ESL teaching

Hi Renata.


I think that you could have an enjoyable experience teaching in Hungary as you are bi-lingual and could therefore find it easy to meet Hungarians to socialise with outside work.

The country is beautiful. I think you might be shocked by how low-paid teaching is. Prices really are not cheap compared to the salary. Tax is high on your income too. From what I know, many teachers work semi-legally - if they were fully legal then they would find it stupidly difficult to have enough money to spend even on some basics and would have to budget carefully all the time.

I have been teaching here for a month now and suppose I am lucky in that the small school I teach at gives me small but decent accommodation attached to the school. I am paid for each hour taught and if the students cancel a lesson then that means no pay. Not the best situation really. But, as I said, it's a beautiful country, people are nice and my students are lovely. I don't know how long I will be able to deal with the pay though as it means I can't really afford to do very much. Spring and summer are fine because the weather is generally lovely and it's nice to be outside but I am not sure about winter yet .  .. .

sangfroid wrote:

Is that all any English speaker has to offer? their language?

I am not trying to be offensive but I am not going to sugar coat this. English is spoken everywhere already. There is no need for more English.

Think of how hypocritical it is. If everything in America or England were in foreign language like this. You would be throwing a fit. Yet the whole world bends over for you and what do you want to do? push English more!

Why don't you get a degree, or learn some real skills so you have more to offer than just the language you were born with. There's nothing more pathetic than English speakers talking about teaching ESL. In every countries forum on this site, it is littered with English speakers wanting to teach ESL. All English speakers seem to be capable of doing is teaching ESL.

There's no need for more English in Hungary. The malls and grocery stores in Hungary are already indistinguishable from those in America or UK because so many products are written in English not Hungarian. The store signs are usually English. The stop signs (all over eastern europe) are in English rather than the local language. Even billboards are usually in English.

Hungary is already an English speaking country. You are not needed here.

stoilic78 wrote:

Is that all any English speaker has to offer? their language?

I am not trying to be offensive but I am not going to sugar coat this. English is spoken everywhere already. There is no need for more English.

Why would you want to offend someone in this way?

A lot of people do want to learn English because this is the international language of commerce. It's just a tool and a quirk of history. No need to get upset about it.  The past few hundred years it's been like that, with French previously considered the language of diplomacy. Any educated population will speak a number of languages and English is always included because it's so universal. No-one is pushing English or American culture.

stoilic78 wrote:

Think of how hypocritical it is. If everything in America or England were in foreign language like this. You would be throwing a fit. Yet the whole world bends over for you and what do you want to do? push English more!

That's a little small minded. The English speaking world extends to other countries as well. it's not just the USA and England. Think about it: Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, India, Philippines just to name a few. As for your comment about people in the USA going mental because of not speaking English, go to California or Florida or Texas - half the place uses Spanish. And then go north to Canada and to Quebec where of course, it's all in French. You could also pop to Rwanda where French and English is used equally. How about Mauritius? French and English once again

stoilic78 wrote:

Why don't you get a degree, or learn some real skills so you have more to offer than just the language you were born with. There's nothing more pathetic than English speakers talking about teaching ESL. In every countries forum on this site, it is littered with English speakers wanting to teach ESL. All English speakers seem to be capable of doing is teaching ESL.

How do you know the original poster has not got a degree? ESL is often used by people to finance their travels around the world, particularly in Asia. What's the harm in that? It's not being used to promote British or American or whatever culture. It's being used to facilitate trade and commerce.  If you turn up in Vietnam and you are a Hungarian speaker, you aren't going to be expected to speak Vietnamese and it would be unexpected if your trade partner spoke Hungarian. It'll be in English as that's the common language used for trade. It's the same in aviation, shipping, oil production and many other industries.

stoilic78 wrote:

There's no need for more English in Hungary. The malls and grocery stores in Hungary are already indistinguishable from those in America or UK because so many products are written in English not Hungarian. The store signs are usually English. The stop signs (all over eastern europe) are in English rather than the local language. Even billboards are usually in English.

This is definitely not true at all. There is a fashion to put up signs with English content (often grammatically incorrect) but this is just fashion, not the real language. A lot of things are not in English. Many people here have no knowledge of English to any significant level. Hungary is particularly poor at languages.  I speak English as a native speaker and I am also quite reasonable in German, school level French, certificate in Dutch and I dabble in extremely basic Hungarian. I try usually English first on people, if that doesn't work, it's German. Frequently I find people cannot do English or German to any reasonable level. Previously I found many people to be Ok in German.  Here, there's no point in speaking French or Dutch. My Hungarian is too weak to really try unless it's a trivial situation.  Now if I go to Belgium, I've a choice: English, German, French, Dutch. Well, hopefully, you get the point which is, it's just a tool for the job.

stoilic78 wrote:

Hungary is already an English speaking country. You are not needed here.

Hey, this is untrue. But if someone wants a working holiday teaching English in Hungary, I say more power to them, let them come and enjoy themselves.  The majority of people are open minded (ok, this is not The Netherlands or Sweden) but it's not bad. Maybe Hungary can teach them something and they can teach the Hungarians something.

fluffy2560 wrote:

stoilic78 wrote:

Is that all any English speaker has to offer? their language?

I am not trying to be offensive but I am not going to sugar coat this. English is spoken everywhere already. There is no need for more English.

Why would you want to offend someone in this way?

Like I said, I am not saying it to be offensive. But, I do not care about offending either of you.

fluffy2560 wrote:

That's a little small minded. The English speaking world extends to other countries as well. it's not just the USA and England. Think about it: Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, India, Philippines just to name a few.

That is exactly my point. There is already too much English in the world.

You're a little small minded for not realizing that.

fluffy2560 wrote:

As for your comment about people in the USA going mental because of not speaking English, go to California or Florida or Texas - half the place uses Spanish.

I have been to Florida and California. I spent a couple years in California.

In California you will not see any “for rent" signs, pamphlets or billboards in Spanish, if you do it is rare, but 25% of California is Latino. Not nearly 25% of things are in Spanish, but the English speakers complain and say “speak English!”. And there is not nearly as much Spanish in California as there is English in Budapest or Prague. In Florida there is even less Spanish than California. You will not find stop signs that say “PARE” or “ALTO” in either place like you will find that say “STOP" all over eastern Europe.

fluffy2560 wrote:

And then go north to Canada and to Quebec where of course, it's all in French.

I have also been to Canada and Quebec. It is not “all in French” in Canada, only in Quebec.

However, Canada is a francophone country. French is an official language and Canada has a french past, so it is not remarkable they would speak some French, especially in Quebec since French is the majority language of Quebec.

English is not a majority language in Hungary or anywhere else in Europe except United Kingdom and Ireland, but everywhere acts like it is.

fluffy2560 wrote:

How do you know the original poster has not got a degree?

Because if they did they can use it instead of complaining about not getting paid enough for teaching ESL.

All English speakers are capable of is teaching ESL, usually.

Dear members,

Could you please calm down and avoid unnecessary remarks/ attacks towards each other. You are going slightly off topic as well.

Thanks
Armand

Well, this is a strange attack by yourself on people here, whom you know nothing really.

I am wondering what you would expect people to use as a common language apart from English? I guess, it would be Chinese or perhaps Hindi, because of course, the population of the world is made up mostly of people speaking Chinese or Hindi. I don't really see why there is "too much English". The fact is, whether you like it or not, the majority of people use it in business. So what? Who cares? (Except you it seems - what's your native language then? Ironic you are posting in English).

I've also been to Florida, California and Canada. I see nothing wrong with using the appropriate language at the right time. f you read the news, you'll see Hispanic births have exceeded "white" births for the first time in the USA. The demographics will of course change and Spanish will be in the ascendancy at some point in the future. You might get your wish perhaps in 100 years or everyone will speak Spanglish.

With the Internet and shorter communication distances, we'll all  end up speaking some common hybrid language (Esperanto? No chance) and just use TXTing for written language maybe. It's evolving all the time. I don't care much for TXTing myself as it seems lazy. In any case, English is just a mess of other language words anyway so if there's too much English, there's also way too much French - C'est la vie. And perhaps too much Dutch around the world - origin of the word Dollar - Daalder which is a Dutch origin for a type of coin. So rubbish English and promote others at your peril. One thing about English, it's flexible at including new words. We don't have an Acadamie Francais or a language institute keeping tabs on us.

I've heard it said of the USA, that English is the language of advancement and Spanish is the language of culture.  I've seen that in other countries - i.e. Netherlands. Many there can speak excellent English (and many very good German) which they use on a daily basis in commercial dealings. At home, they speak Dutch. As a very small country, strategically positioned, it relies on trade to survive. Working with partners in their language, or in a common language, is the right way to do business. If they took your view, spoke only Dutch, they'd get nowhere instead of being so successful.

I'm travelling all over the world on a regular basis. I see language schools and people teaching English in lots of places. It's a way to finance travel for some and a choice for others. There's no harm in it. People are not robots spouting English in a programmed way. They might be teaching English but they are also going to be sharing experience and knowledge as they interact and it works both ways with students sharing with the teacher.

So, to the original poster, ignore this kind of negativity - looks like a troll. Come back to the land of your birth and share whatever you feel like and perhaps you can take something positive back. You're welcome back home in Hungary.

Armand wrote:

Dear members,

Could you please calm down and avoid unnecessary remarks/ attacks towards each other. You are going slightly off topic as well.

Thanks
Armand

Armand, I think the person is a troll.

Thanks for the more reasoned comments on this topic

Hi,

I'm Hungarian, work in IT, a profession where most people speak some English and definitely everyone should.
I almost feel guilty for the huge professional advancement and financial gains I have over my colleagues just from speaking somewhat better English!
Even more so for other professions, less "saturated" with English speakers: the ones who do speak English get ahead.

Please please please more native English speakers visit Hungary and donate some of your time to teach us more English in exchange for some local currency of little and diminishing worth!

All your students, and even people you talk to in a bar will benefit greatly and will be very welcoming and grateful.
stoilic78 can always go and not sign up for your classes.

szocske wrote:

All your students, and even people you talk to in a bar will benefit greatly and will be very welcoming and grateful.

stoilic78 can always go and not sign up for your classes.

Absolutely.

Learning experiences do not have to be a classroom. Can be interactive both ways in the pub as well.

Stoilic78 = Troll

fluffy2560 wrote:

read the news, you'll see Hispanic births have exceeded "white" births for the first time in the USA

The news was "minority" births have exceeded "white" births for the first time in the USA. The USA has more minority groups than just Hispanic of course.

Hi Renata,
Native English speakers are highly sought after to teach ESL, and having some Hungarian background would help you here.
If you want to get in contact with me privately I can pass on the name of the place I work at.

As an Australian, I find Hungary to be an amazingly different place. I like the people, the food, the culture, the language (though I'm not so great at it) and I enjoy being here.

Feel free to message me. Ignore all the other stuff about not being needed. The place I work at needs English teachers!

Steph

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

read the news, you'll see Hispanic births have exceeded "white" births for the first time in the USA

The news was "minority" births have exceeded "white" births for the first time in the USA. The USA has more minority groups than just Hispanic of course.

Yes, you're right. I was too lazy to look it up properly as I heard it on the radio. That'll teach me. Sorry!

what a closed minded person.for one thing I noticed that you speak english pretty well.nobody is trying to force American culture down Hungary's throat.It semms to me that you need English to graduate from school,to get certain jobs.It's a global economy now and you simply can't get along with only speaking a language that that only about 14 million people speak.
ever hear of supply and demand?If enough people want to learn it there will be enough people to teach it.end of story!

Hi,

Let's still keep a relaxed tone of conversation. Without naming anybody.

Thank you,
Melissa

To someone who apparently feels that somehow English has been forced down the proverbial Hungarian throat:

Truly, I'm sorry for the turn of events over the past several hundred years, that has evolved into an English driven world.  Being a native English speaker makes me neither superior in any way nor proud that I speak English, and I am ashamed of my own nation's people when they feel no need to learn other languages besides English.  I know enough Spanish to get by, but would not say I am fluent.  I am grateful for the public school's mandatory requirement of learning a second language in certain grade levels, but wish they would require more.  At the same time, I think any secondary language learning needs to take place in an environment of low pressure, using methods tailored to the students, making the experience enjoyable for all.

I don't think that English speaking people in the world set out to make their own language one of the universal languages for international commerce and aviation, but it happened, and it behooves all of us to adjust to whatever world we live in, if we want to survive and better, thrive.  I am not out to convert anyone to my way of thinking.  I simply want to teach those who want to learn.  And, by the way, anyone who speaks a secondary language, unless learned simultaneously with their primary language while they were children (actually, this can be several primary languages then), knows that their skills in that secondary language can always be improved, even if it is just in the area of pronunciation.

There is enough close-mindedness in this world (and USA is certainly not excepted from this), don't you think?  I hope that we can all learn to communicate with each other in whatever way suits the situation.  Communication is key to better understanding of culture, politics, and brings us together.  It is not a tool to divide, or should not be.

I've said enough, but would invite further discussion on the topic.  I really want to be a teacher who learns from his students, maybe more than I can ever teach them.  Yes, language is one of the things I want to learn, but there is so much more to learn from each other.  Thanks for reading this lengthy concern/comment.

scglick61 wrote:

To someone who apparently feels that somehow English has been forced down the proverbial Hungarian throat:
...
I've said enough, but would invite further discussion on the topic.  I really want to be a teacher who learns from his students, maybe more than I can ever teach them.  Yes, language is one of the things I want to learn, but there is so much more to learn from each other.  Thanks for reading this lengthy concern/comment.

You sound somewhat a troll on this subject. You posted in an old thread. But in case  you aren't a troll, I wouldn't worry about all of that as it's an American mind problem. USA does not have borders with multiple language countries nearby except Mexico and maybe Francophone Canada. Pretty minimal.

Departing from here, Hungary, by road, one can encounter easily 6 or more languages within just a few hundred km (Slovenia, Serbia, Ukranian, German, Romanian, Polish, Slovakian, Italian and more...etc). One needs a common language to communicate.  It's just the way it is. English might be popular but actually, German is just as likely to be helpful. German and English would cover most circumstances in this region.

Learning another language is just a means to an end and something people do to improve trade, get employment, travel etc. A huge number of Hungarian people travel around Europe working and speaking a local language wherever work is located as it is needed to get on with things.

Most educated people in Hungary learn more than just English as a foreign language - at least including German. Worrying about invasion of English language and therefore culture is something only really that nationalists seem to visibly and actively fight against but they neglect the practial aspects of trade and travel.

English doesn't have a language institute overseeing correct words or approving linguistic niceties. It's dynamic and changing all the time. There's no English language nationalists trying to force the language on anyone.

Speaking more than one language (even if it includes English) is just a means of advancement just like in the USA (Spanish for culture, English as means of trade). I don't know anyone here in Hungary who cares about use of English otherwise. The Dutch or Swedish don't sit at home fretting about their culture and English as this is way to do business.

Hello guys -> Just to note that this thread is a bit old!

Thank you,
Aurélie

Aurélie wrote:

Hello guys -> Just to note that this thread is a bit old!

Thank you,
Aurélie

I think it's a troll but I replied anyway, even if it was an old thread. I seem to remember someone posting something similar here before.

Yes, I know it is kind of an old thread, but hey, doesn't mean there is no relevance today.  Thanks everyone for being patient with my newly established membership in this group.  Not sure why I'm being labeled a "troll" but I don't live under a bridge, I have traveled quite a bit, and have lots of friends, some in Hungary, some in Romania, etc.  I try, through these relationships, to understand other cultures and the issues they might have with Americans, while trying to be representative of an under-represented portion of American society.  Just as we cannot group any other nationality into one stereotype, we should not be doing this with North Americans either (or specifically, U.S. citizens.  Thanks again.

scglick61 wrote:

.... I try, through these relationships, to understand other cultures and the issues they might have with Americans, while trying to be representative of an under-represented portion of American society.  Just as we cannot group any other nationality into one stereotype, we should not be doing this with North Americans either (or specifically, U.S. citizens.  Thanks again.

Well, your trollness was because it seemed like a provacation, not unheard of in these parts.

Everyone is stereotyped, some more amusingly than the others. Perhaps we should enjoy it or even take advantage of it - French great chefs, Germans efficient, British good at administration, Italians great romantics etc. What's not to like?

Problem with most Americans (presumably the major accusation...) is that they don't know anything about the world outside of the USA and appear to know nothing of world affairs. I believe not many Americans have passports and those that do only travel to Canada and Mexico (Google it). Not really world citizens. And besides, Americans stereotype themselves - e.g. Southern States vs Californians or East Cosst vs West Coast etc.

However, the view that Americans are perceived differently while true to a certain extent but is not a generality applied to all Americans. Over here in Europe, everyone's a foreigner within a few hundred kilometers. These days, from what I've seen, no-one really cares very much.