Most foreign teachers can correctly say the word 'usually'.

No, actually, the idea in China typically is that Chinese people alredy know grammar and enough of the English vocabulary really well by the time they've finished a university degree in English to in turn teach their peers, and so Chinese don' t need help from foreigners in this regard. The belief is that they need help with conversation (fluency) and with pronunciation only, and so this is why the classes foreigners teach are almost always described as 'oral English' and not simply English. I would disagree that this is a good way to learn but fukkit, I don't control the Chinese education sustem.

  Chinese teachers are formally trained with degrees in teaching, they work longer hours and are paid less. Foreign teachers get TEFL certificates for 3 weeks of study, then complain because they're not provided with limos to drive them to work. But it's true, most of them can say the word 'usually'.

Martian, I can't comment on your answer, but that's not always the case. The Chinese 'teachers' I worked with were lovely and very hardworking but they did not by any means have education degrees and they did not speak  fluently (or always accurately).

My partner and I, on the other hand, were trained, and the school would insist on trying to treat us as the dancing monkeys they thought all foreigners are. And we worked more hours than any of the other Chinese teachers .You can't make a 100 per cent rule that covers all foreign or Chinese teachers. There's bad and good on both sides, I'm sure.

Today I took my 4 year olds to their new school for a 'practice' class.  The class included a half hour English lesson.  This is the first time I have ever seen an English teacher in their native habitat and it was fascinating to watch.

That teacher gave out a huge amount of energy in those 30 minutes and it left me with a sense of new found respect for English teachers.  I could NEVER do that job.

Though, I am also in awe of the Chinese teachers who were there for the entire 8 hours and gave everything they had to teach the kids.  I am just as certain that I could never do their job either.

So to all the teachers out there, I tip my hat.  Have a virtual beer on me.

Foreign teachers get a hell of a lot more free time (and probably a higher salary).

The Chinese teachers get a nice end of year bonus.

One of the differences I've found is in teaching styles, which is indicative of education systems. From my observations, Chinese teachers lecture from books, and the students take notes.  There is little (if any) discussion. The main focus is on regurgitation of information needed to pass a future test. When the Chinese teacher walks out the door; job finished. From my understanding, it's a stepping stone, and little more. The longer hours and lower pay soon instill an attitude of "just get the task done and go home" attitude.

Foreign teachers (again, generally), interact with their students, encouraging discussion, questions, and dissent, which teaches "process looking towards an end goal." Many students continue a relationship with their teachers after class hours, either through QQ or texting. 

There are exceptions, of course, to the above generalities, such as there being very dedicated Chinese teachers and "this is just a job while in China" foreign teachers. However, something should be said about the language skills, also. This is not a criticism of all Chinese teachers, but the ones that I have met do not speak English very well. I still have to speak slower and with a reduced vocabulary in order for them to follow the conversation, and I also shy away from any slang or idiomatic speech, which always seems to throw them.

I wouldn't bring this up at all, but they are teaching English, so I would expect any instructor to be proficient in the subject they were teaching. Maybe the reason my students' grammar and writing skills are so bad is because they have not be taught properly in the first place. Forget pronunciation (intonation, stress, rhythm)! Most of my students have never heard of these things, all the time wondering why their speech does not sound natural. But I digress...

Anyway, I think the big difference would be one of approach and the level of familiarity to the material in question.

Country of birth.

I think being raised using/understanding colloquial language is a big difference. Native Speakers can help the students to understand 'real world' language usage.

Colloquialisms include words (such as y'all, gonna, and wanna), phrases (such as old as the hills, raining cats and dogs, and dead as a doornail) and aphorisms (such as There's more than one way to skin a cat).

Generally, colloquialisms are specific to a geographical region; although, they are also spread through "everyday" conversation and, increasingly, through informal online interactions. An example of the regional specificity of colloquialisms is the term used when referring to "soft drinks". In the Upper Midwestern United States and Canada, soft drinks are called "pop", whilst in other areas, notably theNortheastern and far Western United States, they are referred to as "soda". In some areas of Scotland, the term "ginger" is used.[3]

Words that have a formal meaning can also have a colloquial meaning. For example, "kid" can mean "young goat" in formal usage and "child" in colloquial usage.

here is the most important differences between local and foreign teachers. 

we are not apart of chinese culture, (lieing, cheating, scamming and "face")

and we grew up outside the chinese education system. 

modern chinese culture is a serious obstacle to real learning. teachers encourage/ allow students to cheat. teachers accept bribes in order to give students better grades . Teachers are viewed as incapable of making mistakes so students do not question what the teacher says and are not encouraged to even ask questions. because that would be a loss of face. (students asking questions is admitting that they do not understand. pointing out a teachers error is causing the teacher to lose face)

Chinese route memorization system sucks and is fully exposed when it comes to language learning. they are taught how to pass test and not how to use information in a practical manner.

that means that you would have students with certs and high scores but when hired to communicate with a native english speaker, they can't. 

look at teacher assistants. how many of you have had this happen to you . you ask a student a question, "what did you have for lunch?"  and the teacher assistant immediately (as soon as ask the question) starts telling the student to say "noodles". in their minds just giving an answer to a question is ok. they ignore the fact that this is not practical in real life. in my entire experience with teachers assistants i only had 2 who would help the student understand the question and help the student translate their answer into english. parents aren't stupid, they know when their culture is going to interfere with their childs future. that is why they demand foreign english teachers. 

most chinese teachers encourage, promote, or allow cheating. to the degree that they would even ask students to sit a test for another student. 

you could get away with that when it comes to math, science and reading. because chinese will protect this secret. but when it comes to language the flaws of your education are put on display for the english speaking world on a daily basis (in business) so people will ask question as to "how the puck did you get a TEM4, or whatever cert?  when you can't even say hello!"

wu maos on this site will claim chinese english teachers are highly trained ok, then why are so many afraid to speak english to their students????? (do not get me wrong , there are many great chinese english teachers but i'm speaking in general , the majority)

wumaos will try to promote the stereotype that foreign english teachers were nothing in their home countries " I was a gravedigger ...blah blah blah" but the bottom line is this, we are not afraid to admit when we are wrong, we encourage our students (as opposed to making them feel shame for a simple mistake) , we demand that they work honestly, we teach them to use english in a practical manner. and we have a better understanding of the english language.

yes there are too many foreign english with personality flaws, but we were not hired to be likeable or humble. we were hired because we can teach english better than the locals.

one is from china and the rest are from different countries

The former are imported and the latter are made in China.

The eyes...