ITP - 58: Teaching in Singapore After Japan

Greg: Welcome to the International Teacher Podcast. I am Greg, the single guy, and I'm joined by fresh-off-vacation Kent, the Maldives cat guy. And Matt is still on vacation, I think, so Matt the family guy won't be joining us.

Greg: How you doing, Kent?

Kent: I'm great. I was the only cat in the Maldives. Didn't see a single cat for the entire week.

Greg: You just saw fruit bats or something.

Kent: Well, I tell you what—I saw a lot of chickens and a lot of shore birds and a lot of sand, a lot of water. A couple turtles, a dolphin, and one bat. That's all they got there.

Greg: One bat. Did you meet anybody from Singapore? Or maybe it's currently living in Singapore? Wait, wait a minute—no, not Singapore. Sri Lanka. Is that right? Is the capital of Sri Lanka Colombo?

Kent: Yes, it is.

Greg: Well then, tons of people from Sri Lanka were there, but not Singapore. But I understand that we're going to get a chance to get to know someone very well from Singapore. Actually, we're going to get to know him because we just met him about three minutes ago. I would like to welcome David Schneer, and he's working at a school in Singapore currently, and we know nothing about him. Welcome to the show, David.

David: Thank you very much for having me. I'm very pleased to be here. I can't wait to find out what happens.

Greg: Well, you're going to laugh, that's for sure. If anything, you'll at least laugh at Kent, right?

Kent: I usually get edited out, so just ignore whatever I say.

Greg: Dave, where do you call home?

David: Oh goodness, we're going to start there. That's a very difficult question to answer.

Greg: Are you in the witness protection program? Is that part of the problem?

David: Well, part of the program says that I can't really mention what program I'm in.

Greg: Okay, yeah, home can be complicated. Where were you born?

David: Originally I'm from Texas, which is sometimes considered part of the United States. I left Texas soon after graduating from university and moved to Japan, and in total I've been back and forth for about 15 years. I've been in Singapore for about 10 years now, so home is somewhere between those three countries.

Greg: Okay, so Texas, then Japan, then Singapore.

Kent: You didn't graduate when you were 10, right?

David: No, I did not graduate university when I was 10.

Greg: Which college did you go to in Texas?

David: Southern Methodist University.

Greg: SMU?

David: Yes.

Greg: I remember that football scandal—the “death sentence.”

David: Yes, that’s right. Whenever I say I’m from Dallas, people bring up JFK. When I say SMU, they bring up the football scandal.

Greg: Small world. I actually took a Spanish class at SMU years ago. Did you ever teach in the States?

David: No. Three months after graduating, I went to teach in Japan and never went back.

Greg: What did you study?

David: English literature major, minor in music, and I also did education to get my teaching license.

Greg: So how did that first job happen?

David: I got hired straight out of university to teach at an eikaiwa—a language school. It was a good deal. They set you up with housing, insurance, everything. I lasted about eight months and then moved on.

Greg: What was next?

David: I went to an English language college where I taught adults, high school, and university students. I was there about five years. It was a very eccentric school. One rule was that if students spoke Japanese, they had to pay ¥1000—about $10—even outside the school on the same block.

Greg: That’s wild.

David: They also had to take drama classes and produce their own plays. It was a really unique place.

Greg: And after that?

David: I taught at a private Japanese high school—a magnet-style school focused on languages. English was the main focus, but we also taught Russian and Korean. I was there about five years, and then I moved into international school teaching.

Greg: That’s quite a path. Did you go straight to Singapore?

David: Yes. My wife and I had visited Singapore several times and loved it. I decided that’s where I wanted to live and work.

Kent: Wait—wife? When did that happen?

David: We started dating soon after I moved to Japan and got married in 2002.

Greg: And she was okay moving to Singapore?

David: At first she said, “What about me?” We agreed she could visit Japan regularly. But once we moved, she loved Singapore and didn’t feel the need to go back as often.

Greg: Was she working?

David: Some part-time work, nothing full-time.

Greg: So Singapore was your first international school?

David: Yes.

Greg: So what is it about Singapore that really drew you in?

David: Oh my God, where do I start? I tell my students I write a love letter to Singapore every day. The flora and fauna here are incredible. The Botanic Gardens are just beautiful—it’s such a green country. Singapore might be one of the few places that has become greener over time instead of less.

David: As soon as you leave the airport, you’re surrounded by color—flowers, trees, everything. Public transportation is excellent, comparable to Japan. The food is amazing. It’s an international city where things just work.

Greg: That attention to detail is incredible.

David: Exactly. Everything runs smoothly.

Greg: Where do people travel from Singapore?

David: Bali, Thailand, Maldives, Malaysia—you can even take a bus across the border. Travel is very easy.

Greg: What about your school?

David: Very international—lots of nationalities, large Chinese population, diverse staff.

Kent: Industries?

David: Finance, tech, oil—global hub.

Greg: Languages?

David: English, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil.

Greg: Challenges?

David: The weather—hot and humid every day.

Greg: What do you teach?

David: EAL and head of department.

Greg: Any police stories?

David: Yes. In Japan, I was stopped by police. I challenged them, got badge numbers, even reported it. They apologized.

Greg: Bold.

David: In Thailand, I was stopped on a scooter and asked for a “whiskey fee.” I paid about $20.

Greg: That’s unbelievable—that’s one of the better stories we’ve had on the show.

Greg: Thanks so much for joining us, David. This was a great conversation.

David: Thank you for having me. I really enjoyed it.

Greg: And to our listeners—thanks for tuning in. We’ll see you next time on the International Teacher Podcast.