(37 of 50) CLT & TAIWAN: Six Signs About a Teacher Which Should Make You Worried: 1st Sign

Check for Facts.jpg

(37 of 50) MODERN LANGUAGE TEACHING (CLT) & TAIWAN:

Six Signs about a Teacher Which Should Make You Worried: 1st Sign

So, if you have read all these posts, you should be able to work out many of the signs that your teacher/school is not a real teacher/school, but instead just a person off the street armed with all the tricks to get your money.

But now I’ll move to six signs which should make you just ….. very worried about the teacher/school. These signs do not mean the teacher is a bad, not real, or fake, but they do mean you should think very carefully, and find out more.

You are advised to take these signs very carefully.

Six Signs Which Should Make You Worried: 1st Sign

Sign That You Should Be Worried 1

The school or teacher does not allow observation.

No observation? Hmmmm. Why not? Is the school or the teacher hiding something? Do they know that if you did observe, you might see a reality which they don’t want you to see?

Let me ask you a question. Would you buy a car without seeing it? Would you buy a house without seeing it? What about a bicycle? A computer?  

Obviously, if you are going to buy anything which you need to rely on, you need to see it! If you can’t do this, you are going in totally blindly, and that’s dangerous. As I say on my website: ‘True gold is not afraid of fire.’ That’s a translation from a Chinese proverb, and it’s certainly true.

So why do students pay so much without even knowing what they will get? It does not sound like a good idea to me, and remember, after you pay, it can be very difficult to get your money back. How about at least asking questions such as …

  1. Does the teacher have TEFL qualifications?
  2. Can I see them? Are there certified copies on the wall?
  3. What language does the teacher use in the classroom?
  4. Can I see the coursebook which is used? [It’s not from mainland China, is it?]
  5. Is an overhead projector used? [The teacher isn’t just going to write on a whiteboard?]
  6. How will the teacher correct my written homework? [Not in the class, I hope!]
  7. Can you explain the method the teacher will use in the teaching? [There is a method?]
  8. Can you describe a typical class?

Also, be careful of videos of classes. The school/teacher would obviously show you a ‘model’ video of a classroom. It would be their ‘best’ teacher, and the students might be all be ‘fake students’, and it’s all just a performance. Also, be careful of video testimonies. These are often faked as well. [Trust me: I’ve seen it happening – for example, students giving video testimonies even though they had never been taught before, in order to get discounts on a course they want to do.]

To sum up, you need to see YOUR teacher, and you need to see a REAL class – the sort of class you are actually paying for. Remember, sometimes you are paying a lot of money for this.

The next post will consider the 2nd sign which should worry you.

Now, check that you know the meaning of the underlined vocabulary (also repeated below).

  • a reality (n)
  • to be blind (v)
  • a proverb (n)
  • to be certified (adj/V3)
  • a projector (n)
  • a model (n)

If you want to find out more about me, go to aisielts.com .