Tefl School Monitor

[j634]

I have started a new TEFL school monitor site. This is completely different than the old and hopefully more informative.

The site is still in it's infancy and in need of schools for review. Drop by and let me know your thoughts.

teflguardian.com

Thanks

[PeaceBlondie]

Okay, we will leave this here. Please, no comments on the old TEFLWatch or its predecessors, admins, posters, dog-fights, cat-fights, childish whinging, etc.

[j634]

Okay, we will leave this here. Please, no comments on the old TEFLWatch or its predecessors, admins, posters, dog-fights, cat-fights, childish whinging, etc.

Thanks PeaceBlondie.

[mrtoad]

Okay, we will leave this here. Please, no comments on the old TEFLWatch or its predecessors, admins, posters, dog-fights, cat-fights, childish whinging, etc.

Has TEFLWatch closed?

[twschw]

It seems so

[mrtoad]

It seems so

Cheers for that, I'd heard some rumours, but couldn't verify it by looking on the site the other day.

[PeaceBlondie]

It says on the site it is closed. I got a message today indicating that it will remain closed. You never know for sure.

But please, let us not discuss the late, demised, deceased, etc. TEFLWatch. Good luck to whomever tries the same idea. They will need lots of luck.

[Topper]

I agree PB...you never know. But its nice to see someone picking up the torch and trying to carry on. Hope that whoever is running the site has lots of luck!

[j634]

I agree PB...you never know. But its nice to see someone picking up the torch and trying to carry on. Hope that whoever is running the site has lots of luck!

Because it is a completely different format than (he who can't be named) I think it will be a success. Thanks for the support.

[kowneeoh]

I stated over 3 weeks ago on Ajarn that I would take on the job of "resurrecting" TEFL Watch" into a new and better version.

Well I have worked hard over the last 3 weeks doing just that.I finally finished the site yesterday .. the same day That I received an email from TEFL Watch telling me they have tossed their database to a new owner! .. what a slap in the face!

Never mind .. the new owners site just appears to be an off the shelf script with the old TEFL Watch database dropped into it. No real effort has gone into the site .. which leads me to think that trend will continue into the future.

If you compare it with my new site "Thai EFL Watch" http://thaieflwatch.rahost.org .. I think you will see the amount of effort that's been put into it.

The main difference with "Thai EFL Watch" is that i'ts attempting to be more fair and balanced.. wheras the old TEFL Watch was mostly orientated to the negative...so at "Thai EFL Watch we also have the "Hall of Fame" for "good"schools.

[haltes]

There is also :

http://forum.teflschoolreviews.com already up and running with the old stuff from Thai school watch

[withnail]

I apologise if my comments lean towards childish winging, but I have a couple of issues with any site of this kind. I'm sure they are all made with the best intentions, and I do honestly believe that they are potentially a very useful tool for TEFL teachers.

However, I feel that with the nature of the internet as it is, they are always going to focus on the negative rather than the positive (as you will also see with any major forum on the same subject). I'd love to see a hall of fame list work but the fact is that few people use such a site to say they had a good day at work.

I also think that to some extent they say more about the teachers than the schools, let's face it there are plenty of losers working here, yet there is no teacher hall of shame. I once went for a job interview armed with some info I'd found online, to which the interviewer replied "We've had lots of bad teachers here, but we don't write about them on the internet." You'll notice as well, the names of many of the the big name schools crop up, who have, obviously, employed numerous teachers. If all the teachers who were fired from such a school post on a site, it would look like a terrible place to work. Those who do (or did) enjoy working there however are probably less likely to post about it online.

People these days often take the rantings of lunatics on websites of any kind to be legitimate published material which is a bit dangerous. We have to realize that these forums attract a certain type of person and a certain type of attitude that is not the same as the real world they are discussing.

I wish you luck as I would like to see a truly balanced site such as this out there, I just doubt it will end up to be that, however much work goes into it.

Rant over: Sorry mods if this was too much like bitching or childish winging.

Incidentally, I've had lots of good days at work (don't want to sound too negative )

Edited April 17, 2008 by withnail

[PeaceBlondie]

withnail hit the nail on the head, as usual. Actually, I thought last year's TEFL watch did have a hall of fame as well as the hall of shame.

I am TEFLWatched out, slightly exhausted by the last 12 months of the place. I have been called a drama queen, but some of that stuff was too histrionic for me. 'Tis the nature of the beast, apparently.

Yes, TEFL has some losers. The lady offering 20K per month for 20 classroom hours per week in Chiang Mai complained that she sees lots of applicants who can't list the parts of speech, but the salary deserves that kind of applicant.

I had lots of good days at work, too, within the context that the jobs had some major drawbacks. I was known as a cheerful ajarn (hiding the seething).

[j634]

I would have to agree with you withnail. You are more likely to get the negative and the positive stays hidden. I hope my site can get past all of the negative vibes towards these sites and become an all around information center. That is my goal.

[Ijustwannateach]

As far as I can tell, there are now 3-4 TEFLWatch wanna-be sites starting up. I wish all of them good luck, but I think we should keep an eye on them for awhile before we make any recommendations from here.

[Chaichara]

<br />I apologise if my comments lean towards childish winging, but I have a couple of issues with <i>any</i> site of this kind. I'm sure they are all made with the best intentions, ...

I would like to congratulate you on what is probably one of the most objective statements about TEFL forums that I have ever read. Your post deserves greater exposure.