Anyone else notice the teaching online buzz is dead?

[ozmeldo]

Just some opportunistic sharks posting referral links on Craigslist.

 

I took a look at it, even finished the sign up but then all the nonsense this, that, large dedicated hours and reading some bad experiences from teachers, I just passed. I'm quite busy anyway without teaching little Chinese princes during my low energy hours of the day.

[bkkgriz]

I'm doing this right now. I enjoy it immensely. For the most part the kids are great and it is a good gig. Give it a go, you may find you enjoy it.

[WinterGael]

Bkkgriz, who arecently you working for?

[bkkgriz]

1 hour ago, WinterGael said:

Bkkgriz, who arecently you working for?

I work for VIPKID. The company has exploded in growth over the last year. I have heard that there are around 30,000 teachers contracted to the company now. I have also heard that getting classes is not an easy thing for new teachers. But if one can get hired and get classes, it is a very good company to work for. 

[PerkinsCuthbert]

Didn't work for me, too many connection problems and too remote for my liking.

[smotherb]

Not sure what you mean by online teaching buzz is dead. Online education is undergoing phenomenal success--just google "online education growth" to see

[ozmeldo]

Discussing teaching Chinese kids online if not clear. I had mentioned - teaching online and then Chinese kids...?

 

I signed up with vipkid as well. Then deluged with email to finish the app which was a mountain of tedium.

 

Never see vipkid advertisements anymore nor read about it. I was honestly offended at the aggressive and phony approach, swear I was emailed hourly to finish up, which was a lot of work.

 

During this time I was reading unpositive reviews. The hours are not for me, even if I did that exclusively. I loathe the idea of being on call, like a karaoke girl. I like being in the classroom with my lovely Thai kids. I don't really need the money to be doing that at 9pm at night.

Edited May 19, 2018 by ozmeldo

[bkkgriz]

3 hours ago, ozmeldo said:

Discussing teaching Chinese kids online if not clear. I had mentioned - teaching online and then Chinese kids...?

 

I signed up with vipkid as well. Then deluged with email to finish the app which was a mountain of tedium.

 

Never see vipkid advertisements anymore nor read about it. I was honestly offended at the aggressive and phony approach, swear I was emailed hourly to finish up, which was a lot of work.

 

During this time I was reading unpositive reviews. The hours are not for me, even if I did that exclusively. I loathe the idea of being on call, like a karaoke girl. I like being in the classroom with my lovely Thai kids. I don't really need the money to be doing that at 9pm at night.

I think you don't really understand how the system works. You are in total control of your schedule. You can teach as much or as little as you want. It's not meant to be a full time job though. It's a very good part time job though. Vipkid has grown from around 5000 teachers to around 30,000 now, so it is doing nothing but growing. It is a lot of work to get hired on I will admit, but the extra income is pretty nice.

[ozmeldo]

1 hour ago, bkkgriz said:

I think you don't really understand how the system works. You are in total control of your schedule. You can teach as much or as little as you want. It's not meant to be a full time job though. It's a very good part time job though. Vipkid has grown from around 5000 teachers to around 30,000 now, so it is doing nothing but growing. It is a lot of work to get hired on I will admit, but the extra income is pretty nice.

I believe I understand fairly well how it works. I could swear they had required a  fairly large amount of time blocked off per week. Also, a total and long term commitment (even a contract?) so bye bye holidays.

 

Obviously, one must be available in a window in which children are available AFTER school for lessons such as 5-10pm and Sunday afternoons. Don't fancy finishing a lesson at 11pm when I'm up at 430-5am.

 

It looked like a real hassle to get hired. The relationship is very one way. Devoting the same effort here I could have a more stable, consistent employment, even PT (only 430/5-730/8pm or only Saturdays)

 

I'm employed full-time and have additional income so for me, it's just another teaching experience. Another issue for me is I don't have the super high tech gear and not willing to make the investment for this temperamental employer. I do understand the importance of the requirement. 

 

Finally I'd read some stories about heavy handedness from the company - do this, do that, buy this and buy that. Then they'd changed their minds or lessons...

 

Anyway, I'm pleased it's working for you. Just doesn't look at all appealing to me. The incessant email that was faux personalized I found creepy and disingenuous.

 

But back to my initial post - maybe vip is saturated but I no longer see it splashed over the Internet ... paid for stories woven into blogs about the startup.

Edited May 19, 2018 by ozmeldo

[Johnniey]

This evening I had students from Ethiopia, Costa Rica and Poland.

[NanLaew]

On 5/19/2018 at 7:46 PM, ozmeldo said:

I don't really need the money to be doing that at 9pm at night.

But you still need money to do something else at 9pm at night, no?

[ozmeldo]

21 hours ago, NanLaew said:

But you still need money to do something else at 9pm at night, no?

Reading in my flat, drinking a scotch. No, not really.

 

I just watched a few YouTube videos, well a few minutes of each. The women were really good and I could see how they'd be successful with small kids. It's clearly not for me and dare I say most men.

 

I've never had any desire to teach children. The ritual and vipkid rules look positively inane.

 

Most of Glassdoor reviews are fake. The responses are phony.

 

The videos did my head in.

 

20mbps connection, two demos and whatever else.

 

I'll keep my dignity and time.

[Johnniey]

2 hours ago, ozmeldo said:

I've never had any desire to teach children. The ritual and vipkid rules look positively inane.

Teach adults then with another company.

[Hooplehead]

Yeah, it's hard to get reliable information, due to these companies paying about $120 per head in recruiting new teachers through referral links. I just went through the process with dadaabc. I'm a certified teacher, 20 years international school experience, MA, etc., and was told by quite a few dadaabc teachers that you'll start at $22. Turns out I was offered $17.50 per hour. Then they dock your pay an hour if your internet connection goes out for even a few seconds, dock you a days pay if you are late even by a minute, even when they schedule 6 back-to-back lessons with only 2 minutes between lessons. And there's no automatic warning when one lesson is supposed to end and go to the next student. They could automate this part, but I suspect they rely heavily on docking teachers' pay. And with dada you have to pick your schedule for the next 6 months. No chance to work more in the summer or less later. If you want more than 1 day off, you get docked pay. Theoretically possible to switch a day, or request a day off but it's not guaranteed.

Then you have to give homework and correct it off the clock, do free demo classes, and buy a bunch of props and dolls. 

So I decided against it.

I'll reiterate, these companies are clever for offering such large bonuses to recruit teachers--that way you get lots of dishonest fake-positive reviews. 

[Johnniey]

^^

 

Good review, thanks.

 

Try a company that I used to work with -  learnlight.

 

 

[Hooplehead]

3 hours ago, Johnniey said:

^^

 

Good review, thanks.

 

Try a company that I used to work with -  learnlight.

 

 

Checked out their website. No mention of how much they pay under their "Benefits" section. 

[bkkgriz]

12 hours ago, Hooplehead said:

Yeah, it's hard to get reliable information, due to these companies paying about $120 per head in recruiting new teachers through referral links. I just went through the process with dadaabc. I'm a certified teacher, 20 years international school experience, MA, etc., and was told by quite a few dadaabc teachers that you'll start at $22. Turns out I was offered $17.50 per hour. Then they dock your pay an hour if your internet connection goes out for even a few seconds, dock you a days pay if you are late even by a minute, even when they schedule 6 back-to-back lessons with only 2 minutes between lessons. And there's no automatic warning when one lesson is supposed to end and go to the next student. They could automate this part, but I suspect they rely heavily on docking teachers' pay. And with dada you have to pick your schedule for the next 6 months. No chance to work more in the summer or less later. If you want more than 1 day off, you get docked pay. Theoretically possible to switch a day, or request a day off but it's not guaranteed.

Then you have to give homework and correct it off the clock, do free demo classes, and buy a bunch of props and dolls. 

So I decided against it.

I'll reiterate, these companies are clever for offering such large bonuses to recruit teachers--that way you get lots of dishonest fake-positive reviews. 

That company sounds completely diabolical. As I have said, I work for VIPKID and I quite enjoy the work. I can set my schedule and work as much or as little as I choose. My props are very simple, just enough to do effective TPR and demonstrate various grammar points. I get comments from parents that I am a serious teacher. You don't have to act like a clown to teach effectively. Anyway, it is not for everyone. But man, it has really helped fill up my IRA and other investments.