Shane
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Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Services
Saxouncourt Group
Saxoncourt Publishing, Ltd.
Shane English School
Shane Language Services, Ltd.
Shane Global Language Centres Alliance
Nellie's Group, D.B.A Nellie's English Books who are affiliated with Independent Publishers International (IPI)
[edit] Employment
[edit] Personal Accounts
- From the E.S.L Protester website: http://www.angelfire.com/journal2/eslprotest/shanepage.html
- Excerpt:
- "Although teaching of children is a major part of the working day for Shane teachers, there is no training for what is a very specialised skill, other than a very brief, half-hearted workshop before leaving for Japan. No additional training is ever offered. Did you really spend years at University so you can sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" for a living?"
- Note: This information was pulled from Yahoo Answers as it was voted the best response to a question about Shane
- Notably, it was the only answer to said question, and won "best response" based on one vote.
- http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090306034744AAVOeGI
- Shane English School japan is not actually a company, it is a brand name that "Shane Corporation Japan" and it's various subsidiaries operate their schools under. So, although your (English) contract may say that your employer is "Shane Corporation", this is not actually true, this is merely a tactic that the "Saxoncourt Group" uses to make it difficult for you (as an employee) to report your REAL employer to the authorities for breaking the law (because you need to know who your real employer is in order to report them).
- A number of Shane English School & Saxoncourt around the globe have recently gone into receivership or been liquidated... But Mr Lipscombe owns his global empire via a company called "Saxoncourt Holdings Ltd" registered in the British Virgin Islands (where companies are not required to disclose the state of their finances on the public record), so it's hard to say but the principal of Shane English School Japan recently threatened that the company was in danger of going bankrupt.
- I recently left Shane after working for them in Japan for abour 15 months. I have to agree that they should be avoided at all costs. The vast majority of Shane teachers are deeply unhappy in their jobs, and at the time that I made my departure, teachers were leaving in their droves to work for other language schools. Morale is kept deliberately low by removing holidays at the last minute, unfair distribution of cover days teachers are required to work, and frequent impositions on teachers´ free time by requiring them to teach additional hours for very little, and sometimes no additional reward.
- Accommodation is very, very small and poorly furnished and they charge roughly twice the market value for it, thereby making a profit from their teachers accommodation needs. Most other schools subsidise teacher accommodation.
- Attitudes to their teachers vary. DOSs are never seen all you will get is a fax or told to read a guide book , but central management at Shane HQ seem to regard teachers as property rather than people. Shane provide virtually no professional support. As far as I am aware (and I did make enquiries) none of the monkey pea brain DOSs has more than a CELTA, which means that if you wanted to undertake a DELTA you would be in trouble, as there is most likely no one within the company who will be able to act as your mentor (a requirement for anyone wishing to undertake a DELTA by distance study).
- And if you find yourself in any kind of trouble, you can expect absolutely no assistance from the company. Their only concern is that you turn up for work, regardless of what calamity may have befallen you. I certainly wouldn´t recommend Shane as a first teaching job. It really offers no potential for professional development and in the majority of cases seems to put people off the teaching profession. You work on your own and could be teaching German for all the school knows,Just about everyone leaves with a fairly bitter taste in their mouth, and I would suggest that any postings to the contrary are certainly written and posted by Shane management, or DOSs, under instructions from head office.
- A bad company to work for. Very disappointing. They do not care about teaching English just have fun play games and keep students happy even if they are not learning ****, teach to the book not the student is what one dos told me, their books are 20 years old , poor and are full of errors but make the school money so who cares!
[edit] Shane English School
[edit] Shane Language Services
Shane Language Services (SLS) is the ALT dispatch side of Shane English School. However they market themselves as a temporary teacher staffing service. According to SLS management they are a separate company but current pay-stubs, student progress books are exactly the same as Shane English School Japan. With the exception of a few clauses the contracts from either department are just about the same. Teachers that work for both departments are either given a one year full-time contract or two part-time six month contracts at the whim of the company. Both departments do not offer Shokai Hoken or pay into unemployment.
The pay is low, especially if you consider two or three hour breaks between classes or locations and most locations are not fully equipped if even at all with materials. Transportation is covered. There is no time card system. You might be sent to schools, companies or a private home. Most of the work entails being sent to kindergartens for morning classes of ten to even thirty or more students with the native language teacher present and afternoon classes for students aged 3 to about 9 years of age where there is a good likelihood you are the only adult present. Previous experience or proper qualification not needed for working here. Upper-intermediate level of Japanese not required but highly recommended, as you will not get company support, pay or reimbursement of any kind for translation of paperwork often given directly to the teacher by clients or SLS themselves. Criminal and background checks are not conducted. Previous work, place of residence, location of previous classes that day, or school experience not highly considered when being dispatched to companies.
Any disputes or problems with teachers result in non-renewal of contracts, or being phased/mobbed out with the teacher always losing out to the school, or most likely SLS themselves. Since 2008 the head office has moved has moved locations two times from Gotanda then Roppongi. As of early January 2010 they merged SLS head office with Shane English School's Kita-Kanto and Nishi-Tokyo head offices they are now all located in Komagome, while maintaining they are separate companies. Neither of the departments are unionized.
