because schools aren't willing to pay them what they're worth. Schools know this and offer pitiful salaries which teachers are forced to accept if they want to work at all.

What does it all mean?
Schools need to focus on quality. Plain and simple. If students finish a lesson early, they should be able to go home. If they take a bit longer to understand the concepts, then the syllabus should change. And finally, schools should stop paying teachers slave wages.

Teaching Resources: If you're looking for teaching resources, check out my top resources and my favourite TEFL Tips posts.

Teachers Have Few Rights If They're Independent Contractors

From carolinaaccounting.com

There's a famous hagwon here in Korea which likes to hire teachers as independent contracts. CDI, or Chungdam Institute, one of the top hagwons in Korea regularly does this.

While some people like this since there are less deductions, no health insurance or pension is taken out, other people dislike it for this exact reason. Here's the low down on ICs (independent contractors).

• No housing
• No pension (you have to pay the employer and employee contribution)
• No health insurance (you have to pay the employer and employee contribution)
• No severance
• No maternity leave
• No guarantee that they will allow you to add jobs to your visa
• No paid vacation
• Paid per hour so could make decent money

Here are some more articles about ICs in Korea.

• ESLCafe: Independent Contractor - making it work for you.
• ESLCafe: Please clear up this independent contractor busin
• Hi Expat: Chungdam, Native English teachers in dispute

Teaching Resources: If you're looking for teaching resources, check out my top resources and my favourite TEFL Tips posts.

Life Insurance for Overseas Teachers

Asia
It's hard to get term policies in Asia. Whole life is more common because of the investment / retirement benefits and coverage is forever even though premiums stop at 60 or 65. There are also tax advantages to whole life.

Some counties might provide life insurance if you pay into a pension plan. For example, if you pay into the Korea Teachers' Pension Fund you are automatically enrolled in their life insurance.


Basic Info About Life Insurance
Coverage is supposedly 10 times your yearly salary before deductions. Allstate offered me a $250,000 one, but Huntley Wealth said a $500,000 would be much better since this year with all the extra classes I'll be making much more than $25,000. If you have two incomes, yours and your partner's, that's something else to take into consideration.

Term life insurance is for a fixed number of years and payments don't go up. So if you have a 10 year term it's good for 10 years and then you have to apply again.

Recommend Life Insurance Companies
AIG was recommended by tttompatz and said it cost about $500 a year.

I called Allstate on July 16th 2012 and arranged for life insurance ($250,000 for me and $20,000 for my daughter) at the total cost of $23 a month. The next day they took the money out of my account and a week later I had a medical. On July 27th 2012 I received a check for $23 with no explanation other than "closeout refund". I had asked them if they cover Americans overseas and they said it was no problem. I called and no one could tell me why my policy was cancelled. After being transferred for the third time I was told it was because I lived overseas. I told them I had said that when I applied and they said they had no more information.

BUPA was recommended by tttompatz.

Clements, www.clements.com They quoted me $219 for 250K which is the max I could take out. It's five times your annual income.

Expat Financial is another company that specialises in people who live overseas, http://www.expatfinancial.com/expatlife.htm.  They seem to be a part of TFG Global.

Expat Global Medical, www.expatglobalmedical.com

On August 1st I called Huntley Wealth, http://www.insuranceblogbychris.com , and was told that Prudential is the way to go. The plan is with Pruco Life Insurance Company which is part of Prudential. They have an article about their services. You can call them on 877-443-9467.Problem is that you have to be IN the US when you apply and receive Life insurance and it takes about 6 weeks. tttompatz also recommends them and said they're about $300 a year but didn't include a medical rider - it was just term life.

Orion International Insurance Services http://orionintlbenefits.com/ I contacted Expat Financial, who told me to contact TFG Global who told me to contact Orion.

On July 30th 2012 I called State Farm and they said no. BUT if I had opened an account with them before I left the US it would still be good, however, since I already live overseas it wouldn't.

TFG Global www.tfgglobal.com. I was referred to them by Expat Financial. Since my home address is in the US, they referred me to Orion International Insurance Services.

Jessica said William Russell, www.william-russell.com might be able to help people out. For a 20 year term of $300,000 it would be around $400 a year. I contacted them, for $500K it would be $690. They require a certifed copy of your passport, a recent utility bill,l and tons of paperwork.

Teaching Resources: If you're looking for teaching resources, check out my top resources and my favourite TEFL Tips posts.

Job Site: Association of Christian Schools International

There are many types of international schools out there, and the Association of Christian Schools International focuses on a specific sector. Their website has lots of information for schools, educators, and students. They also have information about programmes, resources, and jobs available.

Their jobs section is divided into US Edu Calling, Canadian Employment, International Employment, and ACSI employment. No matter if you're looking to work at home or abroad, ACSI is sure to have a position that will suit you.

Got an idea for a job site?
Email me with your job site, name, and website (if you have one) and I'll post it ASAP.

Teaching Resources: If you're looking for teaching resources, check out my top resources and my favourite TEFL Tips posts.

Pay Attention in Class!

From slatervecchio.com

I wrote about how I had stopped shouting in class, but I still struggle with students' lack of respect and attention. Talking while I'm talking, talking while other students are answering questions, texting, sleeping, and not paying attention get to me. I'm not saying that I want to be the centre of attention, don't get me wrong. I'm all for learner-centred environments, but students are being flat-out rude.

At the end of my rope the other day I asked my advanced class if it was rude or acceptable in their culture to talk while other students were in the front of the room presenting. Shockingly enough they were honest and said it was acceptable. Fine. I realise I'm fighting culture, but in my class, it's an English class, so they're going to learn about culture in English speaking countries. I feel like I have to get a Native American talking stick. You hold the stick, you talk. Lesson learned: one person speaks at a time!

Moving on, the lovely multitasking-I'm-attached-to-my-phone has also got to go. Ok, I know that I said I have surrendered to cell phones and I have, but wishful thinking can't hurt. I have used cell phones in lessons and students like it, but there's a time and a place. Research shows that multitasking like emailing, listening to music, surfing the net, etc. wastes time, causes students to learn less, and lowers their GPA. Remember the saying, "Jack of all trades, master of none?" Same thing applies here. Lesson learned: stop multitasking!

Teaching Resources: If you're looking for teaching resources, check out my top resources and my favourite TEFL Tips posts.