- Depth of culture: We tend to think of the entire population as ‘Chinese’, but there are around 55 different ethnic groups in China. You have the chance to explore an incredible diversity of language and people. Here are some benefits of teaching English in China we list for you:
- Cost of living: Compared to Vancouver, China is a dream. A local bus ticket is around 30¢, a bottle of excellent Qingdao beer is around 80¢, and a one bedroom apartment (just outside the city centre) is around $350 a month. You’re in luck if you smoke- just $2.50 a pack! Having a good meal in a local restaurant will set you back about $5. Just don’t buy anything ‘foreign’. Jeans, cheese, Guinness on a local wage is an indulgence.
- Eliminate stereotypes: This works both ways. You will find some Chinese students that don’t focus only on marks, and not everywhere is crowded. They can meet someone who doesn’t live in an igloo, eat a lot of cheese, and listen to hip hop.
- History, history, history. Thousands of years before Christ, that part of the world was making and doing things that are still very relevant today. In Canada, we call a hundred year old building ‘old’. In China, that’s fairly modern construction.
- Receptive and motivated students: many students understand the value of adding English to their ‘job skills’ as well as an unreasonable interest in most things ‘American’ (movies, music, celebrity status, fashion, brand names). While major cities have foreign teachers, many others don’t, so you will be the first and only contact with ‘authentic’ English.
Teach and Travel the World: China
And then there are the not-so-serious reasons to become an English teacher, such as:
- ‘Real’ Chinese food: no chicken balls and gelatinous ‘red’ sauce. In fact, I didn’t eat anything that resembled ‘westernized’ food court choices. China has an incredible range of culinary regions, and you’d never need to try the same dish twice. No more deep fried egg rolls or soggy chow mein. Plus fantastically affordable ‘local’ and fresh produce. Such a diverse climate means almost anything grows, so sometimes for dinner I would just buy a whole watermelon—only 25¢!
- Great skin: the city I was living in (Qingdao) is right on the coast, so VERY humid in the summer. Make up melts, so there’s no point in wearing it. Your pores will love it.
- Generous people: my Chinese students were some of the most ‘giving’ people I’ve ever met. When I had a cough, they brought me special tea, when I wanted to buy silk fabric for my mum to sew, they came with me and bargained at the market so I wouldn’t get ‘over-charged’. One of my students in our TESOL Teacher Training program invited me and her classmates over for dinner-and hand made more than 100 dumplings and prepared a vast assortment of local dishes. They would try to help me in any way they could.
- Celebrity status: although I found this uncomfortable at first, there is genuine curiosity about foreigners in many cities. Most people had never seen someone with red hair and green eyes, so strangers would approach me on the bus or in the street and stare or touch my hair. You might be the first non-TV or film ‘westerner’ they’ve ever seen. There is also an immediate level of respect and recognition given to teachers (whether it’s deserved or not). It’s nice to have the profession and the idea of education valued so much.
photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/schneiderstefan/1535417329/”>Stefans Photos</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/”>cc</a>