The Chinese are there for the taking? And they're being taken for as ride!

I do see this comment has been taken out of context, again.

That's the spirit. Good work if you can get it! Just so long as you don't come back on here complaining how those same gulible Chinese people screwed over a talented hardworking teacher such as yourself.

Tells us more about you than anyone else. But thanks for being frank for once.

What I found was in most parts of China if your tone sounds too meek and gentle you will be subjugated to verbal abuse and an invasion of space by the local Chinese. Being a little tougher in the demeanor will actually get you better customer service by the Chinese

I find that is fairly common all over China. Listen to how chinese speak to the waitresses in a restaurant, no please or thanks, just a barked out command or order. If you are too meek or gentle in your intonation, they will take that kindness as weakness, and you will be hung out to dry. In a mobile phone shop the b**ch behind the counter, even though I was there first, deigned to ignore me to take of a chinese guy who just walked in behind me,and ignored me as though I was a piece of trash that had just blown in from the street. That was not always the case but that is when I learnt my lesson there and then. It is not a culture that rewards the meek and the mild, and no place for a thin skinned westerner. You need not be nice to service staff in China, or, speak to them in a mild and pleasing tone. They are there to serve you, that's it! I roasted her for that, and made sure in no uncertain terms I would not tolerate it happening again. Also taxi drivers can be annoying if you come across as "soft". Again, it is the norms of their culture, and we should not be made to feel bad for speaking as you say.

What I object to is the numerous posts I've seen written by non-white FT's(mainly Asian)-terribly written posts-bad English-bad attitude- complaining about this or that company; and the response that usually follows from seasoned posters is one of whole-hearted support and total belief that they have been given the absolute truth about the behaviour of the evil school. I don't believe that every complaining poster who gives it the 'blue-eyed gets better treatment bit' should be given unquestioned support....It could be that some of them are just trouble-making losers, as are some white blue-eyed FT's.

Whether we choose to give support is up to us. I know for a fact that Asian non-native speakers are treated like crap by most employers and are subjugated to the same abuse as the other foreign ft's. Your statement merely went on a logical round-a-bout and went back to the beginning.

As for smiling and speaking Chinese, I smile all the time to Chinese folks and I speak fluent Mandarin. What I found was in most parts of China if your tone sounds too meek and gentle you will be subjugated to verbal abuse and an invasion of space by the local Chinese. Being a little tougher in the demeanor will actually get you better customer service by the Chinese. Also don't forget your face, the Chinese will treat you differently that say a Philippino or a Western teacher who is ethnically East Asian.

That's the spirit. Good work if you can get it! Just so long as you don't come back on here complaining how those same gulible Chinese people screwed over a talented hardworking teacher such as yourself.

Hahaha, no disrespect meant to the poster you answered, but I thought you gave a very talented reply, in just a line and a half- classy, I admire that- you don't get that from the pen of a non-native speaker...unless it's a quote.

Going off on a tangent; this hahaha or hehehe, I used to shy away from, thinking it was very Chinese; until I re-read some Dickens that is-nothing new on the face of the earth; but anyway, what's good enough for the great man, will do me. It'll ruin my day if I read a bit farther and discover he was also into acronyms. Cheers.

I'm not seeking to American bash but it's my observation that they often don't have such a good knowledge of the idiosyncrasies within the language of other English speaking countries compared to how much say we british are aware of the various everyday idiomatic phrases that are unique to the americans. I think this can probably be put down to the large amount of tv and movies that are produced in the US and then get shipped across the pond.

I used the wrong word actually, didn't I , but you were very tolerant and it just about fits.

Good point you have made- not as if we don't offer them good stuff, like BBC's 'House of Cards,' which is really good but they insist on their own version. Talking about BBC miniseries, we have an American film, albeit with British actors 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' okayish, but not a patch on the aforementioned- how could it be, ten times longer with Alec Guinness.

However I have sat in on numerous FT's from American, Australia, Scotland ,Canada, and so on, and they all tend to teach good standard English, and the same English. They also know all the different ways of saying

I'm not seeking to American bash but it's my observation that they often don't have such a good knowledge of the idiosyncrasies within the language of other English speaking countries compared to how much say we british are aware of the various everyday idiomatic phrases that are unique to the americans. I think this can probably be put down to the large amount of tv and movies that are produced in the US and then get shipped across the pond.

What I object to is the numerous posts I've seen written by non-white FT's(mainly Asian)-terribly written posts-bad English-bad attitude- complaining about this or that company

Absolutely. If when searching jobs for oral English teachers applicants can't understand that as a bare minimum they will likely need to have good english skills then I feel there is probably something wrong with them in the first place. They should also ask themselves what kind of institution would be looking to hire them without this skill?

Non-native speakers should be particularly wary of accepting a job in a large city in a developed province as these areas can usually attract teachers from the so called 'big 5 countries' and therefore the jobs that are left there are for the rubbish schools who couldn't get the native speakers to begin with. Much better heading to a smaller city or poorer province where they'll be more grateful of getting any FT they can find. However, even then one should be practical about how good a job it's going to be and adjust your expectations accordingly given that you may not have all the necessary skills.

However, perhaps it's a little short sighted to say that only native born speakers should be allowed to work as FTs. If you ask any Chinese employee at a foreign trade company who they do business with on a day to day basis they won't just tell you the English, Americans, etc. they say that they speak to Russians, Germans, people from the Middle East and so on and they do it all in English. Dealing with the little foibles of other non-native speakers is a reality that students will have to face if they choose to use their English skills in this way. Therefore is there an argument that they should be exposed to this in the classroom?