Teacher s Kit. About Us

Transcription

1 Teacher s Kit Welcome to Beijing Zhuowen International Culture Exchange About Us Our business started in 2010 and has offices in Beijing. We started to provide foreign teacher s to schools in China. We have staff committed in recruiting teacher s to Elementary, Middle and High Schools Our Friendly Staff in Beijing

2 Information Planning Orientation Week Bank Account Cell Phone Matching you to a school School Life Travel to School Salary Payment Arrival at School Accommodation School Life Class Schedule School Dealings Safety First Volunteers Visa s Visa Part Time Work Travel Transport Explore Learn the language Food Transition China Safe Friends Map Travel Internet VPN

3 Orientation Week Orientation Week is for new teachers to come to Beijing find out more about our company and give a demo class, also you get to explore Beijing. When you arrive we start searching for a school for you, you have to pay for your own accommodation but we do meet you at the airport and check you into your hotel. We also help you get a bank account and if needed a Chinese Sim card for your mobile phone. Our search is to match you with a school. Busy periods are always the start of semester February and September

4 First Things First Bank Account We open an account with China Construction Bank this is an easy process of filling in an application form and showing your passport internet banking is also available you have to request this function you will need to get a usb token to transfer money via internet banking also note that which-ever city you get placed at the bank does charge a 6% fee if you withdraw money. We open a bank account for you so we can pay you Cell Phones Cell phones are basically the same procedure: bring your passport and some money (how much depends on what phone - if any - you want to buy) to a China Mobile, Unicom, or Telecom branch and they will be happy to assist you. Many phones are Pay-As-You-Go, with scratch-off recharge cards that can be bought just about anywhere. However, if you're in need of a data plan, you will have to recharge at a dealer location (which you can also do with non-data plans). There are often machines which you will enter your phone number and money into, being given a receipt and continued service in exchange. Please note: Each province has their own numbers so you also have to pay for calls received and calls made each province charges a flagfall fee so if you are in Beijing and you call Shanghai both parties have to pay for the call. If you have a 3g phone you can also get internet through your sim card internet charges apply Matching you to a School When you arrive in Beijing the search begins to place you in a school. This may take 1 day it may take 10 days all depends on what the school is looking for. Some schools only want males, some schools American, some schools native speakers other schools TESOL certificate this process can be long winded but that is the process we try our best to match you with a school as soon as possible. Please Note: During this process you will have to pay your own accommodation cost.

5 Travel to School Once a school, has been confirmed for you. Now you can travel to your school this means you will buy a train or air ticket to your schools city. Train is an efficient way to travel around china and also cheap. Tickets can cost anywhere between RMB for a hard sleeper which is 3 beds each side soft sleeper are a little more expensive and then you have just a seat which is the cheapest option. Recommend: A hard sleeper especially when journeys can be between hours. Make sure you buy water and food for the journey. This cost will be reimbursed to your on your first payment from us around the 10 th of the month you start. Salary Payment All Salary s will be paid on the 10 th both from our office and the school. Please make sure you check with your school as to where you go to collect payment from the school. Arrival at School On arrival in most cases the school will organize to pick you up they will check you into a hotel or accommodation at the school they will also give you a tour of the school where you met department hards and the principal Accommodation Accommodation changes from school to school in most cases the school will pay for all your accommodation needs provide you with the essentials to live just like you would in your own town. Accommodation includes an apartment with toilet bathroom kitchen and room if you are lucky they will also provide you with furniture pots and pans etc Phone Internet Electricity and food is provided basic meals breakfast lunch dinner you will have to check what times the teachers hall is open

6 School Life You may live on campus so be prepared to have wondering students for the first month of your arrival students stare and are interested in you as you may be the first foreigner they have seen ever. There may be a track and field or basketball Class Schedule Normally you will teach between classes a week class schedules vary from school to school if you are lucky enough to have a translator the school will give your schedule if you have an English club at school you will need to partake and it is good to give back School Dealings You will normally deal with a department head or appointed person or the principal themselves Safety First The school number one priority is safety so for women be prepared to not be allowed to go places. Most doctors in China are highly educated -- and thus often speak decent enough English -- and mostly practice Western medicine. So make the choice that is best for you. Volunteers For visa reasons especially if you are travelling on a L visa you are a volunteer so if anyone asks you are a volunteer

7 Visa s Visa law s are always changing in China. We have visa agents that are on hand to provide us information to advise you. In all case s you will need to provide the following to support your application for the visa You will also need 2x passport size photo of blue or white background Your passport A photo copy of your Chinese Visa and Photopage Applicaton Fee You have the option going to Hong Kong to apply for your visa you will need to meet our Visa Agent in Shenzhen. You also have the option to apply in Beijing or the city you are in however you will need supporting document s and because the law s are changing this is not guaranteed. As a general rule you can get 2 extensions on your visa s but you will need to check this at the time of applying as this is always changing. Types of Visa s L Visa -- Getting a visa to China is relatively easy. Depending on your nationality we organize a Visa Agent for you. Some of you will need a new visa every 30 Days, some others every 90 Days. Fee Hong Kong 90 Days 1200RMB Fee Hong Kong 30 Days Fee Beijing 30 Days 180RMB F Visa You will need an invitation letter and you can apply for 6 or 12 month F Visa s. FFee Hong Kong 6 Months 3500RMB Fee Hong Kong 12 Months 5500RMB Fee Beijing + 20,000 to show you can support yourself for the duration of your stay. We assist with this. Z Visa Teachers/Professionals -- If you want to work, you need the travel documents, the application supplement, the Visa Notification Form, and either the Work Permit For Aliens (issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security) or the Foreign Experts License (issued by the Chinese Foreign Expert Bureau). Usually, a teacher's school will provide the Visa Notification and Work Permit For Aliens documents via EMS to assist the teacher in applying for a visa. With all documents, bring the original and two photocopies.

8 Part Time Work Depending on your schedule you can take up part time work depending on the school and if it does not interfere with your class schedule. This is a good way to supplement your stay in China Yes, part-time work is widely available. In fact, many potential employers prefer part-time teachers because their working visas are already arranged. One perk of PT work is that it often pays better -- anywhere from $15-50/hour, great both for those who want to be a little more flush on the weekends, or those who want to save up for their 5-6 week winter vacation. Internet There are a lot of misconceptions about censorship in China, but some of them aren't too far off. The first thing to understand is that internet censorship is very real. Web-traffic is monitored relatively closely by the Chinese government and there are a number of sites that are blocked completely. Any media you have access to in China will similarly be either created by or monitored by the government -- newspapers, books, television stations, you name it, the effect being that you're often not aware of the fact that your news is being censored. Certainly, compared to the West, the depth and reach of media censorship in China is hard to comprehend. The question of whether or not to get a VPN is highly personal and is primarily affected by how attached you are to Facebook, Google+, and Twitter, and also how much you value your privacy. There are plenty of both free and paid VPN services out there that can be used to bypass the Great Firewall, though it is getting continuously more difficult. VPN or not, use common sense when you're online in China. Visiting otherwise-blocked human rights websites or sites that are critical of the Communist Party is not advisable and could result in some questions from authorities. Transport Taxis and buses are good forms of transport you can also buy you a bike for 100RMB Opposed to taxis as OhChina may be, they are definitely the best way to get around in a Chinese city unless you're familiar with the pubic transit system or up for a time-consuming adventure. In the most expensive mainland cities, taxis start at 12 RMB for the first 3km and go up 2-3 RMB per kilometer thereafter. Unless you're staying someplace way outside the city, or decide you want to take one to the Great Wall (a whole different ball game), taxis are a great way to guarantee you'll get back

9 to your hostel without any trouble, day or night. The subway is also convenient if you want to visit something a bit farther away but still in the metro area. And, of course, the subway + taxi combination is absolutely deadly/dirt cheap. City buses are really the only thing you want to avoid unless you've got a good idea of where you're going and how to get there, which is a shame because they cost about $.30 each way. Travel Long Distance Travel -- Trains, Planes, and Automobiles Without a doubt, trains are China's best option for getting from city to city. Planes are relatively expensive and only more so when you add the cost of getting to the airport. Having been around longer, train stations in China are fairly centrally located in most cities. They are well-served by public transit systems and thousands of taxis. Additionally, at least to Americans, the trains are surprisingly nice. Options are for seats or sleepers with varying classes (and costs) within each of those broad categories. But think about it this way: you can get from Beijing to Shanghai while you're asleep for RMB one way.

10 Explore Get to know your own city it ll make your experience worthwhile You will have time off for festivals and examinations if the school allows you can travel around china leave forms need to be filled out at the school Friends It is easy to meet people here in china and most people are helpful and friendly you will be treated like a movie star photos will be taken you will get ask to do advertising for the school or go and talk at other schools theres opportunity there you just need to use your head not make a fuss and do your work Learn the Language Learning Mandarin can be useful if you are proactive you can find someone to teach you with out breaking a sweat. Because the language barrier is so significant and complete, it forces you to learn Chinese. Within the first month, you'll be able to order your favorite dishes at the restaurant, bargain for electronics at the local PC Mall, and navigate a taxi driver to your destination. A few more months and you'll be able to talk about simple opinions along with loads of more vocab -- all from just being in China. You'll be both frustrated with your progress and, occasionally, pleasantly surprised by how well you fare in conversation. Of course, if you're more serious about learning Chinese, it would be wise to consider enrolling in a course.

11 Food Food can be a mission if you don t know the language so learn some Chinese so you can order food Also the school provides meals at school you should get an allowance from the school. If not please let us know and we will provide you with an allowance Transitions The transition between life and china and life in your own country can be daughting but know that you are not alone get to know people Chinese are more than welcome to help you with any problems home is only a phone call away but you can feel isolated and frustrated as they will be communication barriers "Suffocating" is probably the most common descriptor for the language barrier in China, though "pervasive," "stressful," "annoying," and "hilarious" would be just as accurate. You get the idea: without Chinese, it's hard to get things done in China. What would usually take you 10 minutes might take you an hour, especially the first time you do it. Buying train tickets to Shanghai? Make sure you're in a good mood and ready to laugh at yourself as you write and sign out the dates, times, and train numbers. Want to order peppered green beans at the restaurant? Pen and paper are necessary, Michaelangelo. Not sure which bus to take? Good luck. Without a decent knowledge of the Chinese language (spoken and written) it's fairly difficult to get even the most basic tasks accomplished. So yes, the language barrier really is that bad. The most obvious/painful difference between China and their home country is that they're teaching oral English -- or, to put it simply, they are being paid to speak English to a group of Chinese students -- which often, after awhile, feels like a "fake" subject, or one whose classes deserve little to no preparation. On the one hand, this

12 is a bummer because teaching spoken English is mind-numbingly easy for any fluent speaker: many schools simply ask you to prepare lectures, activities, and games around a subject of your choice, while others offer you topics upon to expound upon. Sounds great in theory, but is miserable in practice. On the other hand, being an English teacher is a great way to earn money that lends itself to an incredibly desirable lifestyle: eating out 2-3 meals/day, living in a comfortable apartment in the heart of whatever city you're teaching in, traveling throughout China and SE Asia on your 2-6 weeks of paid winter vacation. An easy job with these perks in the West? Unheard of. Map of China