I posted back in August, 2018 that the school I'm at took away my A-level classes even though my A-level results were the best. I felt it compromised as a teacher, made the decision then and there to grin and bear it and started a job search for the 2019/2020 school. I found a job for next year that I'm really happy with.
Well the same thing basically happened again. My G2 students complained and parents got on the Head to replace me with a teacher they like better. That's exactly what the Head did. The reason given was that they did not think I was preparing my G2 students well enough for external exams. I pointed out that
a. Last year, 80% of my G2/G12 received A*, 10% received A and 10% received B
b. My mock exam results this year were 1% less than the mock results for the other G2 teacher
The Head decided to cave to parental demands (which is a real pattern at this school) was very apologetic and is not reassigning me to any other classes. For the next four months, I have the same pay, same benefits - same everything - just a much lighter schedule, 25% lighter in fact.
I know I should just sit back and enjoy it but for the second time in a year, I feel like I've been humiliated. Legally speaking, I feel "my reputation has been irreparably" damaged and I want to file a complaint. The school is part of a network and is owned by a multi-billion dollar investment group also based in China and they have a confidential complaint procedure in place. I filed the complaint but the procedure dictates that I start with the Head of School, the very person I'm complaining about. I'm starting to think it might backfire.
Has anyone ever filed a complaint against a school in China?
I'd love to hear about it.
Filing a complaint in China
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wrldtrvlr123
- Posts: 1173
- Joined: Sat Feb 06, 2010 10:59 am
- Location: Japan
Re: Filing a complaint in China
I have not but my two cents (FWIW) is that no good will come of it. If the Head caved to parents then it's because they perceive (probably correctly) that the organization prefers happy parents over happy teachers.
If your future job prospects were in danger or if this were a labor issue that involved wrongly withholding pay/wrongful termination I would say do whatever you felt you needed to do. In this case, you are already moving on to a hopefully better situation, you have your positive results documented and in hand and living well is the best revenge.
Others may have other input/advice but I would just move onward and upward.
If your future job prospects were in danger or if this were a labor issue that involved wrongly withholding pay/wrongful termination I would say do whatever you felt you needed to do. In this case, you are already moving on to a hopefully better situation, you have your positive results documented and in hand and living well is the best revenge.
Others may have other input/advice but I would just move onward and upward.
Re: Filing a complaint in China
Onwards and upwards.
Your reputation has not been damaged unless the school is somehow advertising the change and claiming it was because you were a bad teacher. How would any future employer even know about this recent change? Your CV still says, and rightly so, that you taught x, y and z at this school. Your references were presumably written long back.
Unless you tell this story, it dies when you leave the school.
Your reputation has not been damaged unless the school is somehow advertising the change and claiming it was because you were a bad teacher. How would any future employer even know about this recent change? Your CV still says, and rightly so, that you taught x, y and z at this school. Your references were presumably written long back.
Unless you tell this story, it dies when you leave the school.
Re: Filing a complaint in China
I agree with both Sid and Wrld Traveler and I actually like the Head; the tuition here is so high and it is a strictly tuition driven school that the parents have tremendous power and definitely use it.
But it's like that line in Blood Simple - "The more I think about, the more irritated I get."
But it's like that line in Blood Simple - "The more I think about, the more irritated I get."
Re: Filing a complaint in China
Yep, sit back and enjoy it. You have a light timetable, you have had the responsibility of exam classes taken away from you and given to another teacher so you are not responsible for their plight. Presumably that was because you made them work - however you don't have to worry now.
You have a job to look forward to, so why not just spend the time planning that? :-)
You have a job to look forward to, so why not just spend the time planning that? :-)
Response
This is going to involve a fairly complicated procedure. first your going to want to remove your cranium skull cap, than looking down at your cerebellum you want to gently get under the grey matter to just above the medulla oblongata, to your ego, carefully remove it and add it to your food processor. Then cut and pit 4 avocados, and to that add a half cup chopped onion and half a cup chopped cherry tomatoes as well as the juice of a whole lime, add salt and pepper to taste and pulse 10 times until the mixture is smooth. Serve with crispy tortilla chips.
Your ego is experiencing discordance because your egos perception of the world as a meritocracy is hitting the cold reality that its really a popularity contest, and your ego is going to get you in trouble. Right now you have the best possible situation, you have lost nothing and have gained a lighter work load, your HOS has given you a pretty cherry scenario here. Your stupid ego is going to ruin it by filing a complaint which your relatively nice HOS (as youve acknowledged) may suddenly feel, "hey I gave this guy an easier course load, and did nothing to him in terms of coin, benefits, title or anything and he goes and files a complaint, because I have real superiors called parents I have to answer too", and then your HOS becomes much, much, much less of a nice guy and maybe he starts thinking youre not a team player, youre an agitator, and it shows in your classroom, because you cant connect with students and make the learning process more enjoyable to them, no your not such a good IT, and maybe that needs to be reflected in the letter, or maybe worse you file the complaint and someone in the corporate HQ thinks "you dont get it" and more trouble than your worth, and you arent worth thinking about it for more than the 3.2 minutes they already have and decides to dismiss you, now you dont get a letter of reference at all, and its March and you dont even have a job, and maybe they call the next ISs your going to and trash you with them, and then they rescind their offer.
Take your complaint thoughts put them in a box, put them in a deep hole, douse the box with petro, light a match, and burn it to ash, fill in the hole, then pour a concrete slab over it, before your indignant self righteous ego gets you in trouble. Shut your head hole, do the bauble head for the last couple of months and move on, as @WT123 stated so eloquently, no good will come of this.
Your ego is experiencing discordance because your egos perception of the world as a meritocracy is hitting the cold reality that its really a popularity contest, and your ego is going to get you in trouble. Right now you have the best possible situation, you have lost nothing and have gained a lighter work load, your HOS has given you a pretty cherry scenario here. Your stupid ego is going to ruin it by filing a complaint which your relatively nice HOS (as youve acknowledged) may suddenly feel, "hey I gave this guy an easier course load, and did nothing to him in terms of coin, benefits, title or anything and he goes and files a complaint, because I have real superiors called parents I have to answer too", and then your HOS becomes much, much, much less of a nice guy and maybe he starts thinking youre not a team player, youre an agitator, and it shows in your classroom, because you cant connect with students and make the learning process more enjoyable to them, no your not such a good IT, and maybe that needs to be reflected in the letter, or maybe worse you file the complaint and someone in the corporate HQ thinks "you dont get it" and more trouble than your worth, and you arent worth thinking about it for more than the 3.2 minutes they already have and decides to dismiss you, now you dont get a letter of reference at all, and its March and you dont even have a job, and maybe they call the next ISs your going to and trash you with them, and then they rescind their offer.
Take your complaint thoughts put them in a box, put them in a deep hole, douse the box with petro, light a match, and burn it to ash, fill in the hole, then pour a concrete slab over it, before your indignant self righteous ego gets you in trouble. Shut your head hole, do the bauble head for the last couple of months and move on, as @WT123 stated so eloquently, no good will come of this.
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shadowjack
- Posts: 2140
- Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:49 am
Re: Filing a complaint in China
So, sit back, enjoy the extra time, know that you upheld your standards and ethics, and leave with your head held high. Don't look back. Your director could have been a LOT worse to you than what he is being. Seen it happen....
Re: Filing a complaint in China
Having worked in China for a handful of years, I concur with the advice to keep your head down. If you try to complain to a Chinese person that your boss gave you a lighter workload for the same pay, they would think you are bonkers regardless of the context.
Re: Filing a complaint in China
monkeycat wrote:
> Having worked in China for a handful of years, I concur with the advice to keep your
> head down. If you try to complain to a Chinese person that your boss gave you a
> lighter workload for the same pay, they would think you are bonkers regardless of
> the context.
Well I'm not complaining, I was just considering it and looking into the procedure for doing so but don't think that the lighter work-load comes without a price. For one, every teacher knows that I was removed and that's a humiliation. For another, whenever I see one of G2 students they start to snicker and that's also a humiliation.
By the way, the mock results were published and my G2 section was statistically indistinguishable from the other G2 section so the students in my group were just as well prepared for the exam as the other group.
> Having worked in China for a handful of years, I concur with the advice to keep your
> head down. If you try to complain to a Chinese person that your boss gave you a
> lighter workload for the same pay, they would think you are bonkers regardless of
> the context.
Well I'm not complaining, I was just considering it and looking into the procedure for doing so but don't think that the lighter work-load comes without a price. For one, every teacher knows that I was removed and that's a humiliation. For another, whenever I see one of G2 students they start to snicker and that's also a humiliation.
By the way, the mock results were published and my G2 section was statistically indistinguishable from the other G2 section so the students in my group were just as well prepared for the exam as the other group.
Reply
@Doctor
By the way your humiliation, are YOUR feelings, from YOUR ego, inside YOUR brain, inside YOUR body, choose to feel differently, why do you care what some kids think or snicker, theyre kids, youre an adult. Why would you care what some other ITs know about you being reassigned.
By the way your humiliation, are YOUR feelings, from YOUR ego, inside YOUR brain, inside YOUR body, choose to feel differently, why do you care what some kids think or snicker, theyre kids, youre an adult. Why would you care what some other ITs know about you being reassigned.
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shadowjack
- Posts: 2140
- Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:49 am
Re: Filing a complaint in China
Whenever you see your G2 students you should thank them for making your life easier, smile, and walk on by. As other people say, it's all about perception and you're letting yours color the whole thing. You're leaving, you've got new challenges and a new school that wants you, so don't look back. Plus, it will bug them because you aren't giving them the response they want.