Interested to read your comments defending the school. Well it is good to hear a satisfied EFL teacher who can deal with the organization and not be bullied or misrepresented by same. Perhaps, as you say, too many people wash up in EFL who never really had jobs before.

It is at times hard to separate what you rightly refer to as such people from the unsuspecting victims who may fall prey to unscrupulous business owners.

That said, there can be as many pitfalls in the so called 'public' institutions, especially in a country such as China, where public 'rules' - but rules are not public! That means, if you land up in a public school or university, it will be one set of rules for the locals and another altogether for ex-pats.

Not surprising perhaps, but one has to come to terms with the differing views on concepts such as 'lying' between West and East.

Although I think the West condones untruthful practices in professional activity, the East has a particular way of failing to acknowledge distinctions between conscious and unconscious motivational factors. I mean disingenuously so.

To look from the employers' side, I have also heard many stories from students (of university) - that their UK English teacher had "a terrible London accent" - intended to mean either cockney or something around slang London drawl.

On this, one has to hope that employers know how to interview better than that, but one can sympathise with a non English recruiter who might fail to distinguish between a good English speaker/teacher, and simply a native speaker.

It seems some private schools in China end up with the native speaker who has little or no teaching experience, (if under cover research is to be believed).

I am offering these comments without taking up either side, but I think it is good that you give a logical defense of a school and go through the reasons, one by one, so as you say ' what is wrong with a 40 hour week?'

In general, good point, but actual contact hours are considered to be optimal at less than 30 (even 25 BC guidelines)