Teach in China

How I did it: I got a call from my father one day telling me that a company from Hong Kong had been in touch with the States of Jersey (where I used to live, and my family still do), asking if there were any Jersey university students who wanted to go out to Hong Kong and teach for 6 weeks. I jumped at the chance, and after getting through all the initial paper work etc I went out there to work for them.

Lessons & tips: I recieved no training, and have heard other people have had similar experiences. It was a little daunting to be put in front of a class of kids without any idea of what to do with them, and a set ciriculum which kept them occupied for 15 mins of a 2 hour lesson, therefore, before you go, think about what you might do in that circumstance. I would suggest trying to make flash cards etc, however, it is difficult to asses the level (or even age) of children you'll be teaching.

If you go to Hong Kong in particular, expect small lodgings! I shared a room with 2 single beds and a telephone table in, that pretty much filled it. It was clean and comfortable, but very very small. Hong Kong doesn't have a lot of space!

Be flexible! There were times when I was asked to cover at very very short notice. I was supposed to be teaching 16-18 year olds, but ended up covering for 2-6 year olds fairly regularly.

If you are a vegitarian, have a care, it is difficult to find vegitarian food, although not impossible. The only cooking facility we had was a rice cooker, and rice gets pretty boring after 6 weeks. You might want to look up veggie resturants before you go.

Oh and in China, maybe means no. People won't say no to you very often, so if someone is being evasive, and saying maybe a lot, it probably means no. Just because they won't say no, doesn't mean they will do what you want however!

Mar 11, 07:53AM PDT | 1 comment | 1 cheer