GROUSE ... GROUSE ... GROUSE!!!

I realize that we here in the United States consider ourselves at the top rung of the educational ladder, if only for the fact that so many foreign language students are breaking their necks to come here to both study and live English.

But, on second glance, we should not deceive ourselves. On this board, we read one teacher complaint after another pertaining to the impossible conditions of Asian ESL schools, while we fail to remember ? or, perhaps, admit ? that right here in the good old US of A, ESL instructors are pretty much in the same leaky boat! In fact, was it not this very realization that originally induced so many of us to leave our country to seek better professional pastures elsewhere? On these shores, after having met the oft-times rigid academic and certification standards of most US ESL institutions, for the mere sake of gaining employment experience, we've often found ourselves accepting as little as $12 per hour for part-time and $15 per hour for full-time employment. That, I would guess, is not that far above the national poverty level for ? say ? a family of two. But, provided one is willing to accept the all-too-often shoddy living standards of an underdeveloped foreign land, not to mention the gross disregard of apathetic management sources (with a salary to match), there's ALWAYS employment to be had ? that is, until which time one finally decides enough is enough!

In the interim, we fans of the eslteachersboard.com are literally besieged by critiques which become sadder and more desperate by the day. We KNOW all too well what you are suffering, folks. It's not exactly been a picnic here on this side of the tracks, you know. What I have trouble figuring is WHERE one might locate any regard for an ESL instructor as a "professional," let alone his/her financial needs as a human being. And if we residents of this more "sanctified" side of the Pacific are forced to utter such concerns, HOW in hell can we dare sit in condemnation of the lesser-developed ESL situations in Asia? After all, is it not WE whom they are attempting to emulate? WHY, in fact, should we cringe at the discovery of dishonesty and misrepresentation over there when right here it's so often identical? Once you've realized it's pretty much the same on either side of the Great Ocean, it's a small wonder WHY teachers flit between continents in search of their educational Mecca and, in many cases, eventually wind up frustrated enough to seek other careers.

I, for one, love the theory of English as a foreign language ? especially the preparation of students for entry into American universities for pursuit of advanced degrees. However, it's the reality of it all that serves to disillusion me no end. There can be no denial that ESL is a business. However, when such an ambition becomes the sole purpose of a school's existence, and academic and even human values seem scarcer to come by, it's high time to rise up and reform the bloody system ? or leave it! I pray that I'll not eventually be forced to opt for the latter choice. Amen.

Love to all,

The Arrogant One

About The Author

Ellis E. Seamone is an Veteran ESL teacher with 13+ years of experience. Ellis publishes articles at the http://www.eslteachersboard.com/ (free access to ESL resumes, jobs and materials). See more articles by Ellis by visiting: http://www.eslteachersboard.com/

---

Google News Updated : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:47:06 GMT Give Hamm a hand, he's going to Beijing - The Associated Press Los Angeles Times Give Hamm a hand, he's going to Beijing The Associated Press - 9 hours ago COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - Give Paul Hamm a hand. And a plane ticket to Beijing. The Olympic champion will get to defend his title in China thanks to a performance Saturday that ended any doubt about whether his broken right hand has healed. Paul Hamm remains part of US men's gymnastics team Los Angeles Times Hand Healed, Gymnast Hamm Headed to China Washington Post New York Times - Denver Post all 500 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 08:50:45 GMT The Search For Elusive Holy Grail Of HIV Vaccine .....Continues - RTT News Ontario Now The Search For Elusive Holy Grail Of HIV Vaccine .....Continues RTT News - 3 hours ago (RTTNews) - The quarter-century-long quest for the Holy Grail of HIV vaccine has suffered yet another major setback. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases or NIAID , a part of the National Institutes of Health or NIH on Thursday ... Plans for Human Trial of HIV Vaccine Canceled New York Times US Scraps Plan to Test AIDS Vaccine Wall Street Journal San Francisco Chronicle - TIME - International Herald Tribune - RedOrbit all 248 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 15:20:03 GMT Salmon and steelhead are threatened by California's water system ... - Los Angeles Times eFluxMedia Salmon and steelhead are threatened by California's water system ... Los Angeles Times - 13 hours ago Check out Times staff writer Eric Bailey's story today on another late-Friday decision by a federal judge. US District Judge Oliver W. Wanger of Fresno said in a 118-page opinion that the "Central Valley's winter- and spring-run salmon, as well as the ... Judge Acknowledges Threat to California's Salmon and Steelhead eFluxMedia Salmon threatened with extinction, judge says San Jose Mercury News United Press International - San Francisco Chronicle - The Associated Press - Belleville News Democrat all 161 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:30:35 GMT Harrington wins 2nd straight British Open - The Associated Press Harrington wins 2nd straight British Open The Associated Press - 55 minutes ago SOUTHPORT, England (AP) - Padraig Harrington has won his second straight British Open, overtaking 53-year-old Greg Norman and fending off Ian Poulter. Video: Greg Norman Leads British Open After 3 Rounds AssociatedPress Harrington wins British Open, Norman ties for third MLive.com Bloomberg - The Canadian Press - Contra Costa Times - Sports Network all 3,987 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 17:51:07 GMT NYC chain restaurants posting calories on menus - Reuters Canada.com NYC chain restaurants posting calories on menus Reuters - 12 hours ago By Edith Honan NEW YORK (Reuters) - A new rule requiring New York chain restaurants to post calorie information on their menus took effect on Friday, marking a first for a US city. Video: NYC Restaurant Chains Post Calorie Info AssociatedPress Restaurants That Lack Calorie Counts Now Face Fines New York Times eFluxMedia - The Associated Press - WZZM - RedOrbit all 457 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 06:18:27 GMT Batman’s ‘Dark Night’ Sets Weekend Record - New York Times Batman’s ‘Dark Night’ Sets Weekend Record New York Times - 1 hour ago By MICHAEL CIEPLY LOS ANGELES - Fevered fans pushed “The Dark Knight,” the sixth in Warner Brothers’ series of “Batman” movies, to record three-day ticket sales of $155.3 million over the weekend, shoring up what so far had been a wobbly year at the ... Batman beats up Spider-Man at box office Reuters 'Dark Knight' topples Spidey for biggest film opening USA Today The Associated Press - E! Online - BBC News - MarketWatch all 1,072 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 17:27:06 GMT As 'Mamma Mia' movie opens, fans cross age groups - New York Daily News Washington Post As 'Mamma Mia' movie opens, fans cross age groups New York Daily News - 10 hours ago BY GINA SALAMONE 'The only reason I go into the Guy and Gallard right by my office is because they play ABBA all the time,' says Justyna Zajac, 25. 'Mamma Mia!': Gotta Love It, Like It or Not Washington Post 'Mamma Mia' Los Angeles Times CBS News - San Francisco Chronicle - MTV.com - Allentown Morning Call all 579 news articles Publ.Date : Sun, 20 Jul 2008 08:13:43 GMT Blogging Software Add RSS Feeds To My Web Pages

PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts, Websites, and more...

Adsense websites

Teaching English in Greece - What Do You Need to Know?

The employment situation can be quite uncertain for newcomers to... Read More

English Has Come A Long, Long Way...

I often wonder what would happen if Shakespeare were to... Read More

Learn Italian for Free

Italian is one of the most widespread languages in the... Read More

Learn Korean: Part 1 - Asian Languages and Language Families

So, you have always been fascinated by Asian culture have... Read More

Uncommon Facts / Rules of English Language

English is an international language. It has so many grammar... Read More

GROUSE ... GROUSE ... GROUSE!!!

I realize that we here in the United States consider... Read More

Japanese Kanji Learning: Short-Cuts to Rapid Mastery (Part 2)

In Japanese Kanji Learning: Short-Cuts to Rapid Mastery Part 1,... Read More

What Does an Interpreter Do?

Many people get confused as to the difference between an... Read More

Whats In A Word? More Than You Realize

What's in a word? Apparently more than we might want.For... Read More

Online IELTS Preparation - Why Does It Make Sense?

Because IELTS is a difficult test. While most agree that... Read More

Learning a Foreign Language: Why Should you Learn Words You Never Use in Your Mother Tongue?

Imagine a child sitting in front of a desk, his... Read More

Don?t Take The Romaji Short-Cut When Learning Japanese

This is an issue many Japanese learners come up against,... Read More

How To Learn Spanish Quickly and Easily

Spanish is a very useful language to learn as it... Read More

How Ronzoni Italian Foods Helped My Dad Learn English

My dad likes to say, he was made in Italy,... Read More

Can You Understand English?

There is a lot of talk about making English the... Read More

Learn Italian in Italy

You can combine your love of the Italian language with... Read More

Learning French in Paris

Nothing can be more frustrating than to be in France... Read More

Learn Italian in Your Hometown

Are you interested in learning the Italian language right in... Read More

English Slang For Perplexed Tourists

I watched the British version of 'Big Brother' recently. That's... Read More

Japanese Kanji Learning: Short-Cuts to Rapid Mastery (Part 1)

What? Kanji can be learned quickly? This seems an impossible... Read More

Teaching Reading to English Language Learners

There is an increasing amount of English language learners represented... Read More

English Language Sputtering Online Like an Old Ford!

Sad, but true. Just about everywhere you look online, the... Read More

Learning a Foreign Language: Learn from the Blind

In a previous article, you read that to establih your... Read More

Aphasia: The Cruelest Language Barrier

Imagine the following scenario: You wake up one morning and... Read More

Learning a Foreign Language: the Psychological Factor

When it comes about learning a foreign language, many people... Read More