OK, let's say I accept your point for a moment. Answer me this.....

Properly qualified western teachers, (as in qualified to teach in a NES classroom), are well out-of-their depth teaching ESL because they have no ESL qualifications. How does a degree in ballroom dancing, origami etc, make them a suitably qualified ESL teacher?
If the Chinese government are going to tighten-up on FT qualifications, then surely TESOL/TEFL/TESL should be addressed? Isn't it THOSE qualifications that should be verified and not some unrelated degree?

OK, so for non-NES I can see the reason. Demonstrating that they have a degree from a NES country certainly establishes, to a certain degree, their proficiency in English. However, without a PROPER TESOL qualification - and I don't mean a poxy, basic 120-hour online one, then they shouldn't go near a classroom IMHO.

China is not only going to lose dancing monkeys, it's also going to lose some damn good ESL teachers who have lots of experience. As I said in a previous post, bitching and whining about it isn't going to solve anything, but FAO's in China NEED teachers, and since this IS China, many of them will do whatever is necessary in order to get FT's into their classrooms. If that means forging docs, (as also previously witnessed and stated), then they will.

As for cost, aren't Chinese embassies are making a charge for authentication? My colleague was told that his fee covered the document agent, the government fee and the fee at the Chinese embassy.

Hi, Foxy! Please respond to my question:

Does your 'PROPER TESOL' document/transcript have watermarks or a watermark?