Twenty years ago, there were few foreign teachers in China. They were found only in the colleges and few foreign language schools. But now,they are seen in most of China's schools.
There are hundreds of foreign language training schools in Kunming now, which lies a booming job market to foreigners.
"Gan qing shen, yi kou men a！(a Chinese polite formula for cheers)", said Jerry, an American to his friends. They were talking about films, women and travel at a bar on Wenlin Street. There are many exotic bars and pubs on Kunming's Wenlin Street, which makes the street a meeting ground of foreigners. And a majority of them are working in private-funded foreign language training schools, providing "small classes" and "one-to-one tutoring", earning considerable income.
Jerry, 35 years old, comes from Texas. He is now teaching middle school students English in a private-funded language training school in the northern part of the city. Earning 300 yuan from a class and his monthly salary is about 7000 yuan, which is much more than Chinese teachers.
"I had a low-paid job at a town in Texas 5 years ago. My college is not good enough to enable me to find a well-paid job, just as lots of Chinese. My father is a veteran lorry driver. He recommended me to be employed as a handyman in the same company. A handyman! That was killing me, a young man, you know. So I stimulated myself to learn Chinese and then come to Kunming!", said Jerry.
He traveled around the province and had a good time before finding a job. "Many of us are working while traveling, instead of just working a standard 9 to 5 schedule, you know, just as Chinese do!"
Recommended by some friends, Jerry successfully passed the job interview and started classes the next day. "Both the written test and interview are very easy. The boss does not inquire about your diploma, nor employment records. No qualification required, either. It is easy to get such a job. I decide what to teach and how to teach. So I found some online videos and imitate a relaxing learning environment for my students. Now, all of them improved grades, which makes me proud."
Jerry is not the only lucky foreigner in Kunming.
Millie, an Italian, came to Kunming 5 years ago. "I planned to play piano in a 5-star hotel. But my husband sarcastically said 'No one will listen to your music in a China's hotel'." He suggested finding a job in an English training school. I was disliking this proposal. I don't have any formal qualifications, nor teaching experience. But I went to the school because of the living pressure.
After giving two classes, Millie found that "teaching English in China is a easy job". "I am earning a monthly 6000 yuan. No more work except giving classes. I am free to go after classes. It is really a cushy job. The salary is all I earned here.
But technically, many of the foreign teachers are employed illegally, and most of the schools that employ them are running illegally too.
Reporters learned from Kunming Bureau of Foreign Experts Affairs that only 32 of the hundreds of language training schools are legally qualified. The others are running without registering nor approval.
And according to related laws and regulations, "a qualified foreign teacher should be a native speaker of the language that he/she applies to teach." But the thing in Kunming is lots of foreign teachers don't meet this condition. (Editor:Minne Mao)
