I have not worked at i2, but I will throw in my 2 cents. I applied over a year ago to i2 and I was refused there despite having over 9 years teaching experience, all the required documents and a passion for the job. The interview I had began with a question about my faith which I duly answered because I like to always sustain clarity in my relations with people, especially people I will be seeing daily.

After discussion, I have been refused the job on the grounds that they did not believe me to be able to juggle between work and my stated goal of learning Chinese saying "You are a good teacher indeed, but the working schedule may not allow you to learn Chinese that well as you wish".

I never thought that having 2 days off in the week, plus the mornings of 3 days off (plus evenings of Saturday and Sunday) would not be enough to learn Chinese...at least as "well as" I wish. Then to their credit, I can understand that in the "money over education" scheme they live by, it is unimaginable that a language may be learned in such a manner.

And yeah...religion had nothing to do with that.

P.S: Finally, local teachers in Kunming teaching in other branches narrated of reviews by actual teachers who worked in i2 saying very similar things the negative reviews here do.

Coming from a Dianchi campus teacher that successfully completed a full year contract with i2, I can honestly say that i2's "money over education" attitude cripples the overall working experience there.

Let us start with by analyzing the foreign and Chinese staff cooperation. Far more often than not, communication was subpar at best between both sides. Each had it's own meetings and goals that were rarely collaborated on between the two. Calling the entire staff a team seems meaningless when money is at the issue of nearly every single decision instead of education; which is in the very title of the school and the job of every foreign teacher that dares to sign a contract.

A doctor's note is indeed required at any small amount of sick leave requested by the teacher. That is, even if you give a full 24 hours notice as per stated in what was my contract at the time. And this is of course after being refused to be even late for the class multiple times by the TA or the principle.
The salary and bonus schemes are nothing more than nearly a false promise. Check on Ninaxu's article posting looking for jobs. Last there was a 300-1000 bonus implying that there is a minimum. That minimum is quickly erased and can turn into a penalty if you fail to achieve a quota when doing your demonstration classes, where you must convince a parent to pay an extraordinary high rate of tuition for a teacher that might or might not be sufficient for the student. And guess where the blame of failing a demonstration class would go to? Tuition prices? Nope, it's always the teachers fault. Some of the students aren't even able to pay the extreme prices that were ffs. Further penalties would also be invoked should the teacher not be able to fill out a plan before and an assessment after each and every class, and for each student. (both are seldom part of your working hours for the week) That combined with quarterly planning for each student is also required and should be adjusted based on the students attendance. And guess who's fault it is should the student not come to every class? I need not say this obvious answer.

A miserable work atmosphere, the 30 hour contract that is minimum 40 at the office each week, lack of staff communication, poorly trained staff and too many more issues made this work experience really terrible. Stay far far away from this place. Don't bother adding Nina nor don't bother with a friend giving you someone's wechat that works here to give you a false view of what exists at i2.

It sounds like all the negative comments come from people who 1) are not cut out for Chinese training schools 2) have negative attitudes/work ethic and 3) were probably bad teachers to begin with. Some things about this company are far from ideal (i.e. money over education), but you will find similar (and probably worse) situations at all other training schools in China. Other than that, this company has treated me very fairly, I've learned a lot, thorougly enjoyed teaching my students, made a LOT of good money, and met some life long Chinese friends (my coworkers). If you are a reasonable, kind, responsible, and hard working person (who also enjoys making money) I recommend working here. Just ask to be put in touch with someone currently working at the campus so you can get an unbiased opinion from them, rather than listen to this dribble drabble. Cheers.

As soon as I saw the reviews on this place I knew I had to comment. I can personally attest to everything that was said by 22Yossarian because I worked at the same campus for a while. Nothing he said was a lie (I even have photos from the aforementioned sewage explosion).

However, I would like to add that besides the fact the i2 will try and screw you at every opportunity through lies and misleading ads about their pay (check out their latest ads bragging about their new "before tax" salary, it's basically the same money as before just presented differently), they will also treat you like absolute dirt. When I called in sick to work with a serious infection that eventually required months of antibiotics and intensive medical care I was screamed at by the principal and sent abusive messages at 1 AM accusing me of "running away from my duties". I sent these to the foreign manager on staff who was not only disinterested but also told me that the principal had told him she "Wasn't going to apologize" even though she "felt bad". It isn't uncommon for teachers to cry at work during their first week from the stress and abusive environment. I saw quite a few teachers start there during my time and ALL cried at least once during their first week because of how awful it all was.

For example, despite me being VERY clear when I was first hired I had no experience teaching young kids I was frequently tossed into classes with kids ages 3-6 (despite being told when I was first hired I would only be teaching kids ages 10 and up) with little to no training (the training I did get was an absolute joke, it was more like a seminar on how to waste students' time with vaguely educational activities). When I was unable to teach this age group perfectly I had people from the principal to the foreign manager to the "academic director" all telling me that I was a bad teacher who was clearly failing on purpose.

During one particularly stressful class with a group of 6 year olds (they were acting terribly because I was not allowed to use any discipline in the classroom EVER) I came to the foreign manager for help in tears. He snapped at me and told me that the reason I was having so much trouble was because I had an "attitude problem" and that I was "Unwilling to learn" due to my aforementioned "attitude problem".

Bottom line: Don't even think about applying here. This place will eat you alive. More than one person I know who was worked here has literally made themselves sick from the stress and caustic work environment.

I don't usually review places, but I saw the review from 22Yossarian and felt that it didn't fairly reflect i2 in my experience. I only have 3 days left before I leave the company so I don't have any real motive to write this. - I'll say now, it isn't a perfect company, but speak to someone who is currently working there if you have any doubts.

I am one of those 'veteran' teachers mentioned by 22yossarian who has been teaching English for over 8 years, two of which I have spent at i2. Currently at the campus I work at there are 2 other teachers with over 5 years of teaching experience, who are happy working here.

For me, I have found working here challenging, rewarding and enjoyable. I think it is important to acknowledge from the start that as a training school, there is always going to be an aspect of business to the job. The contract I signed was very clear about my responsibilities and duties and at no point did I ever get asked to do anything not covered by the contract. - be sure to read it before you sign if you have any doubts, however I found it pretty common sense.

Teachers have access to some materials, but I'm actually quite grateful that they allowed me some flexibility on how to deliver the lessons to allow for individual teaching differences. As such I could choose to use my computer, or my own materials to teach - although the curriculum is set and follows a set of Macmillan published books. The books aren't to everyone's liking, but I think they are very good - as do most of the experienced teachers.

I've certainly not had a flawless experience, but the parts that challenged me have generally not been in regards to the company or the staff, but rather the nature of training schools. For example, at first I didn't enjoy teaching demo classes for new students during me prep time.

Also, I actually worked at the campus with the sewage pipe burst. - it was pretty horrible and ruined the teachers' room and stunk the place out. During this time, the teachers' room was closed and we were asked to prepare in our classrooms in another building so there was never any need to go in there. Though the leak was plugged to prevent any flooding or damage, it wasn't repaired for weeks since the landlord who owned the restaurant above our office refused to turn the water supply off so that it could be repaired.

I'm leaving China next month, but if I weren't, I would likely be staying at i2 for another year. I don't think I'm immoral as a result of saying that, nor do I think my colleagues are. I have seen my students grow a lot in my time hear, and by far the best part of my time at i2 has been teaching and working with them.

In short, I liked it and have no regrets. If you have doubts, ask to speak to some current teachers. Usually the ones that have broken their contracts or been fired seem to have a negative perception.