[clivehawkins]

Calling all English teachers!

I'm about to take on some teaching staff at my private school. It'll be the first time I've employed anybody on a full time basis.

Until recently I've been on the 'teacher's' side of the fence, so I've got a fairly good idea of what I should be doing to keep my teachers happy. However, I'd really appreciate some feedback from you guys as to what makes a good director.

Take it as a chance to have a good moan about your current school \ director \ colleagues etc etc. What changes would you like to see? What should they be doing more \ less of? How could they make your job easier? How could they improve you as a teacher?

You get the idea.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

[Eric]

here are a few things i learned working under a bad coordinator and then taking on that position myself.

seek the teachers' advice concerning things like the schools' text and other choices that directly effect them.

be a nice schedule maker. avoid split shifts. if your teachers would like this, try to have teachers teaching out of the same books (ie. 1 teacher teaches all level 1 books, teacher 2 teaches all level 2 books, etc). that is if your teachers would like to do that.

have monthly meeting to keep teachers updated on what's going on, let them know what's coming up in the future and most importantly, to get their feedback about things. as a manager/owner, there will be times when you lose touch with what's going on on the front lines. try to keep up to date with things the teachers are having issues with.

if you value your teachers and want them to stay longer than 1-2 years, make sure you can offer some incentive for them to stay with your school. this may be money. maybe more time off. (i always chose the latter.)

finally, keep the lines of communication open between you and the teachers. make democratic choices when necessary but don't be afraid to say, "this is how it's got be" in other cases.

hope that helps...

[livinginkorea]

You seem like a nice guy Clive so I'm sure that you will be a reasonable and decent boss. Good to hear that your school is doing that well!

I think you should have some contract and follow that to the letter. Find out some website and see what other schools are offering. If you can't compare with that then offer more holidays. Try and get somebody who has experience although I don't know what the teaching position is like there. In Korea you have to offer housing and flights too but it's probably different there. What are the wages for a month there?

[clivehawkins]

Thanks guys.

The communication aspect is vital, I agree. I'd rather know if there's a problem than someone just bottle it up and then leave out of the blue. I know of teachers here who are deeply unhappy and moan non-stop to their colleagues but the director is blissfully unaware of the problem. The fault lies with both parties.

I'm already paying more than the going rate so hopefully that will inspire some loyalty and feeling of 'worth'.

We'll see how it goes!

[clivehawkins]

Quote livinginkorea

In Korea you have to offer housing and flights too but it's probably different there. What are the wages for a month there?

No, none of that here I'm afraid. If the contract is with a British agency there may be some incentive with flights etc but a local contract will be money for the hours done and stop. The contract will also be for the school year, not the calendar year - so 9 months of money and then a long penniless summer.

The going rate for a first year teacher is roughly 14 - 15 euros an hour, pre tax. That generally goes up to around 20 for someone with more experience, qualifications etc. (But you need to hunt around!) It's rare that the larger schools pay this - they feed off the first year teachers.

Sounds to me that in Korea a teacher can actually make decent money. Here it seems more like teachers can get by.

wanna swap?

[livinginkorea]

Quote clivehawkins

No, none of that here I'm afraid. If the contract is with a British agency there may be some incentive with flights etc but a local contract will be money for the hours done and stop. The contract will also be for the school year, not the calendar year - so 9 months of money and then a long penniless summer.

The going rate for a first year teacher is roughly 14 - 15 euros an hour, pre tax. That generally goes up to around 20 for someone with more experience, qualifications etc. (But you need to hunt around!) It's rare that the larger schools pay this - they feed off the first year teachers.

Sounds to me that in Korea a teacher can actually make decent money. Here it seems more like teachers can get by.

wanna swap?

Well it's always interesting to hear about teaching in Europe because that is where we will end up in a few years. It's true that the money here is good (I won't tell you how much I make as it would make you guys sick ) but that will all change later on. Hence the reason why I am doing my MA in TEFL via distance learning through the University of Birmingham.

Clive, how many hours a week will you be able to offer the teacher? Would they be totally full time or part time? I work in three places as a part time teacher and the student numbers for one school in particular has gone through the roof. They might start looking for a full time teacher soon and if they do I will be finished Oh well there are so many schools looking for me

Italy would be a cool place to go to but we really have our heart set on Austria, especially Vienna. Have you travelled around Europe much since you have been in Italy? Pompei would be cool to go to!

[clivehawkins]

Yeah, you'd do well not to tell me - I don't want my weekend ruined!

A full time job in a private school here means somewhere between 25 and 30 hours per week. I'd be looking for at least one full time teacher in the school, one to do external courses and a part timer to do various bits and pieces. I'd also look to do as much as I could without compromising my role as director, ie not having enough time to get things organised properly (like now :-( )

To be honest I haven't see so much of Italy as getting off the island gets to be a bit time consuming, expensive and tiresome. However, Europe has really opened up recently and once you're on the mainland getting around is easy enough.

Don't expect the sort of money you're earning over there though. Just through teaching you need to work pretty hard here to clear 2K.

[HUE]

Congratulations on the school, Clive. You must be doing well to start hiring f/t and p/t teachers.

I've done hiring in the past, and now do a lot of training. I've also worked at a few places with full-time staff, as well as the one-day-a-week people. Their expectations are quite different. You have a chance to build loyalty with full-time staff, considering that they are long-term and you have contact with them on a daily basis. Part-timers, if unhappy, tired, or bored--whatever--will just go and find another job; they often view the job as anything but permanent, able to pick up and go wherever and whenever the feeling strikes. Of course, in smaller cities and towns, this may not be 100% true...!

The most important part is the hiring process, I think. Careful screening is important, not only in terms of skills but also compatibility with the school/staff. There's nothing worse than getting someone who ends up calling in sick every few weeks, doesn't care about the job, or doesn't get along with other teachers. It really affects everyone he/she has contact with. Here's a good article from the Teacher Trainer (someone introduced the site here):

http://www.tttjournal.co.uk/uploads/..._Selection.pdf

Once you have the person, set out clear expectations. What are your rules about teaching, sick days, pay, etc.? Also consider what your rules and expectations are in the classroom. It certainly helps if you have clear guidelines that apply to everyone.

I would also consider working towards making that person a better teacher. Job satisfaction comes at the top of the list (or near it) for staying with a company. Most of us have had terrible bosses in this business at one time or another, and yet we stayed because of the students, we could become better teachers, etc. The larger schools are quite content in this approach, setting up a treadmill of inexperienced teachers. Consider monthly meetings, as mentioned here, that also include a training workshop. Encourage feedback and comments, too. You'll end up with a better, more experienced staff who want to stay.

Lastly, at the end of the day, remember that you're the boss. This is something that I've struggled with in the past. Although I value the comments my people make, try to help them whenever possible (and even go out of my way to do so most times), there are always hard decisions with which they may disagree. It was hard to make the switch from coworker and colleague to supervisor.

But perhaps the best advice is to watch a few episodes as "The Office," and learn what not to do.

Good luck with the school and hiring!

Chris Cotter
www.headsupenglish.com

[clivehawkins]

Thanks Chris, wise words.
Like you say, job satisfaction is vital. I hope that by giving them every tool \ resource \ help available they'll be happy and stay. Continuity is important too - students get attached to teachers and don't like changing every 6 months. However, I've had some students for three or four years now and that's negative too - they need a change as much as I do, but they won't have it!

I just hope I don't end up like David Brent - if I do then somebody shoot me.

Thanks again, and the site's looking good by the way!

[mesmark]

Congrats! That's great.

I'm actually in the same boat. I'm opening a new school in a nearby town and have contracted a woman to work with me. It's not easy, but hey you've got to give it a shot. Fliers have already gone out and lessons begin in April.

Quote clivehawkins

I'm already paying more than the going rate so hopefully that will inspire some loyalty and feeling of 'worth'.

I hate to burst that bubble, but it's been my managerial experience that higher pay means nothing. You should pay people an appropriate amount for their experience level and that's it. Higher pay won't make people more loyal.

I worked just as hard and was just as loyal for $4.25/hour as I did/was when I made $6.25, $7.50, $20 and so on. It's in the person, not the pay check.

Just make sure you pay the person an appropriate amount so they don't leave you.

The best way to show appreciation is bonuses that aren't on the contract. It's great to have a boss say they appreciate your efforts and give you a bonus that you weren't expecting.

[clivehawkins]

Congrats to you too mesmark!

I appreciate what you're saying about the money. However, where I work is a fairly small city and I know a lot of the teachers already. I also know they're a pretty mercenary bunch who, along with the training \ support etc, want as much in their pockets for the teaching hours they do.

I guess that I'll have to do things by trial and error. I'm not one for endless 'pointless' meetings or going over each class with a fine tooth comb. In fact, maybe I'm a little too laid back in that respect. I almost can't wait for the first teacher to leave just to find out what I'd done wrong! :-)

Hope your courses go well ie bums on seats and smiling students. Good luck fella.

[DaveESL]

For me, one thing I really appreciate as a teacher is a combination of flexibility and support. I want there to be some sort of curriculum or framework in place, so that I don't need to jump in and begin making all of my materials from scratch. At the same time, as I become comfortable with a place, I'd like some freedom in terms of how I conduct my classes.

Right now, my job sort of gives me that. Basically, I teach at a mediocre college. They threw some textbooks at me, but nobody pays any attention at all to whether I use them or not. My last job, at an IEP in Hawaii was much better in terms of providing institutional support. They also allowed a great deal of flexibility and material development, though.

Anyways. My two cents.
Dave