ozzie
- 2010-07-01
CLAP CLAP CLAP very well written my friend. It is about time someone took the pisser out of some half-cocked teachers that think just because they have English as their mother tongue. Hell I lived with someone from England where the English language came from and I couldn't understand a single word he was saying. So just because you speak or surpose to speak English DOESN'T make you an English teacher.
I have Chinese students that can speak English better than my fellow teacher. He was that bad that I had to tell him to shut up, sit down and teach him how to speak the language he was brought up with. So before you stay laying on the crap check yourself out in the mirrow first. Now I am not saying I am perfect because if anyone says that than they are just full of it themselves. All I am saying is think twice about laying out the brown stuff.
Happy teaching from Ozzie
woolaozhi
- 2010-06-26
But the host treats the guests like trash, especially if the guests look like Asians.
Concordia cum veritate
- 2008-12-18
This is a great thread, and I've read some comments here that are definitely well thought out. However, I think it quite difficult to confine our thinking on this subject to the issue of discrimination in China or, more specifically, the question of hiring practices in EFL China due to the fact that this is a global issue. Moreover, affirmative action itself, especially in the West is an ongoing process that has undergone multiple changes as more and more people get involved in the debate. Certain states in America, for example, have abolished affirmative action because of the recognition that it can, as Yingwen has asserted, result in reverse discrimination.
As an American who finds discrimination of any kind abhorrent and one who has witnessed the evolution of affirmative action, I still find myself conflicted. Thankfully, I'm not a lawmaker who has to deal with this issue because it's not enough to simply state one's belief that discrimination is wrong. In 1978, our Supreme Court imposed limitations on affirmative action so that opportunities for minorities would not come at the expense of the rights of the majority. Nevertheless, the debate continues...................
In China, there is no actual policy covering the hiring of foreign minorities. Perhaps it will eventually become such a huge issue that it will have to be taken into consideration. Meanwhile, we can only hope that employers will approach the issue as right minded individuals and will simply choose their employees based on who will bring excellence into the EFL classroom. I think it's been mentioned in this forum before that there are private school leaders who operate under the false assumption that the parents of their students want only white teachers for those students. Of course that's utter nonsense, and in that situation we are looking at blatant racism. Therefore, anyone that works for such an employer is only contributing to the furtherance of discrimination.
So, for me, that's the bottom line. If I were to find that I'm working for an employer that is a racist, I simply wouldn't work there anymore. That's the best I can do - I'm not going to create a sea change in China on this or any other issue. I can only follow my own beliefs and hope that discrimination doesn't rear its ugly head in such a manner that it drives me out of China in a state of disgust. So far, in that it seems a fairly isolated issue in small pockets of EFL China, it hasn't done that. On the other hand, I have to admit that if I were black, it would probably become a much bigger issue for me, and especially so if I were refused a job based on my color and I were absolutely sure that it was for that reason I was not hired.
For your perusal:
Proposition 209 enacted in California
A state ban on all forms of affirmative action was passed in California: "The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting." Proposed in 1996, the controversial ban had been delayed in the courts for almost a year before it went into effect.
Yingwen Laoshi
- 2008-12-17
I think that there's some truth to what the Reflections poster was saying. I don't think that black teachers in China are better than white teachers but I think that just like what is often the case back in my home country, blacks ARE often held to higher standards than whites.
In many job sectors back in Blighty it is well known that blacks often have to work two or three times harder than their white colleagues if they want to hold on to their jobs. I've personally experienced this, myself.
I don't agree with affirmative action policies. I think that they're contradictory. The idea is to get RID of discrimination not replace it with another form. It also breeds resentment; producing more racist attitudes and tension. I understand why affirmative action exists, though; as a backlash against discrimination that was often extreme.
Some on here were saying that if you don't like the policy in China, leave. I agree! China is what it is! I don't agree with their discriminatory policies, but if I couldn't get a job here because of my skin colour I would simply leave them to it, and go to another country that more appreciated what I had to offer. On the other hand, people in Western countries who feel resentful about affirmative action policies, also need to accept, that is how things are. If you don't like affirmative action in your country, just leave!
Anyway, there isn't blanket discrimination here, and that is good. SOME schools being discriminatory actually help in selecting a good school to work for. A school that would refuse to employ somebody because of their skin colour, alone, identifies itself as one that is hardly worth working for, anyway, because there isn't any good reason for a GOOD school to have such a policy. Because there are so many poor schools in China the selection process for a foreign teacher, especially a black one, is made much easier by blatant actions that clearly highlight that certain schools are not serious about education; colour bars being one of them. I've worked for a lot of schools that employed black teachers and having black teachers did not stop those schools from prospering. The reason why the school prospered was just as likely due to the efforts of the black teachers, than the white ones.
"Don't want black teachers? Good riddance! Next!"
Li Bai
- 2008-12-17
Well said. Who are any of us to tell these people what they should or should not do? The plane that brought you here can always take you back or you can go someplace else. And one thing we should not forget: An English SPEAKER does not guarantee an English TEACHER! I've often listened to moans and groans about this school or that one and give the same advice: If you don't like it - leave. If you think you may not like it - don't go there.
As I said, your comment is 100% correct and we, as foreigners, should remember we are guests in this country and govern ourselves accordingly.
Li Bai
Bally Hoo
- 2008-12-17
It's their country and their prerogative. If you want an advantage over evil white males go apply for a job with the politically correct, affirmative action laden US federal government. I have some friends pretty high up in HR departments in major companies who tell me they are mandated by the EEOC to hire a certain amount of women and minorities lest they face nasty audits. A good friend of mine tells me it's just simpler to hire a woman or minority over a white male even if the white male has better qualifications because of the risk of lawsuits. When my brother incorporated his business he started getting letters from the EEOC reminding him of their policies and his compliance if his business employed over a certain amount of people. What's important is for companies to be able to hire whomever is the best fit in terms of getting along with coworkers and fitting in with the company culture.
Going by your logic, are white and asian students better than black and hispanic students because they have to be because of racist admissions policies in universities?