I have been at my school for 22 days. I have never been an ESL teacher before, this is my first time around, and I landed in northeast China at a language training center. I'm a 25 year old American guy, and can't seem to get a long with the Chinese teachers at my school. They're all young females between ages 20-25. And they're really rubbing off the wrong way on me. My first two days at my school: I would walk into the office before my classes began to prepare my things, and I would walk in and say something like "Good afternoon." All the Chinese English teachers are sitting there at their little cubicles (in a small office room), and all I hear back from them is silence... That's right, nothing, no response, nothing... My first two days. Then I say to myself, to hell with them, if they're going to treat me like this, I'm going to be cold, and be a jerk right back. One day a Chinese teacher entered one of my classes and informed me that we were teaching a half hour longer today. I told her this wasn't what my schedule said that my director made me. She told me, it's just the way it is. I was furious. You can ask me almost anything in the world, and I'll do it for you. But you gotta ask me. If it's extra, you don't just arrange or tell me to do something. So again, she rubbed off the wrong way on me, needless to say. Then the other day, I taught my segment of the class, the first part, class ends, and the Chinese teacher is waiting at the door to take over the second part of the class. As I'm leaving, she asks me how the test went. I said, "What?" She said, "You mean, you didn't give the oral test." I said, "No, I didn't, it's not in the course syllabus." She gave me a disgusting, disapproving look, and I just walked away. Then just yesterday, a Chinese teacher comes up and asks me what I plan on teaching for one of my classes. I said, well we did this page last time, so I'm going to do this, this, and this... She turns back a page and says, "Can you check?" I said to her, "I don't understand what you mean." She laughs briefly and said, "Can you please check?" I said, "That's exactly what you just asked me and I told you I don't understand what you mean." I then said to her, I'm going to do this, this and this. She said, "Ok" and she turned and went away. This school waited until exactly one week before my temporary Z visa expired to proceed with my medical physical exam. That was done Friday, and my visa expires the following Friday. The results are received back on the physical Tuesday late afternoon. The secretary at the main school was appointed to proceed with the next steps of getting my 1 year visa and Foreign Expert card. She explicitly told me on Friday that Tuesday was her day off, but first thing Wednesday morning she would take my documents, to get my visa processed. So she told me she didn't my passport, and photos... Well, Wednesday morning rolls around, it's 10:30am, and she still doesn't have the stuff from me, nor does she contact me asking for it. So I call the school, ask to speak to her, and someone else tells me she is not working today, that maybe tomorrow (Thursday) she will be there and do that. I go in there later in the afternoon, and that woman is there, at the school, and she never speaks a word to me about the visa stuff; I am furious, because I know they lied to me on the phone because they wanted to put my visa off until the last day. So I just play along in their games. I know I have nothing to worry, they are the ones responsible for my visa, as they are my sponsor. So if they mess around with my visa, it's their asses, not mine. Thursday afternoon when I come to the school to teach, she hands me my official contract to read over and sign. She tells me they need that for tomorrow (Friday), when they will go and put in papers for my 1 year visa. It's twenty five minutes before my classes begin that I'm teaching, and I'm reading over my contract... One of the Chinese teachers comes over to me while I'm reading that, and asks me what I will teach for the classes today. I told her that I was busy reading my contract that my director wants me to sign and give back to her immediately. I told her to ask me later. She says, "Ok," and walks away. She never comes back to me again to ask me what I will teach. I teach, my classes are finished. As I'm walking out of the office to leave the school, the secretary says bye bye... I don't look at her, or say a word; I walk out. Apparently now they're finally complaining about me, and the way I treat them. They treated me cold from the beginning, and now they're just getting back a little bit of their treatment toward me. And they are hating that. They make me miserable being there. You can only be Mr. Nice guy so long, but eventually when nothing is reciprocated... Well, with me anyway, I have become cold, and am a jerk right back to them. All I wanted was to be treated fairly, like the way they treat everyone else. And everyone else is treated warmly... But not me, even from the very beginning. So I'm giving them the same kind of treatment. And they hate it. They can suck it up... So Friday comes along, and it's Friday afternoon. I go out to a restaurant with a buddy of mine. As soon as I get back home, the secretary is knocking at my door. Asking me where I've been, and saying we must go to Central Police and get my visa extended. She told me we can't get the papers in for the 1 year Z visa (even though it's the deadline that very day, because she told me I must get further medical testing. She told me I have some problem with my heart. And so we must now change my visa to tourist visa, so I can wait and get the testing required and then try again for Z visa. I'm furious, because I was told Tuesday when my medical physical results came back that everything was ok. They even showed me the paper with results. And now the day I'm supposed to process my visa before it expires, they're telling me I have a heart problem? I refuse going with her at the time... I told her I'm not ready, that I need to make some phone calls. She waits awhile, and knocks again. I tell her to wait... Well, I eventually decided to not go with her at all. I don't trust her as far as I could throw a rock! After I made up my mind, I told her goodbye, I wasn't going with her. Keep in mind, this is the same woman who told me she would do my visa stuff on Wednesday, and she gets her co-workers to lie about her not being at work Wednesday, and then I come in and she's sitting there in the office. These people knew exactly what they were doing. They wanted to put my visa off to the last minute, and so I was going to make them suffer a little for it. Besides, I know it's their asses if they mess up my visa, not mine. And not to mention, I lost all trust for her after she lied to me, and didn't do as she said, and got people at work to lie about her. There was no way I was going with this woman for my visa... So now, the day after the event, my temporary 30 day z visa is expired... The director is an American, but her husband is an extremely angry, tempermental Iranian man. Yesterday he was furious with me, and what I said, he got up in my face four times, and screamed, "I'll kill you. I'll kill you." He's an evil man, without question. I can see it in his eyes. Now, they are talking about not proceeding with my visa. So I'm on an expired temporary Z visa right now. They don't have a choice, they must fix my visa, as my sponsors. And I'm not going to pay for it. And if they break my contract, I'm going to make sure I'm compensated what is due to me, as per my contract (wages, plus 5,000 RMB, plus return airfare). If they are uncooperative in the coming days; well I'm off to the US Consulate, and then the Department of Foreign Affairs. I wouldn't wish this experience upon anybody. Stay away from Sushan English in Shenyang. They have 4 schools in Shenyang.
So it's my feeling that the new male foreign teacher comes around, and they're doing everything they can to drive him (me) away. I think they just may get their wish... They're so cold to me, they treat the other foreign teachers so much better than me. I hate the tension, and the way they come across towards me. I'm learning quickly that young Chinese women (particularly Chinese English teachers) are miserable people to be around. They make me want to leave so badly, I just want to give up the job altogether. If anyone wants to share comments, advice, or wants further info, don't hesitate to email me.
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