| From a personal perspective, coming to China to teach English may have been one of the best decisions Janet and I have ever made but it was not made lightly. After spending nearly 35 years in the business world, Janet and I had the chance to finally return to the classroom where we had originally started. We both have education degrees form the United States and returning to the classroom sounded like a good place to spend our last years working.
I have traveled internationally since 1981 and had become enamored with the orient. Janet and I have vacationed in Southeast Asia so when the decision was made to return to teaching, it was decided to look in the Far East. Making this rather momentous decision took serious investigation and thought. Once the decision was made however, the only place that offered all of what they were looking for was China.
The criteria we used for this decision included: the demand for learning English, availability of well run schools, availability of materials, curriculum and the possibility of some participation in other business opportunities. As a part of the decision to come to China to teach, I visited China in July 2001 and on the strength of that visit, Janet and I made the final decision.
We arrived in Changchun late in the evening on August 31, 2001. I had accepted a position as General Manager and teacher at a private English school here. Janet was to be in charge of Curriculum Development and teach. Fortunately, that experience turned out to be a disaster and after only three months I resigned. Janet resigned one month later.
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