They should, but you know very well that they were not angry because the owner hired foreign workers on the wrong visa.

100% chances that the officials were angry at the owner because he didn't pay them the monthly bribe required to stay out of troubles, so they found a way to cause him troubles by kicking his FTs out, an English training center or an international school without FTs can't run for very long.

We are talking about the same officials who do all sorts of illegal things like collecting bribes and illegally expropriating people with law enforcement units or chengguan so that some wealthy developer can build one more ugly concrete residential block, whose salaries are 5000RMB but who drive Rolls Royce and wear designer suits, and probably have millions in cash hidden somewhere, who take weekly trips to Macau to launder dirty money.

I say this but after so many years here I obviously have relations with corrupted officials.

This is China, the land of nonsense and contradictions.

bai3 shi4 lao3 wai4 means you're a knowledgeable foreigner (capitals not used in pinyin) but what manner of knowledgeable foreigner are you? I'd say not from the English Speaking world, as this is not a mistake we are likely to make "so they found a way to cause him troubles" and you said 'troubles' twice. I should say that one can say 'troubles' but not in the way you did.

So you have (still have) and 'obviously' so, you say, relations with corrupted officials!? Did you leave your relations with these corrupted officials, and if so why? Poor old Uncle Sid and Aunt Meg bound and gagged- hahaha only joking lol.

And may those officials be rightly pissed off at them not acquiring the correct visas for their staff.

Yeah...I was well aware that I could simply buy a visa...but strictly speaking, that was not an option as the legality of it was/is questionable. I wanted to make sure I had the correct visa...I am not a newbie to Asia or China. I know there exist lots of other schools etc...but as I have already stated, I was comfortable with things in terms of location and convenience. Moving would have been more problematic and would have also presented more headaches (my suppliers were located right near my home....)...

But yes, Clifford School of Guangzhou is shit. It's not a school you would want your children educated at...hence the very low numbers of international students...most of the students who went (or are still attending) the international program only do so because of the location...a lot of their parents do business in Panyu...so sending their kids to the American or British school would be inconvenient...and I also know that a lot of the international students at Clifford go to private tutors to make up for the lack of education that is being offered at Clifford...still cheaper in the long run than sending your kids to the American school...

You can buy a 1 year working visa/residence permit for 1000~1500RMB through a visa agent (many exist out here, google is your friend), then work or live wherever you want in China, change job as often as you want, why bother with a wannabe shitty school in crappy Panyu?

Well if you're only teaching for the visa you shouldn't be teaching.

And there are literally thousands of schools in China who will give you a visa, why so desperate to stay at one you profess to hate?

Why would you want to guarantee another year working at a school you clearly don't like, have no respect for and didn't like the boss of?!

Seems a pointless task?

It doesn't take a lot of time to write a long post, lol.

If anything, it takes more time and effort to express your ideas in a brief, concise and well constructed post.

The whole 'you spend so much writing on here' slur used by the GW's... It is obviously more tired and worn out than your mother's beef curtains down at the local minge farm.

As for your name which seems to imply 'you is full of shit...' It obviously takes a native Chinglish speaker to fail to realise that 'you are' would be more appropriate.

I do find it amusing when GW's try to paint a picture of us all being bitter, failed ESL teachers. Nice little stereotype, but you may that many of us have achieved success and failure in varying measures long before we ever even started teaching. So, why do you think that we would ever even feel the need to answer to pathetic GW/Wumao types like yourself?

Then you try to appeal to the mods. This board isn't hosted in China. Your censorship policies won't save you here. You have been outed for what you are, a GW/Wumao that is trying their best to save the reputation of a shit private school.

All the previous posts that I wrote were totally false. I wrote them because I knew the principal checks these review sites often. Although passing all assessments, the principal had a personal grudge against me for no reason at all, so I decided to try and guarantee another year by posting a positive review of him and the school.

The reality at Clifford School is this: all they care about is making money. Education is the furthest thing from the director's mind. He regularly employs 'teachers' who are not certified. He regularly extends contracts to teachers who are verbally and physically abusive towards students. The director has no previous experience in an administrative role, and like most things in China, only has this position due to his connection with the owner.

The international school is a waste of time. The school has no independence from the director, although various websites state the opposite. Most international students wouldn't stand a chance in more prestigious schools. Most parents know that Clifford is a subpar school, but due to location and other factors, have no other choice. I taught a lot of students privately because in their regular classes they weren't getting a decent education. The reason some teachers speaking positively about Clifford is because they are either fresh out of uni and don't have anything to compare it to, or they are retired and just want an easy ride. There is a bunch of older teachers that teach at this school...they aren't necessarily bad teachers, but they smoke a lot of drugs and drink heavily in their time off. This is not the kind of person that most people would want educating their children. The school knows of this but turns a blind eye because all they really care about is having a white face in the classroom...

The associate principal in the elementary division only has this job because of his connection with the director and because he has been at the school for a very long time. He is the kind of guy that creeps you out when you meet with him. I used to find it odd that he would never make eye contact when speaking with me. He has a very easy gig at this school, as ALL, I repeat, ALL decisions are made by the Chinese administration. He is only there to make it appear as though the school is progressive, when in fact the complete opposite is true. No one really likes this guy. I remember a lot of teachers complaining that he never did anything to help. I went to him with problems and all he would do is tell me to go speak with the director. What kind of principal does that? A lazy one! Even parents would be told to speak with the principal...he avoids everything and blames everything on everyone else. The worst principal I have ever had the misfortune of meeting. I'd love to see him try this BS in a proper school; he'd get fired within the first month!

There is a teacher I worked with in the ELS who verbally and physically assaulted students. This was brought to the attention of the team leader, but nothing was done. The team leader in the ELS has no skills or qualification to be a team leader (read his e-mails that are riddled with grammar errors and you will see what I mean). I remember he once told me that he would never want his son to be taught by the aforementioned teacher, yet he never did anything to reprimand him for his unbecoming behaviour. I just heard that they are taking this teacher back for another year! I cannot believe how low the standards are at this 'school'.

Grades are ALWAYS adjusted to what the parents demand. Students who fail all year miraculously come out with A's and B's. They only care about satisfying the parents. The school is considered to be a garbage dump by most of the community. The smart parents pull their child out after a semester or two to go to an actual school that cares about education first...not profits.

The school also cheats on taxes. You are paid a portion of the salary in RMB (which they tax) and then a portion in US$ which is not taxed. You have to beg to get the official tax document, and when you compare it to the one the school gives out, the numbers NEVER add up. They are breaking the law in China and putting teachers at risk back home by not providing accurate tax information to the government. I know of many teachers that faced huge headaches when trying to do their taxes back in their home country. The director is extremely shady and not one to be trusted. His sidekick, Jim (Zhangyi) was able to get a Master's degree without having a Bachelors...this is first hand information from a teacher friend who was paid to help him write his thesis.

Teachers be warned: if you just want an easy gig where no one really cares about the quality of instruction, this is the place for you....however, if you are a serious teacher with a lot of experience, don't even give this place a second glance.

My husband and I have taught at Clifford school for the past 2 years and I have just started my 3rd year here. We plan to stay here for a number of more years to come and have 2 kids in the school. We have been happy with their teachers and their educations in the kindergarten and grade school. We are actually very happy with the school as teachers as well and find that most of our collegues are too. Many come with the idea to stay 1 year, but they usually like it and stay a number of years. There is an average of a 3 year stay for most teachers, which is MUCH higher than other schools in this area, and most people leave because they are ready to leave China, not necessarily because they want to leave the school. Life in China itself can be frustrating, but as a teacher here it also has major benefits that most of us find worth the frustrations with the environment and culture. I would personally recommend working here. We have a great group of teachers and are all friends and happy with the school and our lives here.

heloha? you guys crazy? im a student here at clifford..and im reading this bullshit...COME ON PPL! GROW UPP! its a good school if u want to go to a university in canada etc,but if u wanna go to europe,australia,rest of the world,its not this school,,u guys are freaking adukts,,,GROW UP! and p.s ima girl,and most of the teachers know me,im one of the top most students of clifford,annd im leaving clifford this year because i need to go to higher education,not because it "sucks" IV BEEN HERE 7 YEARS! LOL...NO-OFFENCE,BUT WT MOST OF U GUYS WROTE IS PLAI OLD S-T-U-P-I-E-D! CHECK IT OUT NOW! IN YOUR FACE!