The online TEFL situation in China, explained

It’s no secret that online TEFL teaching to Chinese students has boomed in recent years. There are a number of things at play: Faster internet speeds, better online tech, the effects of the global pandemic, a forever-growing cohort of English learners in the land out Far East, and more web-based English schools than you can shake a Peking duck at! It’s been the perfect storm for an industry to thrive and grow.

Then China announced the 720 Policy in May 2021. It was a new set of directives and regulations aimed squarely at the $100-billion private tutoring sector. It’s fair to say that it sent shockwaves through the whole industry and is going to have far-reaching consequences for remote TEFL teachers and TEFL companies operating in China.

This guide will take a look at what the 720 Policy is, what it means for English schools and would-be online English teachers in China, and what you can do now if you’ve had your heart set on a new life of working over the web while traveling the world. Let’s go…

What exactly is the 720 Policy?

The 720 Policy is a set of all-new government-issued regulations that applies to the whole of the private education sector in China, not just the ESL industry. However, it contains a number of rules that could have a considerable impact on the way English tutoring firms do business in the country, and even whether they can continue to do business at all.

At the moment, 720 is in pilot phase. Directives have been issued to nine major Chinese cities – including the hubs of Shanghai and Beijing – for the authorities to implement the key features of the new policy. How zealously or effectively that’s done remains to be seen, but what’s certain is that big changes are on the way…

How will the 720 Policy effect English teaching in China?

So, let’s break it down. Here are some of the key aspects of the 720 Policy and what they aim to achieve. We’ve specifically picked out the ones that EFL teachers and online EFL teachers in China should really have on the radar…

• Banning private tutoring companies from making a profit, going public, and raising capital – This effectively makes it illegal for companies to make money by offering any sort of private tutoring in China, including English as a second language. That’s big, big news for an industry that was estimated to be worth around $120 billion before the change. The effect is likely to be a huge decrease in the number of schools and therefore jobs on offer in the country.
• Management of extracurricular time – The 720 Policy stipulates online classes cannot be longer than 30 minutes, cannot take place during vacations or weekends, and must finish by 9pm. It’s a direct management of after-school schedules that will severely limit the times when online teaching companies can offer services.
• Banning employment of teachers and use of education materials from outside of China – The regulations say that schools should not hire teachers from outside of China or use any class material or course content that is sourced from outside the country. This is set to impact online TEFL teachers very heavily, as the vast majority of remote teaching is done from locations not in China and by teachers who are not from China.
• Banning core-curriculum tutoring – New rules say that no private company is allowed to participate in core-curriculum tutoring, which refers to any tutoring directly related to creating success in Chinese state exams. As this was by far the most in-demand sort of English tutoring, it’s essentially a ban on private teaching companies.

What are the aims of the new policy?

Why though? It’s a fair question. It’s rare for governments to lead such a heavy crackdown on education sectors that aren’t only booming economically but also providing essential services to burgeoning sections of their own population with a growing need for quality English language skills. Still, that’s precisely what seems to be happening. However, there are some clear motivations behind the new law, with the main ones being:

• To ease pressure on Chinese parents – The cost of raising children in China has become prohibitive in large part due to increasing outgoings linked to a highly competitive education system. By outlawing private tutoring, the government is hoping to relieve pressure on parents to purchase pricy courses. The aim is to help them have the financial means to support a larger family in the greater context of an ageing population.
• To broaden the scope of extracurricular activity in China – The government is trying to shift the focus of academia away from solely exams and help give kids more time to pursue other activities.
• To counter ideological changes – The Chinese government has become increasingly protectionist in terms of culture and ideology in recent years. By outlawing the use of foreign class materials and online teachers, they will be able to provide state-produced content that’s more in line with their vision of the country and its people.

What will be the effect of the new policy?

While the provisions of the 720 Policy sound pretty bad for the EFL and private tutoring sectors in China, the actual effect of them remains to be seen. It all really depends on how stringently they are implemented (although early signs are that it’s pretty strict) or if companies can find exemptions and loopholes in the law.

That said, it’s generally accepted that the new policy will have sweeping impacts on teaching in China in person and teaching remotely with companies based in China itself. There are likely to be far fewer opportunities with companies like QKids, VIPKid, Magic Ears – the list goes on and on. In fact, it’s thought that such companies will need to change their way of operating quite considerably to be able to continue operating at all.

Will this end online TEFL teaching to kids in China?

No one really knows just yet. What’s certain is that the changes are going to have a BIG impact on the way English teaching is done in China. Online TEFL teaching with Chinese companies will certainly have to alter the way it does things, too, particularly if there’s no special dispensation given to edu-tech firms and language schools that work over the internet.

One thing worth noting is that previous attempts (both in China and in South Korea) to curtail private tutoring industries have actually spurred demand on further. The thinking is that just making something illegal doesn’t kill demand for that something. That’s why lots of commentators think that the Chinese tutoring industry will simply adapt, with customers looking more and more to freelance teachers based abroad or other forms of private education.

What can I do for online TEFL work now?

If you were planning on entering the Chinese TEFL market as an online teacher then don’t despair. The game isn’t up!

Far from it. While it’s true that the Chinese market was a considerable part of the overall global market, it certainly wasn’t the whole thing! There are burgeoning online teaching scenes in Latin America, in Eastern Europe, and even in Africa. And that means there are loads of other schools and institutions that will let you pursue that life of travel and working remotely

In fact, we are currently working with a whole host of schools that are not based in China. You can check out our online placements page if you’d like to get started working remotely this year.