Language Teachers - do you feel respected in Poland?

What occupation is that, how do I become a qualified teenager? what's the pay?


That's what you do

Back to thread topic, I respect math, science and language teachers...
As long as they are not: rude, have no accountability, immature, and other things along that line.

This is the reason why someone here is suspended/banned.

Respect is earn through having good character, not by paper certificates. If you are kind and polite, people will respect you. Why must I explain this to old men?

If you mean teaching qualifications, then it's a paradox since by the time you're qualified, you'd no longer be a teacher would you are you. You could read up on "pupil teachers" however they haven't existed (in your country or mine) for decades.


What about history, economics, English, art, cookery, geography?


For teaching, the key is ability to teach. Or more pertinently the ability to get people to learn. Teaching qualifications, if awarded properly at least give the tool kit.


Perhaps because you haven't figured how much more of the big picture they see...


I take it your familiar with the famous quote from Mother Julian...

Oh Really ? ........my humor fails me sometimes.


Very good point however I would say that goes for not just teachers but everyone in any country, not just Poland.


Because they haven't learned to comprehend that you can't boast, insult, pretend, or demand respect....... you have to "earn it".
All of the above only show a major inferiority complex.
To get respect you have to give respect while rudeness only breeds rudeness.
And Szalawa you hit the nail on the head, neither paper certificate, age, earnings, qualifications determine a good teacher or person.
I am older then any teacher posting on here and my monthly income most likely is twice plus, what all of their incomes are added together.

That does not make me superior nor do I pretend to be. Just making my point. As in Everybody is somebody.
The key words here (and you hit it) is "Earned Respect".

You're not older than I am and your monthly income is irrelevant to me. I don't post here very often because of the arguments that seem to flare up in threads over the simplest things. It's not like PF I knew when I joined. Oh well. Life is change.

You mean like who is the oldest ? :-)


How is a teacher to feel respected when the student is more mature then the teachers ?

No, I mean I'm older than you are. That's all I said. None of the rest. I was merely disputing your statement about being older, which, unless you're 68, isn't true..

So the op came to poland at least 5 years too late to believe an unqualified unprofessional can thrive the golden days are gone now students want real teachers not people who worked to McDonald's and snagged a polish girl

Price is the bottom line nowadays and you are more likely to get that sort of person pitching up in PL today than a few years ago since wages have been driven down post 2004..

Merged: Why are English teachers not respected?

I hear on many occasions that teaching English shouldn't be the only thing you can do because its not real skill. I, myself, am thinking of teaching English for a few years in Wroclaw, therefore I am planning to become CELTA certified. But I ask myself, is it worth getting a CELTA for a profession which is in ill repute in Poland? Should I work hard to be a great English teacher if people will just tell me that its not a "real job" and isn't challenging. Guys, what is your take on this? I am sure you English teachers (and former ones) have encountered this.

Thanks

Teaching English or any other subject IS a real occupation but unfortunately in countries like Poland, English teaching has gotten a very bad reputation because of the British packpackers, who have no qualifications whatsoever but work for 50/ZL a hour on umowa o dzielo as "teachers" in Poland. All those being unskilled (often high school droppouts) have given the occupation a very bad name. If you want to teach English, be respected and well paid, don't choose Poland! I know qualified native teachers of English who work in great conditions and with excellent salaries but none of them works in Poland. When really qualified, not difficult to find a good job to teach English!

Never in real life. Only on this forum, and usually from people with terrible English. Like Pigsy.

GOSC that is complete bollocks.
Virtrually impossible to find a job anywhere in Europe without a degree, a teaching certificate and some teaching experience.
Now if you were talking about eg Vietnam you might have a point. But you only insult yourself with such posts.

@Rozu: For your info, in the USA, in order to become a language teacher, it's necessary to complete a Master's Degree in Foreign Language Education at the university, I know that in Western European countries, university degrees are required too but in Poland, it appears that any non employable unemployed British school dropout can become a "teacher" folloiwing a few weeks' course. These are not "teachers" and that's why they cannot apply for jobs elsewhere. In Poland I have seen quite a few natives of different languages who were "teachers" whereas they did not even finish high school at home and who could not even master grammar of their own language. Such people have given language teaching a bad reputation in Poland. I've met people who worked as gardeners or as factory workers in their home countries but in Poland, they were suddently "teachers". Teaching is a real job and cannot be improvised. Besides knowing the subject per se, it is necessary to be able to transmit knowledge and to deal with people.

Reading the above posts - there is only one conclusion.
Before you start studying with a 'teacher' in Poland, ask to see his credentials. Do not pay good money, to be taught by a 'gardener' or a 'road-sweeper'. The education qualifications of any good teacher can be checked out.

Funny enough, when I asked a a Speak-up school in Poland for teaching qualifications of the tutors, their answer was - 'oh, they have so many'. When I insisted - they said, 'the tutors are not in now'. I asked when I could meet them - 'only after you sign up'.

To a point. I've come across teachers who are highly qualified but who aren't actually that good as well as teachers who lack paper qualifications but are very good at teaching. One of the best (maybe the best of them all) that I used to employ had very little on paper but was a highly effective teacher.

Instead of asking to see credentials, it's often a better idea to ask for references from people they've taught. Word of mouth is usually the best way to find someone. That and availability - the very best teachers are usually either very busy or simply not chasing lessons.

These musings remind me of a UK TV series in the early 80,s called Auf Wiedersehn Pet......about a team of UK bricklayers from the 'poverty stricken'? well shortage of jobs anyway, North of England (Geordie Land) who leave UK to find work in Germany. One of the guys (OZ by nickname) let,s say he is the one with the least culture, least manners, least looks even, in fact he's a bit of a scumbag really, the kind of chap who would start a fight if he thought someone was looking at him!! but lovable with it in that 'cheeky northern chappie' way. Anyway to the point, back home in UK 'OZ' (who is married) cannot find any girlfriends because his whole demeanor and particularly his accent and the way he speaks, tells girls immediately that he is a 'low born' no hoper..they avoid him like he has herpes. But in Germany he finds out that the local girls cannot tell that he is a no hoper from the way he talks...so he realises that he has a chance with German girls!!! How does this relate to the above? well the class system in UK although seen by many Europeans as a bad thing, can actually tell a UK person, with wide experience, exactly where (or at least pretty close to) they stand in relation to the person they are talking to, simply by their accent coupled with the words they use....in essence an educated UK person would not be caught out by these 'factory floor sweepers' posing as teachers, their manner of speaking etc would give them away in a couple of sentences......my Polish wife even after 30 years in UK cannot really tell UK accents, even the difference between north London and south London elude her, having had to contend with multifarious accents from a young age (career in the Army.... having had contact with such diverse peoples as Nepalese and Samoans among every other accent of the UK) So how is a Pole, who is looking for a good English teacher expected to tell the difference between a Geordie ex factory floor sweeper and a South London middle class ex bank manager? they both speak English of course......indeed who would be the better teacher?

The better teacher would be the one who teaches better. Simples.

I doubt there are many factory floor sweepers teaching languages here in Poland however the learners even in private language schools can generally tell the difference between a bad and a good teacher and vote with their feet.

One thing I have sadly noticed, not just in Poland, is the phenomenon of people teaching English who have a little social cachet, some decent qualifications but are unfortunately no good at getting people to learn - they are however good at bluffing on the basis of their social skills.

No, it's not. If one wants to teach languages in the USA, all one needs to do is put an advert on Craigslist saying "Spanish taught" and go from there.


Not at the schools which are MEN inspected or PASE approved. PASE approved schools can only have up to 5% of their lessons taught by teachers who are not university graduates with a recognised TEFL qualification. MEN inspected schools can only hire university graduates. PASE approved schools get the cachet of PASE membership (and tend to glide past HR managers in the corporate sector). MEN inspected schools can only hire staff who don't have EU passports without needing to get work permits for those staff.


But they are a superb advert for teachers who actually do know what they are doing.

Harry's last sentence. +1

I would say that generally, teaching English in Poland, is not well respected. To speculate I would add that the reasons for this are 1) relatively higher wages compared with other occupations and 2) the perception that it is an "easy" job.

As an English teacher this has lead to unpaid wages, late payment of wages and dodgy contracts. Surely, this has a lot to do with bad luck and not just due to the profession's reputation.

It is ok now, but it sure was a steep learning curve. :-)

The key, I guess, is to accept what you can't change.

Mmm - negotiate all that before you start. I have one rich client who makes feeble excuse at the start of every month - and I have to forcibly remind him of our verbal agreement - which doesn't bother me in the slightest. It's my job, and I want to be paid for doing it.

If in doubt, negotiate discounted rates, but in advance. As for schools and late payment - if you are inexperienced or show desperation, then, yes, you will be exploited - a lot of schools do pay on the 20th of next month - Empik for one.

When you've been teaching for a while you can generally afford to kiss such employers off. But as you say, building your rep does take effort. I don't know where the "luck" thing comes in though. Some people offer trial lessons for example - I would rather watch grass grow myself - but everybody has their own marketing strategies to get bums on seats....

If you care, and try really hard to meet the needs of the learner, and help them to learn faster, then you are "respected" - as they return time after time, as you progress together....

Simples really.

@Dougpol1 couldn't agree with you more. Confidence, firmness and certainty go a long way in this line of work. Respect is earned, not given. If you take care of your clients, they will take care of you, and respect you.

When I say "bad luck", I guess a lot of it was caused by my own naivety to begin with of how things work in Poland, and so it wasn't exactly bad luck.

The old days of bullying with intimidation of students by a teacher/instructor are over.
Some school teachers get that little bit of authority over children and suddenly become geniuses lording over students by demanding respect.
How is a teacher to feel respected when the student is more mature then the teachers ?
We have seen that scenario right here on the Polish Forums.
It's the student that is paying for a teachers services so mutual respect must be shown.

Humanities Education as it is, cannot be said to be a growth field any longer, certainly not as she once was.
While objectively speaking, one might well be dismayed, it certainly should come as no surprise to any normally intelligent, sentient being, reading (above all understanding) the newspaper over the past forty years or so, as one should!

Language teaching as a sole bread-and-butter living stopped probably around the immediate post-Sputnik Era, and has been aggressively struggling to regain her former ground ever since.

Apparently though, the situation is much the same throughout Europe. Asia and the Pacific Rim aka China, Japan, and South Korea are of course another story all together.

Wow, that makes you one of the oldest posters in the PF. Congrats and long live to you, Methuselah!

"Too soon old, too late smart!" might well be the operative sentence here.