Topview International Education Group

Although I did not experience a city like Beijing or Shanghai, I still got to taste the local noise pollution and light pollution but with a positive trade off of lesser air pollution.

Once you can get over the idea that rats, mice and cockroaches are bad for restaurant business, you can really start to get used to the local eateries. You won't have to eat moving animals, the way some YouTube videos try to have you believe. You will have ano opportunity to taste cooked organs, chicken feet and perhaps make blood and animal skin a steady part of your regular diet.

All joking aside, I would not trade my current situation for anything. The entire experience has been eye opening and nothing less than extraordinary. I learned about the multiple social classes and corresponding behaviours and traditions which have broken every stereotype I have ever heard from my non Asian friends. I expected to learn nothing less and hope to continue teaching for as long as I can going forward.

TopEDU staff played an essential role in creating this experience of a lifetime for me. Their staff was extremely friendly, prompt and professional through the entire vetting and recruiting process. I owe this wonderful experience to them.

I have been teaching English for years and never stopped enjoying it. All my life, I have been teaching from my heart and not from the book, so I made many friends and earned the respect and recognition in the community I come from.
Last year, I decided to take my teaching to a higher lever and try to combine it with experiencing different cultures, values, and customs first-hand. I believe that teachers who are open to other cultures and willing to personally experience them are able to connect better with their students and make their teaching meaningful. They can also be the ones building bridges between cultures. My choice fell on China. With the TopEDU Beijing's excellent support, I got a teaching position.
A few months later, here I am in Shanghai living my dream. Shanghai is a most vibrant city with a large, multi-ethnic international community. There is a lot to see and experience here. Majority of people who travel abroad experience a degree of culture shock. Even though many things are so much different from where I come from, I didn’t find it too hard to get used to living in Shanghai. Chinese people are friendly and ready to help, despite the language barrier. The city itself is surprisingly clean considering its size and population. Shanghai metro lines are extremely well-organized and reliable. Considering the time you save if you travel by metro, the price is also more than acceptable. There is an abundance of local food in supermarkets but you can also find the sections with the imported food, though more expensive. There are all kinds of restaurants many of which offer unique types of cuisine coming from different ethnic cultures. Housing is relatively expensive so many find a solution in apartment co-sharing. It’s safe and the streets are full of people until late in the evening both on workdays and at week-ends.
I am really having a great time here. I like my new students very much. There is no safe way to teach a class and be sure that will be just as I planned, as the teaching process-related challenges here and back home are quite different. As a teacher, I have to find the right way to deal with them as they come to the benefit of all. As you can imagine, it is not always easy, but it is definitely rewarding and empowering.
I have come with an open mind and a great desire to grow professionally and personally and broaden my perspective on just about anything and I never miss an opportunity to do so. For me and my family, this is an incredible learning process. Surely, each experience is unique, but based on what I have seen and experienced here so far, I would not hesitate to recommend fellow teachers to come.

For the peace and flexibility I sought in finding an opportunity in China I could not have asked for a better experience. I feel safe everyday, have ease of access to my job, all colleagues (foreign and Chinese) are extremely friendly and supportive. The cost of living is tremendous as well. While the salary is less than what I would get in the U. S. my money goes so much further and allows me to have the greatest opportunities to experience a very fulfilling and tranquil life. Thanks to Laura for all her support from the very beginning. I've read some reviews from people about other agencies and things not falling in line with what they were told. Everything I was told has been exact. I'm living a dream!