Thanks for answering all the questions. Some more questions though.

So, in order to receive professional grade credential, such as QTS, I think I do have a Master's degree in TESOL. But I've done this in South Korea at a university so maybe this won't count?

Also, what other professional grade teaching credential can be an option for me, including QTS? Do I need to do another degree in Education or just the TPP/TEP courseworks? For example, Michigan Professional Teaching Certificate be considered professional grade level teaching credential an option for me? To be able to secure my job in the future, I would need to receive professional grade teaching credential, such as QTS.

Again, thanks in advance!

PsyGuy wrote:
> Assuming you dont work in MA (specifically in DE in MA), your MA credential
> (under current rules) will never expire. The MA provisional credential is
> valid for 5 years of employment, but the way that the MA DOE defines
> employment specifically means employed/working in an MA DS. You will never
> use any of that time so the credential will effectively have lifetime
> validity. When you download/print the certificate you will see the date of
> issue, and then some asterisks for the date of expiration, and a note that
> its validity period is for 5 years of employment and will not otherwise
> expire.
>
> The rest of your inquiry is mote.
>
> You can not effectively transition the MA provisional (entry grade)
> credential into a professional grade credential, without having completed a
> significant amount of professional edu coursework, or completing an EPP/ITT
> program that awards you a professional grade credential, nor can you use it
> to receive QTS.
> You can of course pursue those options, using the MA provisional credential
> to complete an EPP/ITT program OS such as Teach Now or Teach Ready, or the
> AO route too QTS. You dont need to do any of those things though.
>
> The requirements for professional grade teaching credentials generally
> involve two criteria 1) The credential is without deficiency and 2) The
> credential is permenant either because it is renewable or does not require
> renewal to maintain validity. QTS is an example of a professional grade
> credential that doesnt require renewal.

Hello,

So I'm just about to gain MA provisional teaching license and I have some questions.
What do I have to do after MA provisional license gets expired? It said it is nonrenewable and I'm not planning to teach in MA so it wouldn't matter? But I'm sure it won't be valid after it gets expires, is it not? Please correct me if I'm wrong. If I'm correct, I would like to know what other option I have after it gets expired. Do I need to complete Teacher Ed Program, like Teach Now or would I be able to gain another state license after passing some tests? What other state license involves issuing renewable teaching license? I'm assuming some schools would prefer teachers with "renewable" teaching license?

Thanks in advance!

So I have just taken the MTEL test today. I still need to take the English subject test so, I'm still working to pass the test.

I'm also in the process of getting the ACSI certification and I have sent the transcript to them to be evaluated. Initially, I have asked them to issue me with a certificate stating "General Studies." However, as I recall from my memory several years back, I was in the teacher education program (although I didn't graduate with a teaching degree) and the courses that I took were mainly related to elementary education. I have asked the ACSI people whether they can give me whatever certification that I could get, to teach in a K-12 school and they said I may be eligible for elementary education K-8 license but they would have to evaluated it.

One question come to my mind is that is there any way that I could get some kind of certification out of my bachelor's degree? I know it has been almost 10 years that I have done my bachelor's degree but I regret the enormous amount of time spent just wasted. I realize it is too late since the PRAXIS exam result lasted for two years (and have passed) and I have done a student teaching for a semester so I hope to get some kind of certification (if possible) from my college degree. I have graduated from a state university in Indiana with a bachelor's degree in General Studies FYI.

I have done some research - and I do realize my research skills are not as good as those of expert teachers, like PsyGuy. But as I'm preparing for MTEL exams and get things ready for my next move, I would want to secure myself with a "real" or "proper" certification/credentials as much as possible. I have looked at NACES - would this be applicable to me? Do you think MA provisional license is enough?

Any help or feedback/advice is much appreciated!

@PsyGuy

So, I'm scheduled to take the MTEL exams in a few days, both MTEL Comm & Lit and English subject test.

Since I'm working at a cram school, I really think this isn't going to help me, other than earning money. Also, I'm so overloaded with work each day that I just have no time to prep for tests. So, I have applied for some schools but had no luck. I'm looking at ISS_Schrole database and I really can't tell if I should go ahead and apply for English teaching position - after I've gone through the visa issue with IS in Taiwan. I remember you said that with my qualifications, I could get into some lower tier schools. Can you tell me how? How do you know if a school is a lower tier? Even if I apply for an IS on Schrole after I pass the exam, I would have to work somewhere before the actual semester starts 2020-2021.

Thanks in advance.

They have rejected my work permit because I wasn't a native speaker. I guess they don't want me.
I'm going to work on getting the credential and I'm going to send an email to ISS-Schrole what this school has done to me.
I'm not sure this school even belong to any tier. What would be considered a tier 3 school and how do you know?
Which one shall I use? ISS-Schrole or Search Associates?

@GrumblesMcGee and PsyGuy

Thank you guys for all your input and feedback.
Some updates...
Yes, I have signed the modified contract that they have requested. Although yeah, they have added some unexpected duties like being a homeroom teacher and club advisor (they didnt explain much) but I suspect that the workload cannot be ridiculous. It may turn out to be, maybe? But I have worked in many SK companies and cram schools and they were the worst... not to say or complain about my past work places but I have worked more than 12 hours nonstop overloaded with just a lot of work. I hope that is not the case with this school.

So after signing the modified contract, the school reapplied for my work permit and told me it looks optimistic. They would let me know by tomorrow. Once I get the work permit, how long will it get to apply for the visa and what documents I need to prepare? Would it be basically just a "free pass" to get a visa once the work permit is issued?

I wish I could apply for other schools but now I know that I would need to get the teaching credential first. So once I get approved, I would start applying and studying for the tests to get me that MA credential. That is my plan now.

I'm not sure what I would do once I get denied. Hope that doesnt happen - will let you know by tomorrow!

Okay so they just told me to sign the contract saying ESOL teacher.
Do you think they would still require me to send the teaching credential? I'm going to prepare for that anyway.

Some updates...

So I asked and wrote an email to foreign teacher liaison whether I can meet or have Skype video call with the leadership and she didn't give me an answer. But I called them on Skype anyway, thinking just pick up the phone whoever, I'll just make my point. And then this liaison hand over the phone to the dean whom I first met and signed the contract with.

He said he is negotiating with the MOE to handle this situation as soon as possible. I have already sent a certificate of empoyment of the IS in SK that I used to work for one year, which proves that I was an English language arts and literature teacher. Also with the AP certificate I have sent to them. The dean said he is going to use these two documents to convince the MOE but what they said was, they need to get the upper tier decision makers' approval in order for them to issue me with the work permit.

I'm not sure if the dean would successfully negotiate and even persuade the MOE. By the look of their voice and their attitude, they didn't know this would happen. I was also unaware this would be an issue because in Korea, this really doesn't matter and they assign me to teach English literature, language arts, and/or college level English without any problem. So, I didn't think getting the official teacher provincial credential was on my first priority. Now, I know this and have learned the importance, now that I'm leaving Korea.

I also showed the ACSI certificate on FB and sent the copy for them to look at. I told them I can get this within a couple of weeks. However, they urged me that the certificate has got to mention "English" or "language arts". So, like you mentioned on your previous posts @PsyGuy, they wanted the official teaching credential from MOE in the US. I asked whether "general studies" ACSI would work but they are afraid that would rise another confusion for them and a possible rejection. I saw both the link you uploaded and yes, the MA provincial credential was needed, as they showed me a copy of approved credential and looked similar to MA provincial credential.

As for the contract, the dean is willing to change my contract to get the work permit to be processed and approved. I think that's what he meant... his English was very difficult to understand and it seems like he never used a written email of any kind to communicate with me. I asked for extra time maybe like two months until I receive my MA provincial credential but he didn't give me a definite answer to that. It looked like the only goal he had was to get my work permit approved. I'm guessing once it gets approved, the school would ask me for an official credential, I'm not sure.

He said he would return back to me within 24 hrs so I'm waiting. I've asked a teacher that I met from AP workshop (he seemed to be from the same neighborhood where I did my bachelors in the States) recommended me to think of a Plan B. I've come this far and I'm not sure if I'm willing to work my way for Plan B.

Even if the IS approves of me or if I decide to find a new job, now I know having official teacher credential is crucial. I was looking at the MA DoE and saw that MA provincial license is a five year credential and can't be renewed? Maybe I'm looking at the wrong area or something? I remember @PsyGuy said it is a life long credential. If I start this this week, do you think I can get everything done by August 30? That is what I told them (at least, not officially). I'm pretty bad with test taking... so I may need to study a bit.

The foreign teacher liaison sent an example of the certificate that the MOE approved and it seems like a professional teaching credential. Im not sure whether I can get that done within a couple of weeks. So I asked for more time.

So I was not able to get a hold of the leadership, but only the foreign teacher liaison.
She said the leadership are all in the meeting.
She said she has received an email from MOE Taiwan in mandarin so she said I won't be able to read it.
She said she is negotiating with the MOE but I'm not sure if that is what's really going on. I felt like she was in an awkward situation trying to do something about my situation. She said she would give me a sample certificate that MOE wants. I proposed whether they would accept a temporary certificate issued by ACSI but she does not seem like she understood what I was saying. She said she would email me again in the afternoon.

@PsyGuy - Thank you very much for your advice and help. This really means a LOT to me and every bit of your advice is so amazing and I admire & respect you in every way!! Let me answer your questions/clarify the things that you were confused about.


PsyGuy wrote:
> @straycat2019
>
> So you dont have a professional educator credential, which in SK would be a
> grade I or grade II certificate issued by the SK MOE because if you did
> youd have mentioned that.
> The TESOL certificate you described is an industry ESOL certificate, sounds
> like its equivalent to a level 5 course, but is immaterial to a Masters
> degree (assuming your Masters is in TESOL). Regardless its not a
> professional edu credential.
>
> Did you teach ESOL at this IS in SK for a year that uses a US Curriculum?
> Was this IS accredited by a regional accrediting body like WASC?
> The cram ES doesnt count and isnt worth anything in IE. So at most maybe
> you have a year of experience.
> The curriculum development isnt worth anything, it was in-house for a cram
> ES.
No, my job was to teach English literature to high school seniors and middle school students 7th-9th graders. It is not accredited by WASC but it is ACSI and accredited by MOE in SK. They hired me as English language arts & literature teacher and I was on a one year contract. This was a local hire.
Yeah, I thought working at a cram school and curriculum development won't help much either.

> AP workshop certificates arent worth much, but maybe something. Were these
> part of your visa application? Were the AP workshops for ESOL, I get the
> impression they were ESOL AP workshops?

When I was doing several Skype interviews with the IS in Taiwan, they really wanted a teacher who can teach AP English lang&Lit. So I told them I can teach the courses. There was a weekend AP workshop in Seoul in March so I attended the workshop for two days in the weekend and received the AP English language & Lit combined. I have all the books and all. I sent the certificate to the school already on Saturday, but if they want an official teaching credential like you said, maybe this won't help at all. But I sent it anyway.

> In answer to your inquires:
>
> 1) Because they are very different academic disciplines that happen to
> share the term "English". In one category you have English
> Language (full stop), thats teaching English as a language addressing
> listening, speaking, reading and writing. The other category is English
> Literature, thats exploring and studying the thematic issues of politics,
> history and culture though the genres of the cannon in poetry, prose,
> novel, and drama. A common American/US term for English Literature thats
> used in IE is "English Language Arts", its just literature
> studies by another name, though at very early and developmental levels of
> KS/K12 edu students study the literary cannon but also learn how to compose
> writing in terms of grammar and structure, which as rules are something
> that ESOL ETs do as well. Theres is some overlap between ESOL and
> literature but based on your contract description and your issue with
> immigration, it appears they want a literature IT and not an ESOL IT.

Okay, understood. Since there is no big difference in terms of teach English in SK in schools or in cram schools and I'm a local anyway, I don't think this would matter but I guess the case is little different when you want to work abroad, you would make sure you have the right certification, which is on English literture? But the thing that is confusing me is that the subject that I'll be teaching is English language arts (to native speakers is what the IS has said) but I still would want to get the certificate on English literature because it covers both literature and language arts?

> 2) Thats a really complicated answer which I will answer below, but to give
> you a preliminary response, it depends on what they mean by
> "certificate".
>
> 3) Because what they mean by "English Language Arts" means they
> want Literature, not English language and your degree isnt in literature.
>
> 4) Probably not, Im a bit confused by your AP course there is no "AP
> English language arts and lit." theres "AP English Language and
> Composition" which is more an ESOL course in terms of the essay
> writing components of non-fiction. The other course is "AP English
> Literature and Composition" which is the AP literature course. Its
> possible it could help, its a lot more likely that its not going to make a
> difference to immigration, but it might maybe.

Yes, I meant to say AP English language and composition & literature and composition combined.

> 5) Again, because teaching English as a language and teaching English
> literature are very different academic disciplines.
>
> So parsing the metrics:
>
> The first thing you need to do on Monday is contact your IS, and NOT talk
> to this teacher liaison. You need to talk to your leadership your reporting
> to and who signed your contract and have a discussion. What you need to
> talk about is:
> 1) Whats going on?
> 2) Can they help you with anything?
> 3) Can the IS change your contract to ESOL and assign you to the literature
> courses or different courses?
> 4) Can they give you more time than July 30th? When do students arrive and
> you have to be in a classroom? How much time can they give you.
> 5) What type of certificate do you need? Specifically:
> A) Does it need to say English Literature or will "general
> studies" be sufficient? Essentially is their issue you dont have a
> "teaching" certificate or that your certificate is in ESOL?
> B) Will they accept something like a workshop certificate in literature?
> C) If it HAS to be a professional credential to teach literature, how long
> can they wait if a credential is in processing (meaning youve met and
> submitted all the requirements, your just waiting for the document to be
> issued).
>
> So all those questions are because, it depends what they mean and want as a
> certificate, and ho much the IS will help you is going to make huge
> differences. I see three possible solutions:
>
> First, maybe they didnt have the AP workshop certificates and maybe they
> werent in literature, but if that will make them happy and get you the visa
> then I would suggest looking at taking an IB workshop which you would want
> to take Language A (English): Literature. Typically, online workshops are a
> 4-6 weeks long, but F2F workshops are over the course of a weekend, and you
> get your certificate within a day or two of the workshop. The problem is
> that your going to have to travel to them and theyre in places like CAN,
> AUS, and the USA, which with the cost of the workshop and travel is going
> to cost you around USD$2K. There are workshops in July.

Like I said above, I already took F2F AP workshop in English language and Lit combined. Are you saying it would help more if I take the IB workshop as well? I'm willing to travel BUT if AP and IB are basically the same (one is international and one is American), I already have AP...

> Second, if their issue is that your certificate is an ESOL certificate and
> they will be happy with a general studies certificate and it dosnt have to
> be a professional credential. Than ACSI will issue you a temporary 2 year
> certificate, though you may have to request that they keep the
> "general studies" designation on it as opposed to ESOL. The only
> requirement is you have a bachelors degree, though you might have to have
> your transcripts evaluated by an NACES service. Which brings me to the
> issue of time. You have a very short time line, if this was August 30th for
> the deadline that would be an easier issue but you have about 5 weeks
> before your IS is pulling your contract and thats really, really tight if
> they cant or wont bend. The ACSI time frame is 2-3 weeks, but if you need
> an NACES evaluation your going to need a couple weeks to get that
> processed, and its going to be pricey. Still its doable, 2 weeks for the
> evaluation and three for the application and document issuance you would
> have some days to spare and it would cost you a few hundred USD.
>
> Third, if its got to be a professional edu credential, you have basically
> one option. The problem is I dont think you can get it done in time, unless
> all the stars and planets are aligned and you have both a luck dragon and
> guardian angel. You would be applying for a MA (Massachusetts) provisional
> credential in English Literature. You would have to:
> A) Contact the MA DOE to get an MEPID, this will be your id number when
> creating an account.
> B) Create an ELAR account for the MA DOE.
> C) Start the application
> D) You will have to have an NACES evaluation done of your transcript
> assuming they were done in SK. You can find them here:
>
> http://www.doe.mass.edu/licensure/acade ... lency.html
> E) While your doing that you need to pass two MTEL exams they are the
> communication and literacy skills test and the English subject matter test.
> You are VERY fortunate as there is one testing center in SK that offers
> these exams, so you can take them locally.
> F) Upload everything and submit the application.
>
> The MA provisional credential will effectively be a lifetime credential, as
> you will never work in MA. The major problem is going to be time. The NACES
> evaluation takes about two weeks and thats not including getting
> transcripts from your Unis, posting them, then two weeks later getting the
> results. In addition while the two exams you need to take are local, I
> doubt your going to be able to take them right away. Your probably looking
> at a few weeks scheduling before you can take them. Exam results post about
> a week after the exam. So basically if you start everything this week, it
> might all come together and then maybe the MA DOE issues the credential by
> the 30th. You might just get it done at the wire and get the credential
> emailed to your IS by or on the 30th.
> This is the closest to taking an exam and getting a credential for you
> that there is.

Okay, I was thinking of getting a US teaching certificate! Thanks for all the details! I really appreciate it!

> As to the more deceptive and subterfuge options:
> 1) Your Asian, and not to be racist but you probably have a very common
> family name and maybe you have a common given name as well. There are a lot
> of public database lookup for DTs in the US, a little FB stalking may
> narrow down some DTs and then its just a matter of searching for them on
> the DOE website and printing out their certificate. For example if you your
> name was Jennifer Lee, you could maybe go over to the Texas public educator
> look up and find this certificate
> (https://secure.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECONL ... 951&mode=C)
> for a 4-8 English literature teacher and then well print it and submit it.
> Thats whats called a "borrowed ladder".
> 2) A "Tail Chaser" is where you fabricate a certificate, print it
> on some nice paper, put a foil seal on it, make a copy of it and then put
> the original of it in a document frame. You then take that to notary to
> have it notarized as a true and accurate copy of the original, you then
> send that to the Ministry for an Apostille, and they attach another form
> with seals and stamps on it. You end up with a very impressive packet of
> official documents and the examiner is too focused on those authentication
> documents that they dont get to checking the validity of the actual
> document being authenticated.
> 3) A boiler room is essentially starting your own company, creating a
> simple website with an email address for a private teacher certification
> program (something like "The American Institute of the Royal Education
> Society") and issuing yourself your on certificate. Alone or combined
> with a a tail chaser above if they check it out back to the original
> document its going to check out, they email your office, you reply your
> certified.
>
> I dont disagree with @GrumblesMcGee, I would also suggest pursuing Schrole
> assuming you have a personal connection or contact you can leverage. My
> problems with it are:
> 1) My impression is that if youre like many ITs who register with Schrole,
> you dont actually have a personal contact and that your experience with
> them has been submitting a digital application and using their jobs
> database. You have no human interaction or relationship to take advantage
> of.
> 2) Schole isnt really in the business of resolving labor disputes with the
> ministry or even serving as a IT advocate when dealing with an IS. Its not
> really their business, as helpful as they are and want to be.
> 3) You really dont have time to wait a week to get some kind of response
> from Schrole even if you get a response. You need to have answers and a
> course of action the early part of this week.

I would wait to contact ISS just yet. I guess I agree with PsyGuy's point on talking to the leadership of IS first thing on Monday morning. I will try to make that happen! Thank you very much again!

So, I have some questions...

1) Can you teach English language arts and literature with TESOL certificate? If not, why? I have worked as both ESL and English language arts for quite a while and I didn't have any problem.

2) If you need a certain "certificate" to teach English language arts, what would it be and can I take a standardized test to get that certification within a month?

3) Why can't they just take my degree in TESOL as a proof saying that I can teach English language arts?

4) I have already sent the certificate released by the Collegeboard where I attended AP workshops to teach AP English language arts and lit. Would this help at all?

5) Honestly, I have done some research and technically TESOL certificate allows you to teach English to the speakers of other languages. Since I'm going to Taiwan and most of them speak Chinese, why can't they accept it?

Thanks in advance!

Sorry -
TESOL certificate program was a six month program FYI.

PsyGuy, I'll try to answer your questions as much as possible.


> They either didnt know (theyre a new IS), they thought it wouldnt matter,
> they found someone else (and theyre letting immigration do they dirty work
> for them).
>
> A couple of questions, please be specific in your responses:
>
> 1) When you state you have a certificate in TESOL, what do you mean by
> that? Do you mean you have a certificate like a CELTA, or do you mean you
> have a credential for TESOL such as QTS, a US state teaching credential, a
> CAN credential by a provincial authority or registration by an AUS
> territory? Is your certificate issuer a business organization or is it
> issued by a regulating authority with jurisdiction over the KS/K12
> regulated/maintained/public DSs in a region?
>
I have received TESOL certificate from an accredited university in Korea. This certificate certifies that I have completed the teacher training course for three months. Although it was offered in Korea, it is in cooperation with an accredited university in the USA.

> 2) When you state "have three or so years of classroom teaching
> experience and curriculum development work experience for about three
> years". What type of experience is this? Is this experience in a
> 8am-4pm classroom in an IS or DS that provides education to school aged
> students as part of a national curriculum (NC) or is this in a language
> school either during the day, or after school, or in the evenings and the
> students are mixed ages and purposes?

Classroom experience teaching at an international school in Korea for one year (this school used US curriculum) and one and nine months at a cram school in Korea. So, I guess, it is less than three years. But I'm working at the same cram school now so that adds up to the total of three years.

> 3) When you state "curriculum development " is this for a
> regulating authority that provides education to school aged students, are
> for a recognized publisher that that provides textbooks and materials for
> the KS/K12 environment or is this you worked at a desk on material that
> went into the ESs/DSs/ISs binder somewhere and you used it for your own
> classes?

Curriculum development at a local publishing company which they owned a cram school. This was for K-12 students. I also did some teacher training, which means nothing at this point, I think.


> 4) Are you a US, UK, EU, CAN, AUS citizen or permenant resident, and if so
> which ones?
>
No, I'm Korean national. I do not have a permanent resident from US, UK, EU, CAN, AUS, and NZ.

> 5) What does the Ministry of Education want, specifically what will they
> accept? Will they accept another certificate by a business organization
> thats involved in education or do they require a credential by a regulating
> authority authorizing you to provide instructional services in literature
> and language arts in the regulated/maintained/public DSs?

I have asked the school to provide the exact document specifies what they really want from me. I have attended AP workshop, which the certificate specifies I have earned 12.0 contact hours and 1.2 CEU from the Collegeboard, which hopefully would certify that I can teach AP English lang and lit. I have already sent this to the school, hoping this would help a little, I have no idea at this point.

> 6) How much is this worth to you? What type of resources both in time and
> coin do you have to spend before you just shrug, throw the contract in the
> garbage and move on? Its really late in the recruiting calendar, but there
> are other options though youd have to drop whatever your doing and possibly
> schedule and take tests, CRB's, etc. an that might require some travel.

This means A LOT to me. I have been looking forward to this day that I depart from Korea to live in Taiwan for many months now. What tests are you suggesting me to take? I'm willing to do anything at this point. But I'm wondering, even if I take some form of tests, would anything would prove that I'm eligible to teach English language arts? Please let me know.

> The law hasnt changed significantly, what an IS would do in this type of
> case typically is to hire you as an ESOL IT on the paperwork to get your
> visa, and then just assign you to the language arts and literature classes.
> This is a regulated DS, for the time being so maybe they arent willing to
> do that, but that is question number 7?

Do you think I should ask the school to hire me as an ESOL IT on paper work and assign me to teach language arts/lit classes? And perhaps, during the course of my stay, I can get the certification they need and submit it. Besides, I have signed for two year contract.

> 7) Whats the IS willing to do here? Its sounding like the IS doesnt really
> want to work with you. Is this email from the recruiter or leadership you
> interviewed with and will be reporting to or is this from someone in HR or
> another office?

I'm not sure what they are willing to do. On Thursday, they sent me an email that they would pick me up from Taipei upon my arrival. Yesterday, they sent me an email saying that MOE rejected my work permit. So, maybe they didn't know when they signed the contract in February? I'm not sure. This email was sent by a foreign teachers liaison and she is basically an assistant to handle all the paperwork and such for foreign teachers at the school. I have talked to the dean of the school but he has never sent an email to me. Even a signed contract was sent through Skype by foreign teachers liaison.

> This would be super easy for them to just give you a new contract as an
> ESOL IT contract and then just assign you to "Advanced ESOL for
> Academic Purposes, Explorations in Literature" or whatever they need
> the documentation to look like to get it done, and then when they actually
> are an IS, which is right around the corner and whatever rules they have
> change, or you have a year and some time to find another solution that
> meets their needs.

So are you suggesting, they are unaware of this? Do you think I should suggest this to them? What should I do?

> 8) Whats theyre plan? Its nutter crazy IS talk that theyre just going to
> wait until July 30th to void the contract and then go recruiting at the
> start of new IT orientation with students in classrooms what a week, 10
> days, maybe two weeks later
>
I hope this won't happen.....

> I can see the problem theyre in, they have a government contract that they
> cant void or nullify, you have to void it by not providing the appropriate
> documentation but not having a conversation with you about how to proceed
> is well a level of stupid that only leadership can accomplish. At the very,
> very, very least your leadership should really want to ask you if you can
> make this happen, or maybe some kind of deal where you resign now and they
> reimburse you for your airfare, so they can find someone else in time for
> orientation. Otherwise if they dont want to have that conversation then go
> way back to the top of this email, and they have an option three scenario,
> they dont want you, and they probably have someone else already planed for
> your position when your contract is voided.
>
> 9) What are your options?
> Youre planing on leaving, you have a flight, Taiwan is a super easy
> location to get an ESOL job in. You could just hit Taipei live the city
> life or head south to Kaohsiung and do beach life.
> Theres still jobs out there in IE, this is the middle of the recruiting
> cycle for the really desperate and bottom tier IS that arent that picky. If
> your willing to spend another year teaching in ESOL there are a lot of
> regions in Asia looking for an ET that you can get to really easy from
> Taiwan.

I can give it a shot by just visiting Taiwan. But I guess this won't guarantee anything.

> 10) What are you willing to do? I saved this for last, because well its
> that area that the other major contributors disapprove upon as it involves
> things like deception, and subterfuge but there could be some options for a
> "borrowed ladder", a "tail chaser" or a "boiler
> room" scenario to get you into the job for now.

If there is such thing, I'm willing to try. But is it worth the try?

> Schrole cant do anything to help you, if you were an ISS managed candidate
> your consultant could start that conversation for you, and maybe get an
> indication whats really going on, but if its a ministry barrier and the IS
> wont help, than its really all on you.
>
> Its a way, way, way long shot but youre TESOL certificate program isnt
> going to be able to write anything thats going to say you can teach
> language arts and literature, but youve already asked and stranger things
> have happened so it might work.

I believe you are right. Unless the school provides an official rejection document from MOE, I'm not sure what they want exactly at this point.

If I should provide you with more answers, please let me know and I really appreciate your help!

In February, I have signed a contract with an international school in Taiwan to teach English language arts in a K-12 school. I will be teaching mostly middle and high school students. This school is pretty new, being a government-run local school to becoming an international school starting 2019-2020 year.

I was happy to sign the contract, assuming that my credentials are approved and checked by the school. I have applied to this school on ISS-Schrole.

To tell you briefly about myself, I'm Asian, a TCK, having both TESOl certificate and master's degree, have three or so years of classroom teaching experience and curriculum development work experience for about three years.

The orientation for the new teachers will be on July 30th so the school told me to arrive in Taiwan on July 29th so I bought my one-way flight ticket to Taiwan. I'm planning to quit my job (which I thought I would just stay before I leave for Taiwan) but I have received an email saying that my work permit has been rejected by K-12 Education Administration, Ministry of Education of Taiwan because my TESOL certificate do not correspond to the subject that I'll be teaching (Language Arts).

At this point, I'm thinking.... WTF! I mean, why would a school just sign a contract without checking these things? Did the law change all of a sudden or what the heck happened, I don't know.

The school told me that if I can't prove a certificate that can prove my eligibility of teaching language arts, the contract that has already been signed would be invalid. So, I have asked the professor/thesis advisor/founder of TESOL certificate program for a recommendation letter of some kind that can prove that I am eligible to teach.

Any experienced teachers who can give me some help here? I'm lost......