Schools and Teaching
Finding a School: Coming to Taiwan to teach English is an alluring prospect for many foreigners, and well so: if you speak English natively there are a plethora of opportunities here. It is a buyers market, as they say, and with so many varieties and numbers of buxibans (cram schools) in Taiwan, teachers are hard to come by. If you look presentable and speak English, and you can expect to have a myriad of interesting and well-paying opportunities to await you. Teachers here can expect to earn something in the range of 600-800NT/hr, ( 18-22$USD). The largest cities (Taipei, Gaoxiang, Taoyuan, Taichung) have the most opportunity to find classes, though learners of English can be found everywhere.
If you're interested in securing a school before arriving, google will be your best friend. Some teachers have found success using school placement agencies, but like some schools, be advised that they may trick foreigners into coming, and allure them with high pay, only to include many other untold duties: homework checking, parents days, meetings, for no pay. It's best to investigate message boards and talk to other teachers at the schools when possible. Do your best to get a contract before arriving, though you may have to sign another contract when you arrive for governmental purposes. Ask many questions: Are you looking for English teachers? Will I teach children or adults? What is the hourly pay? Is there any outside work? Will you help me apply for my work visa? May I talk to a current foreign teacher?
In Taiwan, everything is negotiable, so don't afraid to be rude. You'll want a school that will sponsor your ARC (work visa), either before arriving or after (preferably after), so be sure this is apart of the deal. Even if you get stuck with a bad school, know that there are schools everywhere: you can move around, but you'll have to find a school that will sponsor your ARC to stay and work legally, unless you are keen on working illegally, visa hopping and leaving the country every month.
Private Tutoring: Private tutoring is a wonderful deal. Students can appear from anywhere. There are a variety of students who are interested in English. Some you will find are serious learners, desiring to go on to study in other countries. Some are high-school students studying for the GEPT tests, the largest English achievement tests in Taiwan. Some will be housewives looking to have some fun and others you'll find think of English as a way just to hang out with a foreigner for a while. Many students will desire only to read from English learning magazines, and others will want you to check their writing and have conversation. Payment for private tutoring runs from 500-800NT/hr, and you should set your price by your experience as well as your availability. Most students will want to meet once a week, for one or two hours. Check out tealit and ESL99 for two good web sites to start soliciting privates. Sometimes people will just come up to you in the street!
If you're worried and want a good preface on private tutoring, a long-time teacher, James Hogan, wrote a 140-page e-book on the subject, with teaching examples, lessons, materials, phone teaching sheets, etc. He also offers free advice to anyone who buys this tome. No guarantees on the advice, but phone teaching sheets are pretty awesome.
Requirements: You will need to gain Associates Degree with TESOL/TEFL Certificate (the bare minimum allowed by the Ministry of Education) OR a BA degree in anything. To keep up prestige, most schools prefer you have a BA degree. For general teaching, TOEFL certification, an education degree, teaching experience: none of these are required if you hold a BA. Public schools require an actual accredited teaching degree, though some private buxibans (private cram schools) outsource to public schools teachers who do not hold them. University teaching most likely requires a Masters degree in a related field.
Once in country, you'll need a copy of your actual diploma, legal working status (an ARC or Alien Resident Certificate) or a current visa with the option of extension, and come from one of six native-English speaking countries that are favored in Taiwan: Canada, The United States, The United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand or South Africa. You must also have no criminal record and be free of HIV. Overall, most schools are looking for someone who is light-hearted and gets along will with the students, and knows how to play some good games. See: games page. As well, bring some pennies and stickers and you will be loved instantly. The students here and in many ESL-learning countries all seem to love rock-paper-scissors. Get this card game and wow them.
In the Classroom: Teaching in classrooms in Taiwan can be a tall order, but also a great deal of fun. Most students in Taiwan come to cram schools, or "buxibans," both to get extra education and as a pseudo-babysitting service. Taiwan is a pressure-filled culture for students, who are expected to achieve high-marks in all they do. There is an emphasis here on testing, and their largest tests in public schools contain English portions. Your job, depending on your school, will generally include: look presentable, speak English, and play with the students. You'll certainly be required to do some phonics, book work, workbooks... but almost all schools in Taiwan are looking for a teacher who knows how to have fun. For a good primer on teaching ESL and grammar reminders and such, I'd check out this book. It's wonderfully intricate while still holding practical advice. You can read some reviews here.
Cost of Living: The cost of living in Taiwan is profoundly cheaper. Rent is about one-third, and food one-half, the price in America. In Taiwan, you'll save a great deal of money your first year: expect in the range of $10,000-20,000USD working a full schedule of only 20-25 hours a week (remember, these students are in public school during the day! Be careful. Some can get caught up in the party scene here and forget that, while living is cheap, you are also only working so many hours. Some supplement their main schools and privates by working kindergartens: this is illegal, and can land you in hot water with your school and Taiwan if you are caught. These schools can be held accountable if they are sponsoring your ARC. In the end, it is rare that schools intervene if you are low-key; still, you work at outside schools at your own risk.
Discrimination: Let me first say that my account of discrimination in Taiwan is entirely based on reading the internet and second-hand accounts. Indeed, my treatment as a caucasian, American, has been nothing but wonderful. If you are caucasian, and from America especially, you are often given first-preference for jobs and privates. Taiwanese love the idea of America (in Chinese "meiguo", or "beautiful country"). The English taught in Taiwan as a whole is American English, not British English. This affinity is also shared for Koreans and Japanese. There is the problem of you as a white person generating an overt amount of attention: people may point, take pictures, attempt to talk to you in English at inopportune times. Get used to it. This is generally not done out of malice, but a respect and joy people have in interacting with foreigners here, and a pride in their own English. Best to approach this with a sense of humor.
On the other side of the coin, Taiwan, along with many other countries, is notorious for treating their Thai, Phillipino, and Indonesian foreign workers poorly. These people are generally over-worked and under-paid. Blacks have also faced something of discrimination in Taiwan, and even Chinese native-speakers of English may come in second if looking for a job in the classroom. This is less true in the cities and not true everywhere, and is certainly improving. Taiwan culture is very open and friendly on the whole
More Information:
Incomplete List of Schools in Taiwan
