EFL Teaching in Vietnam: DON’T do it!

EFL Teaching in Vietnam: DON’T !

This is going to sound strange coming from someone is so insistent that EFL teaching is fun, but at the moment I am advising NOT to teach in Vietnam.

Every week I have people contacting me and asking for advice about finding work as a teacher in Viet Nam.  As of this week I am suggesting that EFL teachers can find better quality work in almost any other country at the moment.

Don’t shoot me I am only the messenger.

I live here. I own a school and another business here, so I am staying and will weather this downturn out.  However, if I really had a choice I would head almost anywhere else.

So, what is the problem?

In a nutshell, there are too many low quality EFL teachers in Vietnam.

China needed 1,000s of English teachers prior to the 2008 Olympic Games.  Those “teachers” needed next-to-no qualifications and agreed to work for peanuts.  Once the games were over those “teachers” flooded out of China and into the rest of the world.  Vietnam is on China’s doorstep and is only a bus ride away.

They were happy to work for peanuts in China and they have been happy to accept lower than usual hourly rates from greedy English school owners. A few months ago I heard of an experienced teacher here in Vung Tau having to work for 3 dollars an hour!!!!!!

Cambodia and Myanmar pay more than that!  And while I am specifically mentioning Vung Tau, I have noticed that I see almost NO English teachers at restaurants, pubs, the beach and parties anymore.  They are being paid so little, that they need to work seven days a week/eight hours a day to either get by, or save some money.

However, Vietnam has other unique reasons why it should be avoided by EFL teachers.

• While the rest of world has bounced back, or is making a rally from the down turn in the American dollar (some time back), Vietnam hasn’t. It is the first time Vietnam has ever had to experience an economic downturn. VN now has World Bank loans and is not insular to world events. It is not coping well.
• While real estate has dropped a little in the last year, Vietnam still has some of the highest priced real estate IN THE WORLD!! For EFL teachers this translates to expensive (but substandard) accommodation. Yes, even in the countryside!
• Power shortages are still common. Most schools will not pay teachers if night classes are cancelled due to power cuts.
• If your rental motorcycle or car breaks, it is your responsibility to fix it.
• If anything inside your accommodation breaks, it is your responsibility to fix it.
• And something I just discovered about six months ago, because it nearly happened to me; if your accommodation burns down, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE  for it (even if you didn’t cause the fire). (No insurance is the norm.)  This isn’t just for foreigners, this is for everyone! Seriously think this over. There is no doing a runner to escape your irate landlord. Who’s holding your passport? Yes, you landlord.

So if you still want to do EFL teaching, and you still want it to be a fun experience, then cross Vietnam off the map and look else where.

Leave a comment in relation to the best countries to do EFL teaching at the moment. It might help some people out.

 

EFL Teaching in Vietnam: Weekend Soccer Match

What an absolute hoot!! I have just staggered home from a morning of soccer with the kids from the English school.

I didn’t think it was necessary for Sen to do this activity.  How wrong could I be? It turned out that this was just what the school, Sen and I really needed. We had soooo much fun :)).

Sen booked a small soccer field for an hour. It was a first class facility within walking distance of the school.

We turned up to the miniature field a bit too early, so Tina, Thu and I went and explored a nearby abandoned French army barracks building. We took some pictures, decided it was haunted and barely escaped with our lives!!

Maybe I will let the photos do to the talking.

The girls were quite reluctant to play until I showed them how to ‘shoulder’ the boys out of the way!

There are very FEW public spaces for Vietnamese kids to play. No wonder they appreciated the activity as much as they did!

So the next time your students say “Teacher! teacher! Game please?”, may I suggest soccer.

 

EFL-teaching-in-Vietnam-Christmas Party with High School Students.

On Thursday the 23rd the English School had its first xmas party. The classroom has been decorated for a month now, so it was simply a matter of folding away the chairs, blowing up the balloons, down loading some Christmas music, and ordering in the pizzas.

We started the fun with the food and drinks. Some of the kids had never tried pizza, and thought it was yucky. I noticed they ate it anyway.

Next came the singing competition. We were delighted to find that Hanh has an exceptional voice, and her diction was spot on.

Next a game (this took a lot longer than we planned, but the kids seemed to enjoy it so we let it run). About 30 balloons had been blown up. Inside each balloon was a line of The Night Before Christmas, which we had been studying for the past week. The party was divided into boys vs girls. They had to pop the balloons (bedlam), find the lines, and then paste them in order to make the finished poem. Extra mayhem resulted from each balloon being filled with confetti.

The party wound down with Sen presenting a gift and a card to each student.

The card was The Night Before Christmas poem. I had shortened the story, simplified the lines, and added illustrations for meaning. If any EFL teacher wants an e-copy (for next year) just send me an email paulsstuff@fastmail.fm .

EFL Teaching in Viet Nam.

This blog is about how I do EFL teaching and the whole EFL teaching experience.

I’ve been teaching nearly 25 years now.  I live in beautiful Vung Tau, Viet Nam.  You will get to know alot about this part of the world, and the people who live here, via this blog.

Come back often and keep up to date with the happenings at Sen’s School.  You’ll love it.

Paul Rowe