Interview with Jeannette Cockroft
who has taught English in China
 

Where are you from Jeannette?
 
Texas, United States

Where are you teaching or where did you teach?

I have taught twice in China--once at Suzhou University, Suzhou, and once for Hangzhou Babel Language Center (English summer camp, Summer 04)

What do/did you like most about living and working abroad?

I love the challenge and adventure of living abroad. Even though I speak a bit of Chinese, my skills are weak, so I have lots of adventures
just focused on things like getting where I need to go or buying what I need.

What do/did you dislike the most?

Working for Chinese administrators is very difficult. They often treat
foreign teachers--even professional ones like me--as if we were disposal, migrant workers. They often worry more about profit than about good teaching.

How did you get started teaching abroad?

Found a job on the internet when I finished working on my Ph.D.

Do you have any back ground in teaching English, if not, how did you learn?

I had only 3 hours of graduate training in teaching English, so learned mostly on the job and with the help of very generous, more
experienced colleagues.

How long have you been teaching English?

I don't do it full time; at this point, I only do it in the summers as a way to afford to travel in China

Do you feel teaching English overseas is a good way to make a good living?

In the short term, you can make a reasonable living; in the long term, you cannot. It is a good job for a year or two, but if you are thinking about how to save money for retirement or more education or a house, teaching in China is not the way to do it.

Can you give some good advice for someone thinking about living and teaching English abroad?

Be very careful who you work for. If you use a broker, or middle man to find a job for you, be sure to check his reputation before making any commitments. The person I used to find my summer camp job last year, Anlin Gao, promised me one sort of job and then changed everything once he got my placement fee. Many of these people are just in it for the money; the Chinese often don't care much about the quality of
the teachers they hire--they just want native speakers that work
cheap. You can get into some very difficult places where people don't deliver the working conditions or salary promised...and the broker often has no contractual obligation to help you once you are in China. If you don't speak Chinese and don't know how to get things done in the country, you leave yourself in a very precarious situation.

Can you describe what's it like living and working in country you're in?

Living in Suzhou was wonderful; although we lived on campus and were segregated from our Chinese colleagues, the city is an exciting and vibrant place. The local people and people in the foreign office on campus (the waiban) were generally very kind and helpful.

Do you have any warnings for people considering teaching English overseas?

Don't use a broker unless you are very certain the person/company are reputable and honest.

If you could do it over again, what would you do differently?

I would have been diligent in checking out the reputation and credentials of people I was working with before I even left the US

Is there a way for someone to contact you for
more information?

ronellewimmer(at)hotmail.com