language school pet peeves and highlights

rockenwood wrote:

... So consequently I started my own.

Your own what?

My own training center......www.ktdcgroup.com.

We're adding a new teacher soon:

https://www.expat.com/en/classified/asi … acher.html

I read this the other night and was about to message you, but decided not to.  Now that you've posted in an open forum, I just can't resist responding.

"What we're looking for is a male or female preferably under 35..."

Looks and sounds like a great job, but not a job for me(even if I was under 35)!  Hopefully you find the teacher you're looking for.

I'm quite intrigued by this :

"What we're looking for is a male or female preferably under 35 with a university degree and some experience teaching English. Most importantly you should be passionate about teaching"

So you don't require any formal teacher training qualifications to start with just a degree and a passion for teaching.


"You will undergo at least one month of training (observing and being observed) before starting your own classes."

So your offering a training program?

And what teaching credentials to you attain at the end of this month course?
From what I'm aware Celta etc are all a month long course but at least a the end you get your certificate saying your qualified.

Now I'm not a teacher of English obviously but I would have thought that some teaching certificates might be of use?

The schools that were mentioned actually have fair hiring policies, as far as I know.  Their pay is lower, but their hiring policies are more in line with "Western" standards. 

STOP THE BUS!  You're an American?  Where I'm from we'd call that policy"Un-American", so I'm a bit surprised!

Teacher Mark.....

Please don't confuse the words "preferably" and "must be". Currently I have one 45 year old teacher on my short list who is quite impressive. She may get the job. Anyone can apply but because this is my business I have the right to decide the parameters. By specifying an age preference (not requirement) I'm simply streamlining the process. There are no jobs where everyone has an equal chance of getting the job, unless you mean having the ability to apply for the job, which in this case, everyone does.

We're looking to groom someone to become another rock-star teacher at our center. My goal is to have a group of 3-4 teachers who are fully dedicated to being the best IELTS trainers that they can be. I don't want to have the biggest training center, just the best. If you search "thay ken ielts" in Google, you will see that during 6 years in VN, I have achieved some level of popularity in the "learning English forums". So I want to share that formula with the teachers who work with me so we can all be successful highly-paid teachers. That's the reason why 100% dedication is so important here. If you feel that you fit this profile, then I encourage you to apply. Good luck!

To Laidback freak: Having a teaching certificate or a degree in education is a given if you want to teach in VN, so I didn't bother mentioning it. The training you refer to is really a process of grooming. My methodology, teaching style, passion, and enthusiasm seems to be something VN students respect and share with their friends and relatives. We spend nothing on advertising because our students spread the word about us and they even wait 2 months on a list to join a course. In our center, the teachers are the advertising, so consequently the advertising budget gets funneled into much higher salaries for them. Therefore a month is needed for a new teacher to observe me and for me to observe him or her. Teaching is something I love and I want to share my experience with the right people for this job.

(Moderated: off topic)

cheers for the clarification

I do know some places that will take "teachers" without any qualifications so it's nice to hear of someone trying to raise the standards rather than just make a fast buck.

laidbackfreak wrote:

cheers for the clarification

I do know some places that will take "teachers" without any qualifications so it's nice to hear of someone trying to raise the standards rather than just make a fast buck.

Ditto.  Cheers for responding as well.

I may send you my CV, but I prefer working for Vietnamese management/ownership.

I interviewed at KTDC last week and was very impressed with the entire operation.  A school that is well equipped, well ran and focused on the mission.  I can see why students are willing to be put on a waiting list in order to study there.

Working at KTDC would be a dream for most teachers.  The average language school here can't supply their teachers with books, but this school is going well beyond that.  With an abundance of resources, overhead projectors, air conditioning, sensible management and a generous salary, the staff at KTDC should be content.  I don't know if I could adjust to such luxuries, having long since grown accustomed to exactly the opposite on all counts!

Nice school Ken.  You're setting the standard for the language schools in Vietnam.  I can tell you from experience that they all pale in comparison!  Well  done.

Thanks for the kind words Mark. People might think I paid you to say those things! Take care...