Three things before accepting any job

The greatest lesson I learned from my experience getting a teaching job in China and subsequently living here, is that it’s vital to know three things before accepting any job: (i) Why you are coming to China? (ii) The details of the job you’re taking. (iii) Whether these two factors are compatible? To explain what I mean by this, I’d like to recount my personal experience in a bid to paint a picture of the kind of teaching jobs available in China and the kind of people who typically fill them. When I first started teaching in China I fell into a trap that has ensnared many others. I simply looked for a "job in China." At the time I was still in England, and China was, as far as I was concerned, one homogeneous block of mystery and adventure. I didn’t quite grasp that, just like in England, the positions and locations on offer vary widely. I found my first job through a recruiter. The process was quick, smooth and easy, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into. After a few days at the school I realized I was facing a major challenge. The first challenge was the town itself. Dawufeng is a small industrial hovel (and I do not use that word lightly) about an hour away from the city of Tianjin. I was the only English speaker in town and lived at least an hour away from any other foreigner. Although my social life was less than ideal, it was nothing compared to my work life. I taught at the local primary and middle schools, where classes were made up of over 40 students. In the primary school I had an assistant who spoke some English, but in the middle school I was completely on my own. None of the Chinese teachers spoke anything more than the most basic English. The whole situation left me feeling isolated, overwhelmed and, at times, very unhappy. This job was clearly not the right fit for me. That’s not to say though that another teacher wouldn’t have enjoyed it – someone more experienced, with better Chinese skills and who likes being out of their comfort zone, perhaps. Everyone has their own needs and motivations. By not understanding my own, I’d found myself in a job I didn’t enjoy. The first and most vital step for those thinking of coming to China is to teach is to understand what you want and why.