Lori Arends
- 2010-11-22
Dear Bob ! Wow, I finally found you! I am glad you are teaching again, and have published a book!! Please contact me at this e-mail, The Class of 73 had our 35th reunion already!!
englishgibson
- 2010-08-28
Robert, too many foreign applicants for teaching jobs are misled by recruiters, local employers, and the contracts with unclear wording that at times have contradictory clauses to the local regulations or to the SAFEA contract that so many teachers have to sign on top of their employer contracts. Then, most of local contracts look out for the party A, the employer, and there's little room for negotiations as the current trend on mainland suggests. One can sure decline a contract, but if there's little choice in the area where the one has been working ...
As a recruiter and one that "evaluates" Resumes only, you do not seem to have much of an authority, if a hard working teacher gets incorrectly evaluated for his/her work. However, and as it appears you do get paid, don't you? You didn't follow up well on my inquiry, and then you conveniently avoided your status in the country. If you are on a legal work permit, there may be yet a few reasons for you to be so thrilled on teachers forums and that with all due respect to you.
Forums such as this one are for foreign teachers to share their experiences as well as their views, if you like it or not. Many choose phony names to protect themselves from the recruiters and local employers that may also read or participate on. I have even heard of some local authorities peaking in for whatever reasons. But you bet your arse my name is as real as it gets and I don't give a flyin' shhh.
Cheers and beers
Robert Stanelle
- 2010-08-27
Englishgibson: I do assist in recruiting and evaluation of new resumes when my university ask me to do so. I also assist in orientation and training activities due to my extensive education and experience. There is a problem, in my opinion, with these young teachers in terms of their understanding a contract and accepting responsibility for their own decisions and actions.
Yes, my book is being published this fall. So far though I have had nothing but good experiences with my Chinese publisher, Zhejiang University Press. My contract was in English and my own university assisted me with any Chinese. As I have stated, I love my university. They are all first class people in every way. They always meet their obligations and simply expect you to do the same.
englishgibson
- 2010-08-27
Robert, while you are shocked to read these posts, I am thrilled to have read your post on. Your and my experiences seem to have some similarities. As a coordinator, have you recruited, trained and evaluated your foreign staff? Have you written the books/book for your school or for bookshops. If you went through a publisher, was it on mainland? On mainland, I also wrote books, course books for a school that I opened once, and I managed or shall i say "coordinated" academics as well. To me, don't be shocked, it was not worth it. I was too naive to have made my poor choices. I trusted the foreign companies/franchisors that ran the foreign academic products, products that often were compromised by local greed and unethical behaviors. I trusted the locals' advertising of the country as open to foreign investment and ideas. Too bad that I tripped over the field of education which is so tightly controlled by locals. Too bad that I tripped over their ambiguous regulations that often protect rich or powerful ones rather than the creative and hardworking ones.
On topic, local employers and recruiters do deserve attention of forums, don't they? If we do not provide our views or experiences on, any applicant for these often misleading and sometimes unreasonable positions will have a load of work to find anything on the place.
At 45, I am sure not as experienced as you are at 68. I don't doubt you have had some great experiences at the University there, however, and with all due respect, it is reasonable to question your views on the topic, isn't it? How do you make both ends meet in the country? And, how do you support your legal status in? Forgive me if I missed something in your post and if any of this has been already answered there. If you aren't in China, I deeply appologize for my last couple of questions.
Cheers and beers to our experiences and opinions about the country
Robert Stanelle
- 2010-08-26
I am Robert Stanelle, the Coordinator of English Programs for the Postgraduate Department at Wuhan Textile University. I am shocked to read these posts from people I would consider to completely uninformed. I hold three degrees in education and my published textbook will be coming out in China in the next few months. I have been teaching at Wuhan Textile University for five years and it is an absolutely wonderful place to work and teach. That is why I continue to return each year though I am 68 years old and no longer need to work.
It is interesting that these people can write under aliases and take no responsibility for what they say. I have a feeling that this was started by a young teacher whose contract we did not renew a few years ago due to poor teaching. Since I am involved in evaluating young teachers, I am sure that accounts for the personal comments towards me. Regarding the term "Concentration Camp," it is a commonly used term in China for intensive English programs where the students study English for eight hours a day for a period of two to four weeks. It has NOTHING to do with WWII but simply to the fact they are there to concentrate on English. The Chinese people were not involved in WWII in Europe. The term as used has no connection to WWII in the eyes of the Chinese people and has NOTHING to do with the Jewish people. Anyone who takes the term for other that what it is in a dictionary meaning, is simply reaching beyond what it is and trying to create a problem where there is none. It is childish and reflective of the teacher whose contract we did not renew.
Again, Wuhan Textile University is a wonderful place to teach and work. Anyone should be thrilled to have the opportunity to teach there.
Stormhawk38
- 2010-04-21
The school is now calling itself "Wuhan Textile University", though "Wuhan University of Science and Engineering" may still be used.
The Chinese name for Wuhan Textile University is 武汉纺织大学 and the Chinese name for Wuhan University of Science and Engineering is 武汉科技学院。It is the same university that I talked about in the first post. Avoid!
You may have received an email that starts out like this: "Attention: New Graduates and experienced Alumni..."
I had the displeasure of teaching at Wuhan University of Science of Engineering for one year in the English College. I was recruited by a man named Robert Stanelle, and our foreign affairs officer was named Ann Zhang.
Will you like teaching there? Well...that depends. If you like...
- teaching in a program called Concentration Camp
- listening to outlandish claim after outlandish claim of Robert Stanelle's personal connections, including many major universities and "powerful" Chinese people
- a corrupt school who lost the dean and vice-dean thanks to embezzlement last year
- hearing young students refer to the teaching program as Concentration Camp
- hearing the Chinese teachers do it as well
...then you'll fit right in.
There are other things I've supressed at the moment, but I hope I've made my point well enough.
Is it all bad? No. There were good things about my time here. I just want people to look past the highly disingenuous email about this place and give it full consideration. And if you are a qualified teacher, or someone who is actually interested in teaching, then do not come here. Your colleagues will primarily be people like Robert: the unqualified, all waging little personal battles with each other.
One more thing: while I was there Robert Stanelle was responsible for the harassment of one of the teachers he recruited. After said teacher criticized his name for the teaching program, Concentration Camp, this man told all his students that this teacher was saying "bad" things about China. The teacher in question tried to resolve things with Mr. Stanelle in a healthy manner, but to no avail; the students gathered and vandalized the wall outside his apartment.
WUSE covered it up. They refused to punish the students in question and this teacher was sent on his way.
Bottom line: Robert Stanelle makes this a dangerous place to work at by his constant meddling. He admonished another teacher for sending his resume out, telling him "I told you you're safe" and then gleefully telling everyone who was staying and who was being let go. THAT is the sort of person he is. He has no choice but to be here, despite all claims to the contrary. Basically, you are going into his playhouse, and he will do what he wants...and the school will back him 100%. He spends his time recruiting unqualified recent graduates of American universities and then claims that he can do so due to his "connections". Yeah...
Furthermore, he sells you a total bullshit view of life in Wuhan, at that school, and in China. There are better jobs than teaching English, but if you are a qualified teacher, then there are better ESL jobs out there than this one. Search harder. Please.
I am willing to go into detail about any of this privately. Just let me know.