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Q: Who is the best ESL teacher in China?

I've been watching videos by ESL teachers in other countries, such as:

Richard Graham, the "Genki English" kids program creator who started out in Japan and is now worldwide, also teaches Japanese, Putonghua, and Thai with the same program

Adam Bradshaw, a Thai-based English teacher who also teaches Thai.

So does anyone know of any such "superstar" or really gifted ESL teachers who have done an exceptional job in "Heaven on Earth"??

9 years 34 weeks ago in  Teaching & Learning - China

 
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If someone found a way to measure the ability of every English teacher in China accurately, without cheating, bribes or guanxi being a factor (very unlikely) I think they'd probably find it was some low key,little known teacher in a language school or uni somewhere who has been in the job a number of years just because they love to teach. It wouldn't be some flashy 'superstar' idiot.

sorrel:

agreed

i have worked with some great teacher's.

one Australian colleague let me observe his class when i arrived initially in China and i learnt so much about how to improve my own teaching and be more effective in the class-room.

The main thing I learnt from him is you don't have to be flashy or a dancing monkey to be effective. 

He will probably never be rich or famous, or be 'successful' in the eyes of the world, but he is happy.

What these guys are is dedicated and professional, and i can see the satisfaction they get from the poorest students improving.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Mateusz:

Exactly, Stiggs. This teacher probably won't be well known, because a good teacher spends more time studying pedagogy and working on lesson planning than marketing or getting into the best paying jobs. 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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If you mean the best at marketing and self-promotion, it's either performing monkey Da Shan or wife-basher Li Yang.

 

I've seen a few videos of "superstar" Chinese ESL teachers in action (teachers who charge upwards of yi wan per class). Their ability to keep an audience mesmerised with a frenetic, high-energy routine is impressive, but I've yet to see any data relating to effectiveness.

 

In China high-end ESL is about self-promotion and ludicrously overpriced "VIP" classes (so clients can think they're elite). I doubt the academic results are monitored by anyone.

 

If you mean the best ESL teacher, maybe... sorrel?

 

 

mike695ca:

I dont want to get into it. And im not trying to rile you up. But if you made your arguments just a tad less biased, they wouldnt come off as jealous. The fact that people only become successful due to a kick ass marketing team undermines peoples hard work. Of course it sounds alot better if the greatest was some monk in the mountains, because that could be any of us. Then there is nothing that seperates us from and our betters. Thus no reason for self improvement. Very generally speaking, history tells us that people get where they are for a reason, not blind luck. The diamond in the rough idea is great for hope, not necessarily for actual results.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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ScotsAlan:

I don't pick up any bias in Samsaras post.

 

The question was who is the best ESL teacher.

 

Samsara is questioning wether high paid star teachers are actually effective. That's all.

 

Making lots of money does not equate to being the best.

 

Money does not make one "better". As a  percentage of demographic groups, I find there are much more assholes in the wealthy groups than in the poorer. 

 

I bet there are loads of fantastic poor ESL teachers about. They put their energy into teaching rather than making money.

 

Sorry for hijacking your answer Samsara.

 

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

Goodness.

 

What I am saying, Mike, is that the display of prestige is very important to Chinese people, much more so than real quality. Shameless self-promoters get more attention than teachers whose only goal is to teach.

 

Some people are really good at making a spectacle of themselves on stage, but the question was about who is the best ESL teacher.

 

Like Stiggs, I think the best teachers (many of whom are probably Chinese) are people who teach instead making a lot of noise. Unlike Stiggs, I have attracted the ire of an aggressive male who finds objection to whatever I say, whenever possible. You are not objecting to what I say because it's objectionable, but because I said it. It's called being contrary, and usually little girls do it.

 

I don't know why you get in vendettas against particular forum members, Mike, but it doesn't say much about your self-avowed success at life.

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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ScotsAlan:

I suspect Mike reads a lot of these "self help" books 

 

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

Jeez your a sensitive little bitch aint ya. I thought i made that as polite as humanly possible and you still take it as an attack. Hayers gonna hate i guess. My point was you werent really answering anything. Your first thought was to take a shot at the people who made money doing your job. Sais alot about you i think.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

@ ScotsAlan

 

Thanks for that.

 

Mike gets in these moods from time to time, where he becomes increasingly negative and personal towards one forum member. Previously it was Mateusz, and before that, Sino I think...  As both of those people tend to express intelligent opinions, maybe it's an accolade for me!

 

I don't know what triggers Mike's aggression, but I suspect it's some form of masculine insecurity, probably related to having big muscles and posing near cars.

 

Who knows...

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

There you go, ignoring the point again. You really dont think its interesting that this guy wants to study the videos of english teachers and he asked who the best is, then out of no where Samsara comes running out of the woodwork to scream NO! SUCCESS DOES NOT EQUAL GOOD PEOPLE!!! THEY ARE ALL JUST LUCKY! I DO NOT HAVE INFERIORITY ISSUES AT ALL!!!! Why did you need to share that with everyone? Especially when it was so off topic. Dont get me wrong, your not alone in this. He actually needed to re write the question because no one could answer it. He still doesnt have an answer. It turned into a fantasy for you guys to imagine being the best in the country at what you do. If i had a grudge against you, then why did i work so hard to write such a senstive and soft response?

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

Also (im bored) id like to adress a few of your points as i try my best not to be a hypocrite. 1, you will notice that you were the first the answer this question, thus setting the tone of its drivel. 2. Although i completely disagree with stiggs on this one, he ,unlike you, does not constantly post nonsense. 3: i like how you compared yourself to mateuzs and others. I wonder if you considered that you are all the exact same bitter person. I wonder if you thoight about the fact that you all constantly seem to share the same ideas. All women in China are whores China is a horrible place that keeps foreigners down And most interestingly you all come onto a forum not to discuss, but to flaunt your "intelligence". I challenge you to show once, one time, where you have ceded a point to someone. Where you will listen to someones argument and consider a new idea and do a 180. Find me one, and ill do the work and find you 3 where i have. You wont because you all also share the habit of running away under the guise of "taking the high road and not dealing with someones bullshit." When someone makes a good point. Looking inward would chip away at your shield of genius that you have cloaked yourself in, and lets be honest, you dont have anything else. If i tell you to choke on a bowl of dicks you always seem to have a comment, but when given a point you dont have a witty answer for.....silence. So once again i ask, why oh why when someone is looking for videos to study online, your ( and others) very first thought is to make it be known that fame or success has nothing to do with good. You didnt even just make it a point and then answer the guys question. Thats all you managed to focus on.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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MissA:

Without wanting to get dragged into the sh!tfight on this thread, I loved this comment.

 

"I think the best teachers are people who teach instead making a lot of noise.

 

I'd also say that the important thing in learning/teaching is not teacher-noise-time, but students communicating effectively. Personally, I see a class that's too teacher-centric as a negative. I regularly joke with my class that "guys, I already speak English, you are the ones that need to practice!"

 

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

It's seems you've inferred a lot of motives in my writing, Mike. All of which are very negative (like thinking all Chinese women are whores, being jealous about money, and so on). And none of which I actually wrote, or think.

 

This is called psychological or Freudian projection.

 

The language you use when talking about me is highly theatrical. For example: "Samsara came running out of the woodwork to scream..." Me posting a reply on an internet forum isn't really that dramatic. I'm getting the impression that you just need drama.

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

Still avoiding the question......

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

The original question, or your endless nonsense?

 

If you mean the former: I think the best ESL teachers in China probably aren't the ones who produce videos of themselves.

 

If you mean the latter: No one cares about your inexhaustible capacity for petty vindictiveness.

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

Your free to post your racist negative drivel and im free to call you a dumb cunt. Its simple. Your jealous of everyone that ever made a dollar doing anything. It kills you. So every chance you get your going to trash everyone and everything. So im free to trash you. You and your kind are pathetic. And the sad thing is that your going to go to your penniless grave thinking that you just were dealt a bad hand in life. It had nothing to do with you being a blind useless lazy moron. Enjoy it man. Da Shan and even the crazy english dude are ten times better at teaching English than you could ever be. Your too blind to ever be anything but a schools last resort.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

 

you're*

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

Ahhh youve dropped a level in my books Mr. J. Always the sad last resort to call out the spelling. Its actually makes you look better just to say you have nothing to say. Same message , less embarrassing.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Samsara:

 

Haha. What makes me look better is that I'm not angry.

 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

You say, yet here you are,right down here on my level. You should probably thank me, thats the first sentence you have ever written that wasnt filled with hate and negativity. Im rubbing off on you. You even put a little haha in there for me.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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9 years 34 weeks ago
 
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If someone found a way to measure the ability of every English teacher in China accurately, without cheating, bribes or guanxi being a factor (very unlikely) I think they'd probably find it was some low key,little known teacher in a language school or uni somewhere who has been in the job a number of years just because they love to teach. It wouldn't be some flashy 'superstar' idiot.

sorrel:

agreed

i have worked with some great teacher's.

one Australian colleague let me observe his class when i arrived initially in China and i learnt so much about how to improve my own teaching and be more effective in the class-room.

The main thing I learnt from him is you don't have to be flashy or a dancing monkey to be effective. 

He will probably never be rich or famous, or be 'successful' in the eyes of the world, but he is happy.

What these guys are is dedicated and professional, and i can see the satisfaction they get from the poorest students improving.

9 years 34 weeks ago
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Mateusz:

Exactly, Stiggs. This teacher probably won't be well known, because a good teacher spends more time studying pedagogy and working on lesson planning than marketing or getting into the best paying jobs. 

9 years 34 weeks ago
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9 years 34 weeks ago
 
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Of the top of my hed,,, i'd haveta say I are.

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edit: I was originally meaning *foreign* English teacher as I am looking for people to study from. Actually both of the ones I mentioned teach languages other than English as well, even though they're NES. There must be ones like these floating around in China.

But yeah Stiggs I bet you're right, the best Chinese English teacher wouldn't be the "Crazy English" type cult stars but some relatively unknown person who (in terms of ability to get their students' English up to par) would earn the title.

Mateusz:

Well, "foreign" is a relative term. Li Yang is foreign from the perspective of people who aren't Chinese. 

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wait for The Peoples Choice Awards

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9 years 34 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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m i c k e y mouse

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9 years 4 days ago
 
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I have done pretty well teaching kindergartensmiley

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9 years 4 days ago
 
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Aye are da beste Yessel t-cher in Shina wink

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9 years 4 days ago
 
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