I remember some time ago asking a FAO friend why she had a low salary, her answer was straight and blunt, "most of the foreigners in China are the bottom of the barrel, they can't find work in higher requirement countries so they have very little choice."

This was a very interesting and informative thread for me, especially the quote above, as I am considering teaching abroad. I don't know if I should feel grateful or insulted. I do not qualify to teach English at an American university, much less a Chinese or EU university, nor do I necessarily wish to. The American ESL teachers with whom I have made contact since seriously investigating TEFL seem like me - multilingual, intelligent, sincere, and have at least some college in addition to a CELTA or TEFL certification. They do not, however, go abroad to teach for the attractive salary. The middlekingdomlife.com site was an eye-opener, and clearly explains why there are so many unqualified teachers in China.

In addition, Europe is no slouch when it comes to the exploitation of green teachers. They seem to dislike admitting it, but there are not enough EU citizens to fill all of the posts, above board or otherwise. Awww. Too bad. I guess some second-string Americans willing to live below the poverty level will have to do for them all.