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<h3> Foreign instructors face more policy regulations and changes,
which will keep qualified non-native English speaking teachers from
obtaining jobs in some Chinese regions </h3>
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<div class="m_4341859436314854232gmail-span8 m_4341859436314854232gmail-text-left">By Chen Ximeng Source:Global Times Published: 2017/1/6 17:18:39 </div>
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<center><img style="border-width:0px" alt="According to the new policy for foreign language teachers, even with a degree from an English-speaking country, non-native speakers can not work as English teachers in Beijing, Shanghai and other pilot areas for the new work permit policy. Photo: IC" src="http://www.globaltimes.cn/Portals/0/attachment/2017/2017-01-06/05ba34f8-1035-4b02-8bcc-20806118bf46.jpeg"></center>
<p style="margin-top:3px;font-family:verdana;font-size:13px;font-weight:bold">According
to the new policy for foreign language teachers, even with a degree
from an English-speaking country, non-native speakers can not work as
English teachers in Beijing, Shanghai and other pilot areas for the new
work permit policy. Photo: IC </p>
<p><br><br>When Noli Castillano Apachicha, 38, a Filipino English
teacher in Beijing, heard the new policy that non-native English
speakers may not work as an English teacher in Beijing, he was upset.<br><br>From
October 2016 to March, a new work permit policy was launched by the
State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA), which
classifies foreign workers into three categories, ranking them as an A,
B, or C expat, based on their profession, level of education, work
experience, and so forth. It has been piloted in Beijing, Shanghai,
Tianjin, Hebei Province and other places, according to a post on the
administration's website. In April, the pilot will spread to other areas
in China. <br><br>In these pilot areas, foreign English teachers should
be native English speakers with a bachelor's degree from their home
country, in addition to having two years of teaching experience. Before
this new policy, non-native English speakers could work as an English
teacher if they have a bachelor's degree from an English-speaking
country. Yet under the new policy, the bar has been raised. Non-native
speakers cannot be an English teacher, even if they obtain a degree from
an English-speaking country. <br><br>"I expect that later on, I will
not be qualified for my job because of this new regulation," said
Apachicha, who works at RISE English language training school. "It will
also shun many qualified non-native speakers like me who hope to come to
teach English in China."<br><br>An official with the SAFEA, who asked
to remain anonymous, told Metropolitan that they did so to attract
qualified native English speakers, and to improve the overall quality of
foreign language teachers. Although there are good intentions, foreign
English teachers and a manager of a recruiting agency for foreign
teachers interviewed by Metropolitan think that it would further
increase the shortage of foreign language teachers, and advise for more
nuanced requirements over the qualifications. <br><br></p>
<center><img style="border-width:0px" alt="Foreign English teachers interviewed by Metropolitan think that the new policy should not focus on a person's passport, but their quality of work by issuing more nuanced requirements. Photo: IC" src="http://www.globaltimes.cn/Portals/0/attachment/2017/2017-01-06/58917e9e-dcaa-40cb-8727-9a18af6dc331.jpeg"></center>
<p style="margin-top:3px;font-family:verdana;font-size:13px;font-weight:bold">Foreign
English teachers interviewed by Metropolitan think that the new policy
should not focus on a person's passport, but their quality of work by
issuing more nuanced requirements. Photo: IC </p>
<p><br><br><br><br><b>Being shut out <br><br></b>Apachicha
came to Beijing to start his career as an English teacher back in 2007
because he thought there was a huge demand for English teachers in
China. <br><br>Filipinos often speak English in the Philippines in business and even with their peers when they communicate, he said.<br><br>"Most
of us sound like Americans. Young Filipinos have strong American
backgrounds, and they can easily speak in an American accent without
many difficulties. They are born to be good speakers," he said.<br><br>Despite
his skills, he admitted that during the past eight years, there were
cases where he was not considered for a job because of his background
and skin color. <br><br>"Parents are very particular for wanting native
English speakers, and we were not given a chance to showcase our
teaching capabilities. We are judged according to our background," said
Apachicha. <br><br>Non-native speakers also needed to fulfill
requirements such as a degree from a native English-speaking country.
This new policy will worsen the situation, he said. <br><br>"Even with a
bachelor's degree gained in the Philippines, a TESL (Teaching English
as Second Language) certificate, and eight years of teaching experience
in China, it still does not guarantee that I can teach English," he
said. <br><br>Rebecca Rosenblum (pseudonym), an American math teacher at
an international school, has taught in Beijing for more than seven
years. <br><br>She does not agree with the new policy. She believes it
will force many good teachers to find work in other cities that do not
have such restrictive policies. <br><br>"Being a native English speaker
is good for a teacher, but there will be many people affected who have
near perfect pronunciation and education/experience but are from other
countries. Some non-native English speakers actually have better
teaching skills than natives," she said.<br><br><b>Shortage aggravated <br><br></b>Grant
Dou, owner of Panda Guides, a Beijing-based expat service provider that
includes foreign teacher recruiting, is recently busy helping schools
recruit foreign language teachers for the new semester starting in
February, which is usually the recruiting season.<br><br>This year, Dou
found the teacher shortage is more serious due to the tighter
restrictions on teacher policies, and it will make it harder to get good
foreign teachers. <br><br>The need for foreign language teachers, which
is estimated to be over 1 million, is far from satisfaction in the
country. Last year, he heard that SAFEA issued over 250,000 foreign
expert certificates, but according to the new policy, many will be
unqualified and only over 40,000 people will be able to get the work
permits, said Dou.<br><br>Preston Thomas, who hails from the US and now
works as an English teacher at a Chinese public school in Beijing,
thinks that it is good news for native English-speaking teachers,
because they are going to be able to command a higher salary and more
benefits due to increased demand. <br><br>However, he does not think
that this new policy is accurate because it passes judgment solely on a
person's passport and fails to justify on quality. "Even as a native
speaker and English teacher, I think the level of quality education is
going to decrease," said Thomas, who has been teaching in China for over
six years.<br><br>Native English speaking teachers are going to want
more money, meaning that first-tier cities, private schools and other
institutions who can afford them will hire them first. However, the
students in second- and third-tier cities or schools outside the city
center are going to suffer because it will be harder for schools in
these places to entice them, he said.<br><br>"I can only imagine that
schools will then start putting more students in one class, making it
harder for the teacher and the students. Bigger classes do not help
students master a language, because students will not have enough time
to practice speaking."<br><br>"Under current situations, some schools or
recruiting agencies will have to walk in the grey area to use illegal
teachers," said Dou.<br><br><b>A plea for change<br><br></b>In
recent years, driven by China's great need for the English language,
local media has reported that some English learning centers or language
institutions hire unqualified English teachers, even foreign students
from non-native countries such as the Philippines, India, Africa and
Russia to work as teachers or to pretend to be native speakers. <br><br>Michael
(pseudonym), head of the foreign teachers department in an
international school in Beijing, has heard about this policy change and
thinks there are some good points. <br><br>"I believe this new policy is
directed at the so-called 'learning centers' here where many 'teachers'
are not qualified to teach ESL," said Michael. "I do not believe that
it will impact our hiring practices since we hire foreigners where
English is their native tongue."<br><br>However, Thomas thinks that if
the policy was meant to curb some learning centers, they will just find
another way to get around the law, either by issuing tourist visas or by
hiring the non-native teachers for other jobs and then putting them in
the classroom.<br><br>He said raising the bar might be good, but the focus should not be a person's passport.<br><br>"I
have seen countless times where non-white teachers (native and
non-native) are tossed aside for a white face. Give them a chance and
stop 'white washing' teachers. It is 2017, and it is time to let
prejudice go and let the most qualified teacher get the job regardless
of where they come from or their skin color," said Thomas.<br><br>Rosenblum
also suggests that Chinese government look more at actual teaching
qualifications and experience than if they are native speakers.<br><br>"I
think education, experience and pronunciation should be considered
together when looking for English teachers. The longer you speak a
language, the better your pronunciation gets," she said. <br><br>"The
new rule is going to keep out people who are adequately qualified to
teach English. What if someone is from the Philippines but has been
living in an English-speaking environment for 15 years and has fluent
English? They are going to be kept from getting a job because of the new
policy. That's why someone's spoken English level needs to be
considered."<br><br>Dou recently wrote a letter of advice on this issue, and he plans to present it to SAFEA. <br><br>In
the letter, he suggested that the administration could set a united
grading test system directed at foreign language teachers. One part is
on language to test whether their pronunciation is standard, and the
other is the demo class to test their teaching skills. <br><br>"In
addition, according to the grading system, they can also decide which
groups of people (children and adults) the foreign teachers are more
suited to teach. Then recruiting agencies and schools can make a better
decision on their qualifications and decide on their pay level based on
their performance in the system," said Dou.<br><br>Apachicha shares the
same opinion as Dou. He is still employed at his school, but is
anxiously awaiting impact from the policy and hopes that the new rule
might change.<br><br>"Why not give teachers a licensing examination to
ensure the quality of education being received from Chinese students? It
doesn't matter if you are native or non-native; credit should be given
to all great teachers no matter their nationality," he said. <br><br>"There
should be one government organization that will handle and assess the
qualifications before someone can apply for a teaching post. In this
way, we can have the trust and confidence in English teachers."</p><p><br></p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="m_4341859436314854232gmail_signature">******************************<wbr>********<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/<wbr>mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>******************************<wbr>*************</div>
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