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Teach English in Beijing, Beijing 2008 Olympics
Helping Beijing serve the world during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games
Beijing Speaks to the World English Program
Would you like to help Beijing Speak English? With China hosting the Olympic Games in 2008, there's a concerted push by the Beijing government to train key service sectors in English Language. Your students would be Hotel Staff and Managers, Local Business Professionals, Taxi Drivers, Government Employees, Police Officers, Train Station Employees, Bus Drivers and Food Service Industry Professionals. Additionally, you would be assisting with the proper translation of road signs, map directions and train schedules and making sure the English reads correctly within its context.
Due to enormous competition these rare employment opportunities and English Teaching positions are available for qualified candidates having minimum 4-years college diploma, preference is given to TEFL certified candidates having a Master degree or more.
Even without the Olympics, cities such as Shanghai and Beijing often draw from a pool of qualified candidates already living and working in China.
We suggest applying for this positions at least one year in advance.
There are no short term contracts for these positions. The minimum contract requirement is for one year starting September 2006.
Not all positions are within the city limits. Some locations are in a suburb of Beijing City or nearby towns.
If you are sincere about living and teaching in Beijing and you would like to be a participant in history.
Bad English added to list of things Beijing Olympic officials want to ban
Municipal officials promised Wednesday to crack down on awkward, Chinese-inflected English, known as "Chinglish," and asked the public to help police bad grammar and faulty syntax.
With 500,000 foreigners expected for the Olympics, taxi drivers who can't speak English - or signs that mangle the language - could be an embarrassment and distract from the US$40 billion (?29.8 billion) being poured into rebuilding the city for the Games.
Throughout the city, examples abound.
A store selling tobacco products advertises: "An Excellent Winding Smoke."
On the floor at Beijing's Capital Airport, a sign reads: "Careful Landslip Attention Security."
On a billboard this mysterious message: "Shangri-La is in you mind, but your Buffalo is not."
In an elevator, parents are warned: "Please lead your child to tare the life."
Liu Yang, who heads the "Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program" for the city government, said 6,500 "standardized" English-language signs were put up last year on Beijing roads. But he acknowledged private businesses were not following the rules, which were handed to reporters - a stack of glossy documents weighing a kilogram (two pounds).
"We will pass the message on to authorities in the advertising sector," Liu said. "If English translation is needed it must be subject to the standards set forth in the regulations."
Liu said a language hotline may be set up for the Games to encourage the public to report nonsense English. China's diplomatic missions abroad are assisting, Liu said, "and our people working in foreign companies are helping with correct usage."
"In the future when we set up new signs in public places in English, we hope all these standards will be followed to avoid more additional mistakes."
Liu said Beijing taxi drivers must pass an English test to keep their license. But he admitted most speak only Chinese, and many are skipping language classes.
"The taxi training courses are not working effectively, and there is a problem of taxi drivers missing classes," he said. "Taxi drivers need to get their licenses renewed every year, and an English test is now part of that that exam. But the exam is not so difficult."
"Some taxi drivers do speak some English, and that's a big change from the past," Liu added. "But the overall level still needs to improve. Some taxi drivers speak no English, they understand no English."
Despite the problems, Liu said 33 percent of Beijing's 15 million residents speak some English, a claim that was challenged by a local reporter from China's state-run CCTV.
"I think 5 million is a big number," the reporter told Liu.
Liu stood by the figure, but acknowledged the vast majority of the English speakers fell into a category he labeled "low level."
"They can have very simply conversations, like: 'Who am I? Where am I going?"'
Beijing Speaks to the World Program
Ever since its founding, the committee has been closely cooperating with the
Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games (BOCOG) of the 29th Olympiad to
create a good language environment in the city.
Liu Yang, Deputy Director of the Organizing Committee Office of the Beijing
Speaks to the World Program, says, “The Chinese Government is the only
government that has made a promise to eliminate language barriers during the
Olympics, and Beijing has been doing its best in this regard.”
Liu says that the preparations of another foreign language event, which is
scheduled for October 16-17, are now underway.
According to Liu, Beijing is “going crazy,” with an unprecedented passion for
learning foreign languages. People from all walks of life, civil servants,
drivers, salesmen, students and police officers, are all enthusiastic about
foreign language learning.
According to Liu, the problems of the current English versions mainly lie in the
following four aspects: translation errors, failure to convey the cultural
connotations, misspelling and mistakes occurred in the making of the signs.
Liu says the committee will step up its efforts in this respect so as to finish
checking all the signs at Beijing’s tourist attractions before 2008.
“Beijing is an international metropolis. Its residents are expected to have a
high sense of international communication. By constantly enhancing their ability
to communicate with foreigners, I’m confident foreigners will feel more and more
at home in the ancient city of Beijing,” Liu notes.
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