By Arnold Vis
The teaching market in China is changing. There are fewer jobs available than ever before in both state schools and private training centres. However, China is still a massive country full of upper middle class parents who want their kids to learn English.
This has resulted in a rise of popularity for private high schools, which now play a significant role in educating the youth of China .
But what does this mean for you as a potential applicant? Let’s explore.
The students
It is no secret that students attending private high schools in China are doing so with the goal of one day studying abroad (in places like the US, Europe, Singapore and Hong Kong).
This means they are not studying for the gaokao, China’s incredibly intense one off university entry exam that takes 10 hours, and is widely considered the hardest exam in the world.
Whereas the gaokao focuses on retaining information, students attending private high schools prepare for exams more akin to those found in Western countries (like AP, IB and A-level).
This means that the goal for teachers working at private high schools in China is to get their students used to a more Western style of education and exam format.
Subjects you may teach
Below is a list of subjects that our Chinese partners often request us to find teachers for:
- History
- Literature
- Drama
- Social studies
Of course, these subjects are taught to give students a general grounding in them. But the focus is on making them comfortable with English in terms of speaking, writing, and listening.
Other subjects like economics, maths and sciences may be taught by Chinese teachers at the school, but those classes are also taught in English.
What is required of applicants
Given that these are private schools with demanding parents, it helps if you have teaching experience. However, we have been able to place candidates with limited experience who made an excellent introduction video which demonstrated their potential as a teacher.
If you don’t have teaching experience but are a native English speaker with a degree and a teaching qualification such as a TEFL, you can still be placed, but your first job is more likely to be in a kindergarten or state school position.
When it comes to the subject you may teach (history, literature, drama, social studies, etc.) it helps if you have teaching experience in this subject, or studied it at university. However, it’s not essential.
We recently spoke to Jamie who is teaching literature in Nansha. Jamie was able to get up to speed through extensive research and immersing himself in the subject before starting his job. It’s an impressive achievement, and given that this is such a growing segment of the teaching market in China, is one that no doubt will pay off for him.
New teachers are more likely to find a job working with younger students (such as year 10 students) who aren’t doing exams yet (this happens in grade 12), this gives you the chance to grow into your role at the school with less pressure.
Hours and resources
At schools like these, your work schedule is regular, you work Monday to Friday during regular school hours. You can expect to teach 15 to 25 sessions that are usually around 45 minutes in duration.
The school provides a syllabus, but you have significant leeway to tweak it as you see fit, because ultimately the most important thing is that the students practice and improve their English.
Differences with work in our home country
One of the key differences between teaching in your home country and teaching in China relates to how you communicate with your students.
WeChat (China’s version of WhatsApp that also contains features of Facebook and Amazon) is an integral part of life in China and students are encouraged to contact you on it.
This may come as a surprise and feel a bit uncomfortable at first. But if you set clear ground rules on what they can contact you about, it can be a useful tool to commute with your students and keep them in the loop.
I hope this has helped make some sense of the exciting and rewarding opportunity you have as part of our China program.
If you’d like to learn more, check out our program page, and if you’d like to apply you can do so here.
If you have any more questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me: arnold@impact-teaching.com
