Outright Racism In The Tesol Industry

[Scott]

A number of schools base the pay on the passport you carry. If you ethnic background is Asian, but you have a US/UK/Canadian/Australian passport, they will pay the same as for a 'white' face.

Regardless of the passport, it's harder if you are not the right look.

Edited April 23, 2011 by Scott
not added/Scott

[jcartermad]

Are you for real?

American accents "down south" are just as bad as some UK accents. Try New York. Not quite the Queens English.

American English is not the norm. I've worked all over the middle east and boy do Arabs struggle with some American accents. A good British accent is welcome anywhere.

As an aside did 2 billion tune in when the President took the oath? Watch next Friday and see why Britain is the only home for English. 2 billion will tune in to watch William & Kate. Everyone with clearly understand the British sound tracks.

To get back to the original post. I agree with Scott. Racism should not be an issue but it is. If the OP has a clear accent I would recommend him to several schools that I know. He can teach grammar, extended essay and Chinese to boot! Big school - he could be a good addition. Many schools employ staff from all over Africa so it's not all bad. I hope this guy gets a job real soon. He sounds just the ticket for someone who can see behind the colour. Racism has no place anywhere. Good luck OP - get a suit, white shirt, red tie and polished shoes. Go knock on the doors, get a professionally written CV and show them what they are missing. Sell yourself and then do a great job.

I've heard of some schools in Asia desciminating against British teachers because of their dialects.

prefering to opt for an American accent instead of say...Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle etc

sad but true.

Nothing sad about that at all, makes sense. Why should they want their kids taught some local dialect like Brummie and Geordie? Kid comes home from school and asks, "Mutha what's fre dinner the neet?" It's just a fact, which better schools have recognized, that most Brits over here can't speak Received Pronunciation and are therefore incomprehensible. Even the Thais in charge of hiring have a hard time understanding them.

American English has become the standard, like it or not. The spelling is more rational, too, thanks to Noah Webster.

[Scott]

Let's stay away from the issue of accents. They are like a certain body part--everybody has one.

[mauiguy90]

Its interesting to find so many grammatical errors in JD's post criticizing the Filipino poster. Perhaps a refresher course in a TESOL class focusing on writing would be of assistance.

.

Many people would disagree with your opinion of Filipino's in education. It usually isn't the same level of English as a Native Speaker.

JD,

I am Filipino, and i think is it safe to say that our education is at par as a native speaker. Not many people are aware of this, but, English is our official language in the Philippines. It is used to conduct Business, and, it is the Medium of Instruction in our school system. The Filipino language is widely spoken as do our several dialects, but that is just a way to keep in touch with our heritage.

have you been to the Philippines? im just guessing you havent... or havent met a lot of Filipino Professionals. Not all Filipinos have the "funny accent'. If u have been to the Philippinnes, you know what i mean. the news, posters, magazines and such are all in English.

anyway, to get back to the topic,

yes sadly, I have the same problem as the original poster. i was told by a few centers that they wont hire me because i am not white... same as a friend of mine she's an american born filipino... with an american passport and all.. still being discriminated..

I am sorry, but I've worked with dozens of Phillipinos in teaching jobs and non teaching jobs. I've worked with Phillipinos in Govt. jobs. Phillipinos who have lived away from the Phiilipines for 10 years or more.

What you say simply isn't true in my experience. Your own post is full of grammatical errors. I know "the internet doesn't count", but I am guessing you tried to be as close to correct as possible given that you were making a point.

It's simply not true that Phillipinos are on the same level. The odd exception, yes.

99% of cases though, no.

Also, having been there, your native language is very definitely tagalog.

Edited April 23, 2011 by mauiguy90

[jdinasia]

Pardon me? Perhaps you should read my post again Then again, I am NOT a teacher. I hire teachers

[koralynne]

The director who agreed to hired me issued me a warning of sorts, telling me that if any parent should mention to the school that they didn't like the idea of an asian teaching their children, the school would have no choice but to pull me out of the school.

So much for education in Thailand.

[jdinasia]

The director who agreed to hired me issued me a warning of sorts, telling me that if any parent should mention to the school that they didn't like the idea of an asian teaching their children, the school would have no choice but to pull me out of the school.

So much for education in Thailand.

I hope it works out well for you, as you are certainly fighting an uphill battle!

[jackdawson]

So much for education in Thailand.

that's the spirit !

(as a 5-year english teacher let me add that) fyi , u may want 2 think about deep breathing exercises and adding a layer of thickness to ur skin (to survive here)

u r DEF. NOT in sing. anymore

re: english teaching ; u r a cog in the machine and as replaceable as the batteries in your tv's remote

modesty can go a long way

Edited April 24, 2011 by jackdawson

[Xangsamhua]

Good luck OP - get a suit, white shirt, red tie and polished shoes. Go knock on the doors ... Sell yourself and then do a great job.

Could be awkward. I think the OP is female.

[Xangsamhua]

The director who agreed to hired me issued me a warning of sorts, telling me that if any parent should mention to the school that they didn't like the idea of an asian teaching their children, the school would have no choice but to pull me out of the school.

So much for education in Thailand.

There are schools in Thailand - Thai owned schools - that do not have discriminatory hiring practices. Your director has a choice. If his/her school is known as a good one he/she can simply tell these parents that the school hires teachers on criteria other than race.

I have also sat on interview panels for teachers who have not been able to find work elsewhere on openly racist grounds. They have proven to be very good teachers and staff members.

[mauiguy90]

Why does that make perfect sense?

Pardon me? Perhaps you should read my post again Then again, I am NOT a teacher. I hire teachers