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znarf akfak - 2009-06-26

It appears that your task, your agenda that is, is a daunting one. I did a quick search and found some information that you may find interesting: (http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/14057.html)

Subject: Re: English language training in China
From: theallmighty-ga on 09 May 2002 14:53 PDT

English language training is becoming a profitable industry in China,
as more Chinese become aware of the importance of the usefulness of an
international language, according to Tuesday's China Youth Daily.

Statistics show that last year, the industry in Beijing made a gross
profit of 700 million yuan(US$84.68 million) by providing English
language training courses to nearly 200,000 people.

The oral English course of Beijing New Oriental Language School
reported an income of over 90 million yuan(US$10.89 million) last
year, while the Eastern English Services and Wall Street English
schools all grew rapidly in the city at the same time.

Sources from the Eastern English Services say that it has set up four
schools in Beijing. Each has brought in 500,000 yuan(US$60483.6)
monthly, while the Wall Street English language schools charge
trainees more than 20,000 yuan(US$2419.35) each for one term.

Shanghai is another of the country's hot spots for English training.
The Wall Street Institute (WSI)invested 40 million yuan(US$4.84
million) to set up branches there and very quickly attracted more than
1,000 trainees, mostly from foreign companies.

The Beijing New Oriental School also began rapidly expanding. It
extended its business to Shanghai over one year ago, and so far over
10,000 people have been through the school.

Zhongshan city, a major city in south China's Guangdong province has
its sights set on parents' pockets. An international English training
school there offers training to children aged from three to 12 years
old. The cost of teaching materials for one person can reach up to a
staggering 7,800 yuan(US$943.55).
___________________________

Pretty amazing, eh? Even more so, if you consider that this info is from 2002.

New Oriental, as you may well know, is now listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Seems as though you've got your work cut out for you. Maybe you need to narrow your focus - perhaps set your sights a little lower. I can't imagine you making much of a headway against those who are pulling in that kind of serious money - especially in China where money is God.

Don't get me wrong, though. I'm not particularly enamored with the whole training center thing either. Lately, I've been warning my students about getting sucked into any of the IELTS training centers. As you surely know, there are more and more of them opening up all the time. Some are licensed, some are not. What really bothers me about them, and this is what I share with my students, is that their curriculum is designed to help you pass the IELTS test rather than teach you the language skills that would help you pass the test. (In that the whole Chinese education system is exam oriented, this is a pretty clever approach on their part.) So, if you pass the test, all well and good until you find yourself totally lost in a Western college somewhere without the English language skills necessary to succeed. Back to square one.

Having said all that, though, I do have to question your tactics. Okay, fight fire with fire if you must; however, you would have more credibility if you were to frame your objections more professionally and without an emotional reaction to those who disagree with your approach. If they get a rise out of you, they've succeeded in emotionalizing the issue rather than intellectualizing it.

Finally, though I haven't followed the link myself, this information from the same site, might be of interest to you:

Another article from the China Internet Information Center
voices Chinese concerns about the rights of foreigners to provide
educational services under Article 13 of GATT Education Faces
Challenges Upon China's Entry Into WTO (
http://www.china.org.cn/english/2000/Sep/1513.htm )

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Re: metamorphosis -- znarf akfak -- 2009-06-26
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