Uneducated teachers

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I am really baffled at the number of uneducated teachers in HK. I know, that where I am from, to teach kindergarten, you must at least have a degree in Early Childhood. Here it seems, to me, that anyone who speaks English can teach. I have been a teacher for over 15 years and it always surprises me that here, schools and parents allow un-educated teachers teach their little ones.

I'm just curious, really. Do schools just care about what looks good? Do parents care about what just looks good. At the moment I am teaching at a school with someone from my home country and she only finished high school (which is great). However, I am so embarrassed by her grammar and vocabulary. She always says the wrong past tense and it is really awkward because I HAVE to correct her. I am an English teacher and it is my job to ensure that children learn the language correctly.

How can I let the principal know that this teacher is teaching the wrong things to students? This may not come across to you as bad, but, believe me it really is! She even talks in broken sentences. It makes me cringe.

I spent 8 years completing post high school education (Master in Special Ed.). Don't get me wrong, I am not jealous of this person or her position. ... I have rightly earned my registration, place in the school and salary. As I said, I am just baffled that parents and principals don't check into these things before they enrol them at schools.

Do you check if your child's teacher is well educated?
 
I am quite shocked to learn that anybody who speaks English can teach. I would never ever apply for a position I was not qualified for so just assumed that everybody was the same.
To be honest I just assumed that anybody that is in a teaching role would be "qualified" to teach. I assumed that it would be the school's job to check crudentials before hiring a "teacher".
I do know that my son's teacher is qualified as she studied in UK and we have spoken about this many times. I am also aware that his soon to be new teacher is also qualified to teach (this was a conversation we had with the principal).
In the UK there are class room assistants who would not be qualified but they are only there to assist and not to teach.
In future I will definitely check with the school as I was not aware that this was common practice so thank you for letting us know!
 
I know - where I am from it is a GIVEN that teachers are qualified, understand the psyco-social development of a child and have basic first aid (at the minimum). Not here though! Do people simply think that just because the teacher is from an English speaking country that they are qualified to teach? Really, I'm just curious how this 'education' system works in Hong Kong. Been teaching for 10 years and about 5 in HK.
 
unfortunately in hong kong, the only criteria to teach english is to be western looking and have english as your mother tongue. it also seems to be the demand from the typical parents - which you can see when you realize that people who look not western (i.e. asian) but who have english as their mother tongue are not accepted as english teachers by many schools and especially parents
 
in hong kong if you want to be an early childhood teacher you must possess a Post Graduate Certificate in Education for Early Childhood Education...that is at schools that are under the juridiction of the HK Education department. People with a BA can enroll in that course PT and FT to get the qualification - at least they have the basics...doesn't make them all star teachers. People without a BA can also do that course but the course work is double the time for those with a BA as they need to get their foundation courses first - stuff they missed in the BA I guess...

Playgroups have a different set of rules to follow and so I will not comment on that area - that is probably where you guys are seeing all the people who speak English and are caucasian teaching but that might not be "qualified" however you might put it.

In schools governed by the HKGovernment it is not legal to hire someone without the appropriate qualifications...in fact, now teaching staff are required to not only have the appropriate qualifications but also have majored in the area in which they teach.

International schools do not have to follow the HK Government, but are unlikely to hire people without basic teaching qualifications as they are willing to pay more and have more of a choice in terms of hiring teachers - many of them with plenty of qualifications and relevant experience.

The problem I see with HK teachers is that many do not enter the field of education as a first choice but rather as a back up so their hearts and passion may not be 200% in their profession. Just my thoughts :)
 
I will admit to being one of those "unqualified" teachers. However, I have been teaching in HK for 15+ years, so there is something to be said for that. What I know, I learned "in the field" and not in a classroom. I KNOW I'm excellent at what I do. I also know that if I were to go "home" I would not be allowed into a classroom.

I do agree that it can be a problem, but just because someone is qualified, does not automatically mean they are good at what they do. Just as just because I'm not qualified doesn't mean I don't have a clue, I have experience to back me up.
 
Mmmm Baileys and ice cream!

moving along.... when a teacher is educated (qualified) where I am from they are also well "experienced" as they must spend time in the field ..Which means they are very good at what they do!! . and usually this is really hard core.... I am really tired of some english teachers in HK being clowns !
 
all i'm saying is that it isn't fair to paint them all with the same brush.

i think we can all agree that there are some well qualified teachers that are horrible and shouldn't be teaching.
likewise, there are some unqualified "teachers" that are fantastic (i can think of 3 off the top of my head...that includes me (he he he)).

if i had it all to do over again, i would probably have gotten a BEd. I still might. I'm just too busy right now with my playgroup centre to even contemplate it. but just because i don't have it, doesn't mean i'm not good. the same can be said for some others out there in the same situation as i am in. i will grant that there are MANY out there who should NOT be teaching, though, so i'm not in complete disagreement with you on that.
 
I would have no issues with Cara's situation where she runs a play group as I would not expect a play group leader to be a "qualified" teacher, I would expect in that situation for that person to have been vetted by the equivalent of the criminal records bureau (UK) to ensure they are considered "safe" to work with children, but again I am not sure of Cara's play group as I dont know if the children are unaccompanied or if the sessions are attended by parents.
I do believe that in a "class room" setting where the children are being "schooled", that the person doing that would be qualified to do so.
 
My point is.. I think it is disappointing that so many institutions and parents do not care about the back ground of teachers and just go for what looks 'good'. Actually, I am stunned that there are no criminal background checks here too. Seriously, anyone, could be teaching your child. There should be a mandatory police checks.
 
I agree with you AmyH. I believe that people who set up play groups/educational institutions/language learning centres should have criminal checks. As well as teachers!! Seriously! Can not believe that this is not done here. Parents need to be more confident to ask about the background of their child's teacher.
 
i would have no qualms whatsoever about having background checks. i think it would be a VERY good thing. but i would extend it to sports coaches, too.

and just for info: 99% of my classes REQUIRE someone to accompany each child. we do offer a couple of classes for older children that do not require that each child be accompanied.
 
In the UK it is standard practice to have police checks- even if somebody is going to complete repairs on the school grounds they have to be checked. Again, I wrongly assumed that this was standard practice in Hong Kong but obviously not. This should be mandatory.
 
There should be standards that teachers meet that include educational and experience.
 
I also agree that ONLY qualified teachers should be in schools. This holds true for ALL primary and secondary schools. In the past, most schools here didn't have qualified teachers. I think that the gov't is slowly catching up with the rest of the world when it comes to this. I remember back in the mid 90s, I taught English to 3 or 4 "teachers" from local schools. Not one was qualified to teach, rather they had degrees from other disciplines.
 
Again, AmyH, I agree with you. I so strongly believe that any one who enters a school premises should be checked. The school bus drivers at my school really make me nervous!
 
I remember my son had a virus when he was 18 months old and his whole body came out in bruises. The doctors at the hospital were very good and diagnosed the issue quickly but the bruises needed to be documented by them in case of abuse etc... They sat my husband and I down and explained that the photographer had to take pics of my son naked, he was a male photographer and he has been vetted to ensure he was safe to do that job and the pics would be held by the hospital on a secure network etc... I had never considered that he was not safe up until that point!
 
Anyway, I wrote something and lost it. Ai ya! ...... basically, it is my job to check kids on their arrival at school and take note of anything on their face, arms, legs. Even a mozzie bite on the face I call the parents. It's my job to make sure they are ok.
 
I think it is ridiculous to make everyone who comes into a school have a background check. It is completely paranoid to go around thinking everyone might possibly harm your kid. I'm not suggesting we be lazy with our children, but there are few boogy men and we should (statistically) be looking within our own families/friends for anyone who would harm our kids.

And I am one of the unqualified teachers you are talking about. I have a degree, although it isn't in education. I think that although qualification has a place, there is too much emphasis on it. I think I'm a great teacher. I work hard educating my students. I have a great deal of experience teaching in different settings. However, if you were looking at qualifications only, you would miss out on all of the rich experience I have. Only looking at qualifications is a very narrow point of view.

As a side note: There is a great need for English teachers, which is why sometimes a warm, English speaking body is hired.
 
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