Teaching English in China: NNESTs Need Not Apply?
Tiffany Shao, American University, tiffshao@hotmail.com
China is suffering from yingwen re, which translates to "English Fever." This fervor to learn English has been "elevated to epidemic proportions" by China's acceptance into the World Trade Organization, and the opportunity to host the Olympics in 2008 (Power, 2005). Consequently, demand for English teachers in China has been on the rise. Such great demand, however, has neither promoted nor reflected the professionalism evident and demanded in the field of TESOL. For example, many schools would want to hire foreigners who have a "college degree and native fluency in English" (Walfish, 2000). This situation makes it very difficult for Chinese American nonnative English-speaking teachers (NNESTs) with professional training in TESOL to teach in China because they cannot compete in the job market with a native speaker, even one without any professional training in TESOL or teaching experience.
I am a Chinese American NNEST in the field of TESOL. This paper recounts my disappointing experience seeking English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching positions in universities in China. In retrospect, my disappointment may have been heightened because the results and responses I have received thus far undermine my initial enthusiasm and optimism: I had assumed, on the basis of my short private tutoring experiences in Taiwan, that my ability to speak Mandarin Chinese and my near-native fluency in English would make me a highly sought-after English teacher in China, as I was in Taiwan. I hope to achieve two goals with this paper: (1) to reveal the hidden discrimination in hiring English teachers in China as a first small step to bring about change, and (2) to make native speakers aware of such discrimination so that they are more sensitive and empathetic to NNESTs.
Following the Chinese tradition of establishing guanxi (connections), I knew that I needed contacts in China to find a job there. If I built my guanxi early and purposefully, I might even be able to find a good job through word of mouth while I was still in the United States. The following valuable information, advice, and personal experiences on teaching EFL in China were all given to me by my guanxi:
(1) A former Chinese classmate: Fan returned to China after obtaining her MA in TESOL from American University. She now works part-time as a teacher trainer and recruiter for a private language school/recruiting agency in Beijing. This fellow Chinese TESOLer dampened my enthusiasm right from the start by being straightforward with me: "If you want me to tell you the truth, I would suggest you not come to teach in China. Discrimination on [sic] colored people is quite strong in China. Most colleges, universities, and language institutions prefer WHITE only." She also confirmed that I, an American citizen, could be treated by school administrators as a Chinese and therefore be paid less than foreign native speakers because I am ethnically Chinese (personal communication, March 2, 2005). Later I found postings on Dave's ESL Café that confirmed Fan's reality check: a Chinese Canadian who taught in China received comments such as "I don't want my child to be taught by a foreign teacher who doesn't look like a foreigner" and "[I]t's just not that interesting to be speaking English with a foreigner who is of Chinese heritage" (Anonymous, 2004). Also, Laurence (2004) states that students in a famous university in Beijing cannot understand the English spoken by their "White English teacher who is French; their previous English teacher was Spanish. It seems that China is the dream come true for all unqualified White teachers."
(2) A teacher recruiter based in the States: Mrs. S. has taught in China, and she gave me a possible logical reason behind why my ability to speak Mandarin Chinese could be a disadvantage in being hired: "I've actually had complaints from some of the school administrators about bilingual teachers. The students won't speak English if they know you will speak Chinese. So best keep [your ability to speak Mandarin] a secret from your students" (personal communication, March 16, 2005). The Chinese seem to hold a double standard regarding being bilingual: foreigners who have learned to speak a few words of Chinese can find "new worlds of communication and possible friendships" (Weiner, Murphy, & Li, 1997), whereas Chinese Americans are expected to be able to speak their mother tongue, but if they do, they are not considered qualified to teach English.
(3) A former Peace Corps volunteer: Ms. W., who taught in China, is the only one who was encouraging about my qualifications for teaching English in China: "You would be a great asset to the Peace Corps China Program. They really need volunteers of all types, especially those with a master's and who can also speak Chinese and/or read and write Chinese characters" (personal communication, February, 28, 2005). It is interesting to note that my qualifications are seen as positive and desired by Peace Corps-a foreign government-sponsored agency sending teachers to China. In other words, being affiliated with a foreign-sponsored agency possibly guarantees better treatment and respect by the Chinese.
(4) A 17-year-old high school student from China: SW, whom I tutor on weekdays, has been in the United States for about a year. Although the tutoring was arranged by his ESL teacher rather than by his parents, SW said his parents would hire me as a private English tutor if we were in China because I am bilingual and bicultural. However, he did also acknowledge that most parents in China would choose native speakers over Chinese-born private English tutors. SW also said that Chinese parents perceive native speakers as better teachers for speaking and conversation but Chinese-born English tutors as better teachers for grammar (personal communication, March 7-9, 2005). I suspect that SW's parents are more open to hiring a bilingual Chinese American as a private tutor because his family is relatively wealthy, educated, and well-traveled. In fact, all of the students I tutored in Taiwan were from such families. It is possible that as China transforms itself to a more market-driven society with increasing exposure to the West, people's attitudes toward "ownership of English" might become more inclusive of NNESTs.
It is clear that my contacts gave me conflicting information and advice about teaching English in China as an NNEST. Officially, the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, which regulates hiring of foreign teachers, maintains that "If you are fluent and have excellent knowledge of English and only slight accent and have lived in the [sic] Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand or USA for some years, you are may be well qualified to get a very good teaching job in China" (China TESOL Teachers Registry, 2004). In other words, even the Chinese central government agency does not guarantee equal employment for NNESTs. Does this mean native speakers have an advantage? If recruiters are as professional as Ms. S. is, they would practice what she does at her agency: Teachers of all ethnicities are encouraged to apply and recruited. Ms. S. regretfully admitted that she has no control over the hiring decisions made by Chinese schools; however, she does ask the schools to send rejection letters to applicants directly (personal communication, March 16, 2005). The unwritten preference of Chinese schools, students, and parents for White native speakers to teach English certainly does not help, especially in EFL environments, in promoting TESOL as a profession equal to the teaching of other subjects. Teaching English is often a business rather than education in China: Schools hire White native speakers to increase their prestige and, especially for private language schools, to attract clients, who believe only White native speakers can teach English. Fan said that she had to unwillingly "give up" the hiring of "a lot of excellent American-Korean teachers" and that she "challenged" her boss to "hire an African American" (personal communication, March 2, 2005). If there were more sympathetic native speaker recruiters such as Ms. S. and more professionally trained NNESTs such as Fan, perhaps the TESOL profession in China would better benefit both the trained teachers and the students.
Despite the conflicting information I received regarding my employability in China, I did not give up on teaching English in China. My contacts' personal experiences about teaching English in China will remain almost hearsay to me until I experience them myself during my job search. I am just now not as idealistic and naïve as before. I will now add a mission to my desire to teach in China: to be the most qualified NNEST to show students, school administrators, parents, and fellow teachers who were hired just because they are native speakers that NNESTs are indeed qualified and competent teachers.
References
Anonymous. (2004, January 29). Beware if you are an ABC/CBC/BBC. Message posted to http://www.eslcafe.com/jobinfo/asia/sefer.cgi?display:1075418501-907.txt
China TESOL Teachers Registry. (2004). 42 of the most frequently asked questions about teaching English in China. Retrieved April 14, 2005, from http://www.china-tesol.com/FAQ/faq.html
Laurence. (2004, May 15). Qualification to teach in China…be White. Message posted to http://www.eslcafe.com/jobinfo/asia/sefer.cgi?display: 1084611816-36880.txt
Power, C. (2005). Not the Queen's English: Non-native English-speakers now outnumber native ones 3 to 1. And it's changing the way we communicate. Newsweek International. Retrieved March 7, 2005, from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7038031/site/newsweek/
Walfish, D. (2000). Teaching English in China: Do it yourself: The steps to finding a job as a foreign teacher. Transitions Abroad. Retrieved April 14, 2005, from http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0001/walfish.shtml
Weiner, R., Murphy, M., & Li, A. (1997). Living in China: A guide to teaching and studying in China including Taiwan and Hong Kong (Rev. ed.). San Francisco, CA: China Books and Periodicals, Inc.
Tiffany Shao, a generation 1.5er from Taiwan, received her MA in TESOL from American University in May 2005. She now teaches ESL and citizenship exam preparation for Montgomery County (MD) Public Schools Adult Education Program, and Mandarin Chinese at American University.
NNEST Newsletter October 2005 Volume 7 Number 2: Table of Contents
