I honestly don't understand why people think it is worthwhile to be an FT in China anymore,
salaries are stagnant, and the living cost is higher, and the visa rules more difficult,
and the people more hostile and xenophobic.

I agree with you. It can't be money anymore. Wages are stagnant but as you point out relatively less (and dropping) when compared to increases in living costs. Add to that (well actually minus) but the last 2 years I am seeing benefits being dropped almost everywhere. I've noticed health insurance, transportation costs (long gone) and recently quite a number removing Visa Costs from contracts! 5 years ago it wasn't uncommon to hear of 'signing bonuses' and now I'm seeing reduced wage 'probabation salary' starts for the first month!

I also agree xenophobia and disrespect are becoming worse (as far as I can tell). 5 years ago it seems any reasonably decent arrival was much admired but now the opportunity to have 'hand' over a foreigner is irresistable to far too many TAs and school leaders jacking themselves at any opportunity.

What other possible explanation? Martin will tell you the only explanation is that the FTs must have even LESS status back home and be even WORSE people (meaning career, salary).

I recently did my own whirlwind tour of schools and consequently running into many foreign teachers and many of those this school year's newest arrivals and my guesstimated quick analysis might look like this:

- There was a noticable net loss overall. I want to say 10%. Not just less bodies but it seemed to me there were fewer Full-Time foreign teachers and more were casuals or looking for short term contracts.

- This year I've noticed a huge number of the leftovers from last year (or previous years) were Q-Visa 'Spouse' mostly guys married to a local Chinese woman, often with kids.

- The next class isn't really anything new but what I'd describe as primarily traveler types but NOT 'backpacker boys' either. Unlike the backpacker boys these seemed more late-20s, early 30s suburbanites who have their own money but teaching gigs are a part-time and 'grounding' thing for them and even social pursuits more than anything.

- I'm adding to that class (again not a new thing) but the younger dreamer-wanderery types who are either here to learn true Kung-Fu or 'Daoism' or are for some reason sure they will travel to Tibet and become monks. Actually I feel this group is 'new again'. I feel like I haven't seen those types for years and now suddenly again a little influx of these dreamer/spiritual questers. In fact, I actually find it a little refreshing. They aren't interested in jobs outside of extra 'journey funding'. Some or many have their own incomes from home (trust funds, blowing their college loans etc).

- Actually its probably part of the same category but 'missionaries'. including 'undercover' Mormons and Jehovahs' Witnesses but also the usual mainline evangelical types etc. These folks also don't actually care how much money they make as teachers. They are often sponsored by donations etc back home. IF anything the worse things get the more motivated they get hehe.

- This is an impossible contradiction for Chinese and Western materialists but believe it or not I actually still run into the odd foreign teacher who.. brace yourself.. actually loves teaching in China!? They genuinely just keep going because even if they hate China lifestyles or politics or the bosses they - for some inexplicable reason - they actually love kids, love the bonds and relationships they've developed, they get some great strange tickle of satisfaction when they win with a kid and these types even have stories of things like transforming a kid's confidence or counseling a uni student out of a suicide or crazy talk about loving to go to work and have 600 little kids cheering and chasing them around!?

- Finally the last group. Often made of professional teachers (yep with bonafide degrees and not only graduates but experienced teachers) but also a group made of other folks who are arriving here brand spankin' new fresh off the plane who...

... who have absolutely no idea what they are getting into. They just arrive perfectly trusting, they just simply have no real understanding of the wages vs living costs. They assume they will be in a proper high-school or university where they earn a decent salary and work as they did at home. These folks are naive.

...and they are usually gone after 3 months. I remember meeting one biology teacher from the USA who was just clearly bewildered, shocked, confused and just simply assumed (or not assumed) anything about China. A great guy btw and a truly excellent teacher. Not 6 days into it he had this look on his face like "Oh no... oh noo.. what have I done?? this is NOT at all what I expected" and I was wrong he would only last 3 months - he was back home 3 weeks later. Actually before the end of September!

Hey, this is my experience this year but that would be my overview and to my eyes I'm seeing quite a noticable change of the foreign teacher group. Its a different type here for different reasons with a different 'angle' and actually IMO its much much better. Thankfully seeing far less of Martin's stereotypes (or guys like Martin who go along with them).

Its just my guesstimate but I think this 'new type' is going to be the new look of the FT for the next 5 years but I can see where there will be less and less of them too.