Hess Educational Organization
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Hess Educational Organization (or Hess for short) is the single largest private provider of English education in the Republic of China (ROC) and has an estimated 60,000 students currently enrolled. Founded in 1983 by Joseph Chu and Karen Hess, it has become a large and successful business with schools across the island.[1] Hess also provides books and resources to other English schools across Asia to teach English as a foreign language (see below), and also has its own chain of Hess bookstores, which was founded in 1990.[2] In addition to the ROC, Hess also has a branch in Singapore and has connections to both mainland China and Japan.
Hess hires native-speaking English teachers (NST's) only from countries where English is the primary language. These include the USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.[3] After one year of employment, Hess employees earn a TEFL certificate that can be used worldwide.[4]
All foreign teachers working for Hess are legally employed to work as Native-Speaking Teachers (NST's) in the ROC, and Hess provides comprehensive document-processing assistance to all its staff.
Hess has no relation to the Hess gas station chain in the US.
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[edit] Core Curriculum
The primary level of Hess instruction is the Step Ahead series (also called the "N series," its old name), aimed at Elementary school children. Step Ahead consists of 16 levels lasting 3 months each and is meant to go from third grade to Junior High school level.[5]
For children in grades 1-2, there is the Kid's Club series (or K series for short) that has 8 levels.[5] At the Junior High point, Hess has developed several curriculums for further study. Some of these are still undergoing development. Hess has several adult learning courses and is also planning a high school curriculum.[6]
Hess has several key books that comprise their curriculum for students:
- Phonics - The very first thing students learn. The KK method of noting phonetical sounds is used. In higher levels, the Phonics book is replaced by one with a specific focus on memorizing KK instruction.
- Reading - Each of the 16 levels has a different reading book to introduce vocabulary and grammar.
- Patterns - This book focuses on specific points of grammar, such as different verb tenses, the making of questions (who, what, when, where, why, how), comparative and superlative adjectives, the passive voice, etc.
- Student Book - This contains activities and conversations that students use to practice their English.
Hess writes and produces all of its own curriculum, from books to audio CDs to props and artwork. Authors for Hess curriculum include teaching specialists, design specialists and current and former Hess teachers. Hess has also published supplements to their primary curriculum, including story books for children, English learning CDs and DVDs, and secondary curriculum available for use at other schools. According to Hess, it has published over 1000 different titles, with 800,000 books used by students each year.[7]
[edit] Teacher Training and Organization
There are two primary types of teachers in Hess: Native-Speaking Teachers (NST's) and Chinese Co-Teachers (CT's). There are also French and Japanese speaking teachers for Hess's other language programs. CT's are drawn primarily from Taiwan, with NST's hailing from the foreign countries listed above. CT's and NST's have separate training schedules and requirements.
Within each branch of a Hess school, NST's are directly managed by the Head NST (HNST). HNST's have to have six months of experience at teaching and undergo special management training. CT's are directly managed by a Head CT (HCT). Both the HNST and HCT answer to the school's branch manager. If a Hess Language School has an associated Kindergarten, it may keep the positions of HNST and HCT for the two schools separate, though at some branches the same person could work in both positions.
NST's experience five training sessions at different times: an initial introduction to Hess, one-month training, 3-month training, 6-month training, and 9-month training. Each training session past the first is intended to focus on a different aspect of teaching, designed to help build on the NST's growing experience. After one year, if the NST has completed all the required training sessions, they earn a Hess TEFL. Each training session has its own manual.
In addition to the required sessions, Hess also conducts optional extra training for new material, such as when levels 13 - 16 were added to the Step Ahead curriculum.
[edit] Initial Training
Initial training is designed to last roughly 2 weeks and is held in Taipei at Hess's main training facility. Initial training is primarily held four times a year to coincide with the three month terms that Hess schools cycle through: one in March, one in June, one in August, and the last in November. It is at these times that the largest groups of new hirings are brought together into a single "class" of trainees. Sometimes the groups are split in two if there are many new employees (for example, one group starting training in early August while another begins in mid-August). This is not a constant rule, however: in between the three month cycles, there can be smaller groups of hired NSTs are given initial trainings that are much briefer, sometimes being as short as 2 days.
The primary role of initial training is to introduce individuals of various backgrounds to the materials that Hess teaches and to the teaching style that NSTs are expected to use. These styles include the four and five step methods, student-centered learning, and the use of activities and games to heighten student energy. All attendees are trained in both the language school curriculum as well as Hess Kindergarten (see below).
Every NST receives a "Personal Growth Journal" at their initial training. The journal is meant for them to keep a record of the training they received as well as any activities they may have participated in.
[edit] Hess Kindergarten
Hess operates Kindergarten schools in the ROC, giving students instruction primarily in English and Chinese, but also French and Japanese. The teaching philosophy of Hess Kindergarten focuses on whole-child development, and whole language learning. Prior to August 2005, the curriculum was the Rainbow Kids series, consisting of 6 levels or three years of material. As of August 2005 it has been updated and graduated as the Rainbow Adventures series. The Rainbow Adventures series is considered to be more challenging and therefore more suitable in a crowded market. [citation needed]
The legal status of foreign teachers instructing students under the age of 6 under the laws of the ROC is debatable; however, Hess promises to protect all its teachers in any situations where this legality is questioned. It must be stressed that teaching English to children under 6 years old is illegal when the teacher is a alien resident of the ROC. [citation needed] Hess has gotten around this restriction by using a loophole in the law where Hess Kindergartens "borrow" teachers from the language school. Because the teachers are not formally employed expressly to teach kindergarten (their official status is roughly equivalent to a guest lecturer), Hess is able to employ foreigners to teach in their kindergartens with less legal trouble than in some other schools. [citation needed]
[edit] Speech and Writing Competition
Every year, Hess conducts a Speech and Writing Competition for interested students across the ROC. Typically, over 4,000 students enroll in this competition.[8]
[edit] International Program
Hess sponsors trips around the world for students to visit English speaking countries and become immersed in an English-speaking environment. These trips are in addition to the normal Hess curriculum and can last up to 4 weeks. Hess has study abroad programs in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. Hess also hosts trips to France and Japan for students engaged in learning French and Japanese.[9]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "About Hess". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Hess Bookstore". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Native Speaking English Teachers Requirements". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Native Speaking English Teachers Introduction". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ a b Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Elementary School Programs". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Adult English Programs". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Hess Publishing Company". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Speech and Writing Competition". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- ^ Hess Educational Organization (2006). "Group Study Tours". Hess Educational Organization Website. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
