First they came for the Communists,
Well it's election time tomorrow in the USA and The Inspector would like to contribute the following solution for the Queen to consider proposing to our former colony.
Yet another totally plausible tale of woe . Posted on the "Mr Andrew Kirby, formerly of Harrow House" section. They don't seem to have improved over the years. This "school" appears one to avoid. Bargepoles out troops. Any comments, especially from Harrow House would be welcome.
The annual TEFL Blacklist Oscars were delayed owing to a late flurry of worthy (or should it be worthless) candidates. In truth your noble sleuth has been spoilt for choice this year. The TEFL Blacklist has attracted tales of woe galore.  The school charges A$16,000 a year in fees for final-year students |
"The entire graduating class at an exclusive Australian boys school has been suspended over "unacceptable" end-of-term antics.
Up to 100 of 250 Year 12 students at Xavier College, Melbourne, allegedly took part in the "muck-up day" trouble.
They ran through the school wearing only their school ties as G-strings, and set off fireworks at a nearby railway station, media reports say.
Classes have been cancelled until Wednesday, the scheduled final day.
Vehicles 'damaged'
The trouble began at lunchtime on Monday - "muck-up day", an unofficial tradition of graduating students taking part in end-of-term pranks and other activities.
 |  They were blind drunk and some of them could barely stand. My kids have been through muck-up day, but I've never seen anything like that  Local resident |
Police said they received numerous complaints relating to up to 100 students running rampage in the neighbourhood.
They were said to have harassed drivers and disrupted traffic, and there are also allegations that vehicles were damaged.
The students - aged 17 and 18 - are also accused of running semi-naked through the school grounds and setting off fireworks at the nearby Balaclava railway station.
One student was admitted to hospital with multiple fractures in his leg after a playground game reportedly got out of hand.
One neighbourhood resident wrote to The Age newspaper alleging the students were drunk and badly behaved.
"Their behaviour was disgraceful," the man said.
"They were blind drunk and some of them could barely stand. My kids have been through muck-up day, but I've never seen anything like that."
'Contravened boundaries'
In response the school has cancelled all classes until Wednesday, which would have been the final day of teaching.
Exams are due to begin at the end of the month for the Year 12 students, said to pay A$16,000 (US$11,000; £6,500) a year in fees to attend the Roman Catholic school.
In a statement, the school said the boys had "contravened the boundaries of sensible behaviour" while playing a game, and that the "unacceptable" conduct had forced it to cancel remaining classes.
It did not refer to the trouble off-campus, but police have threatened criminal charges against the pupils involved.
BBC website readers have been sending in their comments:
What ever happened to a good wallop across the head! That's what these boys are lacking! When I went to Catholic School (graduate of 1995) we were taught respect, and were disciplined accordingly if having stepped out of line. The problem is these little rich kids have never learnt respect for others, never learnt how to take responsibility for their actions and certainly have no idea on social etiquette. Bring back the cane! :-)
Cleve Rynehart, Melbourne, Australia
I attended and enjoyed what seems to be a similar academic boys school in Canada. We also had an unofficial "muck-up day" called "grub day" and the tradition ended in much the same way: behaviour and stunts taken too far so it was cancelled.
The consensus at the time was that an unsustainable, escalating pattern of one-upmanship, whereby each graduating class felt a need to make things more extreme and wilder than the previous year, was the problem. Clever became vulgar, and fun became outrageous.
Jim Fuite, Edmonton, Canada
Glad to see not much has changed since my departure from Xavier in 1968. Now, if only the Jesuits would bring back the 15-inch strap (with the two inlaid Aussie pennies at one end), all would be right with life. Well done boys . . . you've made some of us old timers proud.
Timothy Lynch, Los Angeles, CA USA
As a Xavier alumni, it is disappointing to hear that the actions of a minority of students taking things too far have tarnished the reputation of a great educational institution. If indeed these allegations are true then they should be disciplined. However, how did the residents know they were all Xavier students? At my muck-up day, everyone (including students from other private schools in Kew, of which there are many) took off their ties and blazers, so it would have been very difficult for onlookers to distinguish which school the students belonged to. I think it might be another case of the media reporting everything it hears without actually checking the facts.
Peter C, London
It's almost like a tradition in all boarding school facilities for final year and graduating students to do something really wild and crazy before leaving school. We did it during my time by boycotting almost all regular school activities and had to sign an undertaking to be of good behaviour in the process. It's part of growing up...
Israel Ambe Ayongwa, Jonkoping, Sweden
It was disgusting, these young lads were urinating in my fish pond,and kicking over my gnomes. I have never seen anything like it, I have lived here for 28 years, and my gnomes have never been attacked like this before.
Sheila Outrigger, Melbourne
They beheaded five of my gnomes and knocked over my brand-new bird bath. It's a disgrace, they have no respect for others and I blame, as always, the parents.
Lucinda R, Melbourne"
I worked for a recruitment company RFT. The job was ın Turkey and ıt sounded wonderful but the students were horrıble! I was told by RFT that I should resign and they would fınd me another job! The job they offered me I could not afford to take. The salary was much to low to survıve ın Turkey. I later resıgned and my contract states they must provıde a plane tıcket to your home country. When ıt came to purchase the tıcket they just avoıded my calls and threaten to deport me. They brought me to Turkey !
This outfit is still advertising for TEFL teachers through 'Serious Teachers' website.
I also worked for RFT in Turkey and had a terrible time.
The company is run by Koray and Zanore.
My girlfriend and I were told we would have four camps each. But when we arrived after spending 300 Euros each on transport we were told there was only one for my girlfriend and two for me.
My girlfriend's camp was only part-time, so she made only US$750 in two months - not even enough to live on.
Koray agreed to pay my girlfriend a per diem of US $400 to help her survive.
The worst thing was that when it was time to leave, Koray refused to pay our flight money (which our contract said we were entitled to).
Koray said he wouldn't pay the flight money because he'd given my girlfriend the per diem!
There were many, many other problems with these guys. AVOID!
I have been corresponding with Zanore from RFT, and have been thinking about taking a job with them. This makes me nervous, can anyone say more about them?
Hi I'm currently also looking at working in Turkey and have been contacted by RFT. I get so sick of schools taking advantage of the teachers. Anyone know of a good school in Turkey?
Thanks
C
RFT Turkey has cheated me out of money. They simply refused to pay me for working a summer camp. They are deceitful and unprofessional. Be wary of them. Try to find a job elsewhere. They are also doing other weird things there.
Wow! I am so sorry to hear that others have gone through the same trials and tribulations with RFT.
They brought us here promising us many things. Not riches and fame mind you, but just your basic necessities.
We were lied to in every way you can imagine.
I stress that this is not a bitter rant. We did all that they asked, and remained incredibly patient and loyal to RFT.
They lied about where we would live, where we would teach, what we would teach, how often we would teach, what they would furnish the house with (NOTHING), permits, time-off if we needed it, and sooo many other things.
In a nutshell, they are without a doubt the worst people to ever run a business. This sentiment is echoed by everyone we met who was here with RFT at the time. They cannot be trusted. If you do complain about things you will be threatened with deportation, police, etc.
Zanore and Koray actually dated too. This made matters worse. They screamed and yelled in front of employees. They forced some newcomers to live with them at their office/residence because they had nowhere to put them.
They fired people on a regular basis for absolutely no valid reason. They even fired their one and only office worker/recruiter because she stood up to them and defended the teachers' rights. She too was threatened with the police.
We have left Turkey since, but we did meet many good people here in Istanbul. There are lots of good schools around. It is ABSOLUTELY worth coming over here, just heed our words....STAY AWAY FROM RFT!!!
Yeah dıtto to the last post. Zanore and Koray lie and fight in front of people. They at tımes can be nice but only to serve their purposes. This isnt a bitter rant either, only a warning. They can find you a school to work for but they offer little support. They seem to take their commissions and run. Dont ever put yourself in a position where they owe you money.
RFT's website is one of the finest exercises in fiction I have ever read. It says teachers are given psychometric tests and have all their qualifications checked out.
When I worked for them, they were literally grabbing backpackers off the street and giving them fake degrees so they could teach.
I should add that they simply refused to give me all the pay they owed me. Koray said I had been "expensive" because he had to pay our English recruiter Paul Rogers 400 pounds for my CV. Therefore, he refused to pay my flight money.
I was incredulous and very loudly gave him a piece of my mind. Didn't get my money though!
Avoid these charlatans at all costs.
Key words: "Paul Rogers" Koray Zanore RFT Turkey
1. The one that really annoys me is how people suddenly seem to confuse "have" and "of", as in: "I could of learnt how to write properly." There's no excuse for it!
Pete, Sheffield
2. The phrase "for free" is becoming commonplace and is used often on television and it's wrong. It should be "for nothing".
Mary, Basingstoke
3. That guardian of our language, the BBC, is full of solecisms these days; just one example: 12 pm. There is no such time; "meridiem" as in am ("ante meridiem" means "before noon") and pm ("post meridiem" means "after noon") means midday. The 12th hour is neither before nor after midday. So please, BBC use either midday or noon with midnight the correct term for the other end of the day. This is not being pedantic; in these days of 24-hour days, it is often not readily apparent what time 12 pm might be.
Mervyn, Usk, Monmouthshire
4. If you do something to change a situation, then you "effect" a change. If your circumstances are changed by an action, then the change has caused an "effect". You cannot "affect" a change in something, nor can you be "effected" by one.
Rob, Lyme Regis
5. I get annoyed at the reckless use of apostrophes, for example, the plural of CD can't be CD's.
Shahed Alam, London
6. Many people, including public speakers, incorrectly use "I" instead of "me". For instance, they would say "She said some very kind things about George and I", thinking that they are being polite or grammatically correct. An easy way to remember which to use is: if you would say him or her on its own, use me; if you would say he or she on its own, use I. For example, "She said some very kind things about him".
Lorraine, Aylesbury
7. Incorrect use of reflexives make my blood boil. I think that for someone to say "yourself" and "myself" when they just mean "you" or "me" is possibly out of a false sense of politeness, or maybe the insidious effect of TV soaps, or both. Those who use it correctly can give "themselves" a pat on the back.
John Self, Wisset, Suffolk
8. How about "none of them is" and "none of them are"? Most people would use the latter whereas the former is correct. "None" is short for "not one" therefore "not one (none) of them is" would be used. Most newsreaders still get it right though - on the BBC anyway!
Emily, Bristol
NOTE: Fowler's Modern English Usage says that "none" is not short for "not one" and although using a singular verb is more common, using a plural verb has also been an acceptable option since the reign of King Alfred.
9. Similar TO, different FROM, compared WITH. Not "to" used for all of them!
Susan, Brisbane, Australia
NOTE: Fowler's Modern English Usage says: "The commonly expressed view that 'different' should only be followed by 'from' and never by 'to' or 'than' is not supportable in the face of past and present evidence or of logic." It adds that "compare to" is to liken and "compare with" or "compare to" is used to point out similarities and differences. The BBC News website style guide differs with Fowler's on this last point. It says that when pointing out differences, "compare with" should always be used.
10. Here's one they often get wrong on BBC news! BBC reporter: "Then they opened fire on us". This is incorrect. In military terms there are two methods of shooting at an enemy, controlled-fire and open-fire. I.E. you are not opening anything so using the past tense of open is incorrect. The correct expression should be "Then they open-fired on us"
JWTH, Belfast
11. I find the increasing, incorrect use of "literally" annoying.... "I literally went blue with anger!!" "Really?" I ask.
Ned, Wallingford
12. The proper use of "its" and "it's" seems to confound many people, with "its" being a possessive and "it's" being a contraction of "it is". I've seen this mistake made even in some rather lofty publications...
Eric, Berlin
13. It annoys me when people use "due to" when they mean "owing to". But then I'm a pedant.
Guy, London
NOTE: The BBC News website style guide says "due to" means "caused by" and needs a noun, but "owing to" means "because of" and relates to a verb. Hence, "the visit was cancelled [cancelled is the verb] owing to flooding" is correct. So too is "the flooding [flooding is the noun] was due to weeks of heavy rain".
14. As a secondary teacher, I'm beginning to despair when it comes to "they're", "there" and "their"; not to mention "to", "two" and "too". Why are we so afraid to correct these simple mistakes which make all the difference at a later stage?
Alexandra, London
15. There is also confusion over lend and borrow. I keep hearing school children asking "to lend your pencil" when what they actually mean is to "borrow" the pencil.
Ian Walton, Bedford
16. I cringe when I hear BBC reporters say "amount of people" when it should be "number of people"!
Jill Thistlethwaite, Leyburn, UK
NOTE: Fowler's says "amount" is used with nouns that are not countable, such as "amount of forgiveness" and "amount of glue" - but "number" is used with countable nouns, such as "number of boys" and "number of houses".
17. I don't like it when people say: I can go there "by foot" instead of "on foot"....the right preposition to use is ON.
Daniela, Urbana, IL
18. The usage that I find particularly irritating is that of a single noun with a plural verb, for example: "the team are happy with their victory", or "management have congratulated the workforce on the recent increase in productivity". Team is a singular noun so it should read "the team IS happy..." or "the team members ARE happy", the same applies "management HAS congratulated..." Also, what has happened to the word "versus", abbreviated "vs"? Now all we see is "v"; it is even read like that in sports announcements.
Lucia, Horndean, UK
NOTE: The BBC News website's style is that sports teams and pop/rock bands are always plural.
19. A classic confusing rule is the one that states that one is supposed never to end a sentence with a preposition. While this is easy and appropriate to follow in most cases, for example by saying "Yesterday I visited the town to which she has just moved" instead of "...the town she has just moved to", it becomes troublesome when the verb structure includes a preposition that cannot be removed from it, as in "At work I am using a new computer with which my manager recently set me up", which cannot correctly be changed to "...I am using a new computer up with which my manager recently set me".
Philip Graves, Stockholm, Sweden
20. Stadiums, as a plural of stadium, rather than stadia.
C. Matthews, Birmingham, UK
NOTE: Fowler's says that when dealing with modern sports grounds, rather than ones from the classical world, the plural is "stadiums".
"In 2002 there were as many as 130 WSI branches in Spain. Many of these were franchises. With the collapse that same year of rival school Opening English, which used a similar computer-based teaching method to that of Wall Street, the Baltimore company saw 88 of its Spanish franchises close before the end of the year.
Today there are less than 20 Wall Street Institute branches open in Spain.
Wall Street and Opening English used a similar method to charge their customers. Customers would sign up for an extended period of time in order to avail of cheaper rates. However the contract which they signed was not with Wall Street but with a financing operation unconnected to the English school chain. Thus when students of the two schools, unhappy with their progress, tried to rescind their contracts early they discovered that they had to take the issue up with the bank that underwrote the financing company who issued their contract. Wall Street does not teach children. The majority were unsuccessful in their claims.
When Consumers Associations took up the plight of many disaffected students, the issue became a national story and loop holes in Spain's commerce laws were shown to be being exploited by the chain schools, who did not have to take any responsibility for the customers' dissatisfaction with the quality of the services they offered.
The relevant laws were subsequently amended."
I wouldn't recommend Berlitz Istanbul. If you are interested in seeing a foreign country for 6 months and experience a new culture then this place is a no-brainer. But, if you are looking for medical benefits, a teacher's permit, travel pay (all promised in the original contract) forget it! This thief has no honor. They even pocket the teacher's income tax at the end of the year!"
_________________________________________________________
"Eurolingua in Brno, Czech Republic is best to avoid.
After one interview and seeing the premisis, I opted not to take a job offer with them and decided that I will not work with them ever.
The woman who runs the place has very little in people skills or social graces and said to my face that she refuses to hire people legally, won't help employees with taxes. Basically, she said she gives you the money and the rest is your problem and don't ask her for help.
The bureaucracy in the Czech Republic for foreigners is quite daunting, so you certainly don't need an employer like this
While I have not worked there personally, I have a colleague and a former student who both have done teaching work there (they are both Czech) and neither had much good to say about the owner of the school or her people skills, they also went on to say that many students were not happy at the owner's business practices on one level or another."
Academy of English Studies Folkestone,
This comment was left by a Mr. Anonymous on the "Who Killed Sandy McManus" post. What The Inspector finds most interesting is not the content so much as who could have been the author. There are quite a few clues, in fact to work out what sort of person might have written it, in fact it's a bit like Cluedo. Who dunnit? Was it Colonel Mustard with a revolver in the Billiard Room. Before you read it here are the following pointers:
Well assuming that there are no red herrings in the comments I would guess that there are enough clues to have a pretty good guess as to who might be the author. Richard Bradford of Cactus TEFL would be a possibility but he doesn't own Cactus as far as The Inspector knows and the author has apparently started his own business. Cactus as agents don't actually run a language school but take a commission as agents for TEFL courses/English homestays/language courses they sell.
He/she is probably an agent in EFL hence the comment about wanting to take on someone with a salary of £40,000 and involving a fair bit of admin and some travelling.
Whoever you are Mr/Ms Anonymous thanks for the posting. What an insight into the mindset of an EFL agent!
Any other guesses as to who it might be? Anyway here it is ........................
"I used to find such comments on low wages tiresome but now they just amuse me.
I remember I instigated a bonus scheme to help people realise that if they did what only what they were contractually obliged to do, they could earn a little more. As I could have predicted when you give staff more for them doing what they have always done they become less happy. Why? Well, I’ll let you work that one out. In one instance of a teacher who was always late, got miffed because he didn’t get any bonus for the punctuality element. Can you believe it!
See if you can disagree with any of this
Most people who enter efl are young graduates who have very little ambition or skills and don’t have any prospect of a good career in the UK commensurate with their perceived value as a graduate so gain a cert to go and live abroad for a while. It has been a truism for at least two hundred years that if you can’t make it in the home country you go abroad. They go abroad and work for low wages which they don’t really care about as it seems like an extended holiday and are glad to have the chance to survive in a foreign country/culture. They are now qualified (long expensive training gives them a professional status as an efl teacher – well 4 weeks and £800).
They return for summer school work for a few years and then they start to think they are not really getting anywhere so they’ll return to the UK to make some real money commensurate with their value as a professional, qualified, experienced graduate.
Of course permanent posts are quite rare and almost all are poorly paid. Why is that? Because every year there are more and more “qualified teachers” (remember that long and expensive professional training?). For supposed graduates the fact that almost all of them have no grasp of the basic laws of supply and demand says something doesn’t it.
Remember however that the longer one stays in this business as a teacher the more entrenched in a losing mindset you will become. Hey presto the only outlet is to complain about how other people don’t give you things (higher wages) which are your birthright as a professional, qualified, experienced graduate. So wearying, so sad.
That is not to say there aren’t some nice people in the business but the overwhelming majority are those who have abjectly failed in their other chosen pursuit (usually artistic) and are complete losers in every way, boring, lazy and lacking ambition.
I think the apotheosis of this type is Sandy Mcmanus. If I didn’t have better things to do I would start a website to name and shame all the useless twats I have had to deal with, but why bother? It won’t improve my life. What will such people ever understand about working for six months, 15 hours a day, 7 days a week for no money at all, and you have had to remortgage to pay wages to the sort of “professionals” who walk off the job, and worse.
I’ve met hundreds of these types. Indeed I was one myself. Although I don’t remember complaining about how other people didn’t give me more money. My first efl job at the age of 26 paid £60 per week. That was in 1994. I have been in EFL since then and worked hard. Pay attention to that last sentence. My last job as a teacher in 2002 paid £1000 in a good week. In 2005 I earned £77,000. I once had a school but left that business as having to deal with all the criminals, shysters and useless teachers stressed me out too much. Still in EFL but do not own a language school (thank God). How much do I earn now? about £11,000 per month. If my financial predictions pan out in about 15 months it should be about £66,000 per month.
I can hear the gasps of disbelief. Funny thing is, it isn’t that much. Loads of people in the City earn these sorts of figures. “Why, How?” Oh how I wish the Guardian would teach readers the basics of supply and demand, even a short article on working hard instead of waiting for handouts would be helpful
In case any of you think this is a silly boast, think again. Apart from the fact none of you know me, nor are you ever likely to, money in fact means very little. Making it is just a game. And no, I’m not going to tell you how. Just like wisdom, all the answers are out there, you’ve just got to work it out for yourself. Unfortunately very few of you will. I can guarantee that anyone who complains about how other people won’t give them something for free is unlikely ever to learn anything, which will ever help them get out of such a situation. The essence of success (if that is what you choose to call it, btw why are you all so avaricious?) is to work out how to give more to people while they give you less. Ok, I’m sure many of you didn’t know that, although I am confident that giving away that little secret will not help any of you. Stony ground.
Remember 95% (exactly) of the population will never amount to anything. Do you know why? I hope there will be a post with the correct answer. If there is, I will respond to it. Indeed if someone does come up with the correct answer and they need a leg up financially or in any other way, I’ll help them. I can guarantee however that almost all responses to this post will be negative and there ye shall remain. I’m rambling a little here but I haven’t quite lost faith in people yet. I am in fact looking for someone to do a job for me in EFL. Quite easy, quite a lot of admin, a little travelling and 40k for the right person.
None of you who work in schools and complain about your wages have ever spotted a decent employer and said to them, “I am going to do something for you for free because I like working here”, or “I want to be paid less” If any of you have any balls, just try it and see what happens. Those with the right attitude are always spotted sooner or later and given a chance to better themselves. There are many who started at the bottom with nothing and went right to the top. Do you think they got there by saying to those who mattered, I’m going to do less but I want more from you?
I expect you’ll all be posting how bad I am. I can’t see that I am but no doubt you’ll find something to bleat about. But before you do, consider who creates jobs, pays taxes which run the country and pays for all the health and education you lot consume. And who pays to look after the old and the sick? and gives more money away to charity than you lot earn in a year? What do you contribute?"
Posted by Anonymous
Obnoxious School. Classes Appalling. Real Shysters.
This comment appeared on the "nominate a school for blacklisting section."
Yes dear readers. Twas a narrow escape down the fire escape in fact, trousers down by the ankles with Lady McHammered hot on my heels. That's definitely the last time I try the missionary position. I've cricked the old back which should cool the love life a tad. Pity to have had to head for the "ausfahrt" so suddenly without so much as an "auf wiedersehen" to the gorgeous Ingrid, as a good time was being had by all concerned, at least until that old strumpet, Lady McHammered, burst into the hotel room with a horse whip. She had me fingered, so to speak, and clearly I needed to put as much distance as possible between the old battleaxe's whip and my buttocks.
To me, this is a scam...they bait schools with 'interested' applicants and then ask for money to contact them. In addition, they allow absolutely NO information whatsoever to be communicated...with or without contact information.
October 14, 2008 8:51 AM
Anonymous said...
Dear Inspector:
Could you start a new thread with the last comment here about seriousteachers.com? I would like to add my 2 cents without burying the Berlitz Istanbul info in unrelated info.
Thanks!"