New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves at International Schools: Resource person with a contact number and email address April 26, 2013
In this blog series we will talk about the ins and outs of an excellent new teacher orientation programme at an international school. A new teacher orientation programme can really play a very important part to the start at your new school, in your new host country. What are all the must-haves then? Check out our blog series here to read all about the ones that we have discussed so far. Must-have #9: Resource person with a contact number and email address
I remember getting the chance to talk over the phone (now it would be done via Skype I’m sure) with a contact person a few months before I moved. The contact person was another teacher at the school who had worked there a year already. In turn, it was fresh in her mind all the things that a new teacher would want to know about. I had my list of ‘new teacher’ questions ready to ask her. She was very real and forthcoming with her answers and it made me that much more comfortable, at the time, in my preparation for the big move which was in 2-3 months. Sure I got some information and answers from the director who hired me, but it is many times much better to get a different perspective on things. Also, there are some questions that you just might not ask a director (potentially your immediate supervisor). Once I got to the school, that initial ‘resource’ person then coordinated some new teacher orientation activities for me and the rest of the new teachers. But then, that was it. Also, I found out later that this contact person wasn’t actually getting paid any extra to do this; contacting and helping out the new teachers. A year later, they changed that and made sure to give an appropriate stipend for the teacher/s that take on this role. Other international schools have this initial contact person, but then that teacher turns into an official mentor. The mentor’s role is definitely to be the contact person for this new teacher. Some mentorship programmes at international schools are quite helpful, others not so much. Sometimes there isn’t a good match between the mentor and the new teacher. That new teacher just might find a better, more compatible mentor in one of the teachers in their immediate team at the school. It is nice though to have another contact person, an official one, if the other teacher isn’t available. Basically anyone can be a mentor at a new school. Just because someone is your official mentor doesn’t mean that another teacher could turn into that role for you if you don’t think the first one is the best fit for you. Not all international schools are that organized though with regards to assigning contact people to new staff. It could be that the school doesn’t even have a mentor programme. But the problems could also be related to an existing, ineffective mentor programme. For example, there is nothing worse than when you email your ‘resource’ and then that contact person never gets back to you. Maybe the person is just ignoring their ‘resource’ job or maybe the school just gave you the wrong email address (for example some teachers might not use their work email address very often or at all during the summer holiday). Either way, when you don’t have communication with your new school during these pre-move months, then you can easily start to get a bit anxious and nervous about whether you are preparing the best way you can. Some new teachers might even get “cold-feet” and call the whole thing off; it can happen! The main point is though: to keep the new teacher as comfortable and as most informed as possible! ****** So, does your international school assign a resource person with a contact number and email address to their newly hired teachers? Please share your experiences!
New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves
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Discussion Topic: The people are so nice here! (A thought while traveling) Is everybody in the world really that nice? March 26, 2013While traveling to a new place, you are bound to have many encounters with the locals. Being that you probably don’t know everything there is to know about a country and its language and culture before your trip, it is always an exciting adventure exploring and interacting with the people who live and have grown up there. The first time that you arrive in a foreign country, one that you have never visited before, you become very aware of each little encounter you have with a local.
From the taxi driver who brings you from the airport to your hotel to the first cashier that you meet at the nearby corner market (when you stock-up on some drinking water), you start to make new connections to help you figure out or better understand the new culture that you are now experiencing. Do you ever find yourself saying to your friends/family…”The people there were so nice.” ? Granted you might be on a trip somewhere where the local people aren’t nice, in your eyes, but as an experienced traveler that seems to be a rare occurrence. If you have been to many countries and experienced numerous cultures firsthand, then you have probably seen the pattern for yourself: around the world…everyone does indeed seem to be nice! So, you must be wondering, why are all these people in the world so nice? It just might be that you are interacting with a local (who you later think is soooo nice) whilst experiencing a personal culture shock moment. For example, when you are lost in a foreign city and you ask people for help/directions. Most people in countless cultures will go out of their way to help you find your way. And not just the person you originally asked for help, but soon there are other passersby that join in to help you out as well! Surely after that encounter with the locals, you will be thinking “boy these people are so NICE here!” Another culture shock moment for you will happen at some local grocery store. While you are shopping around, not having a clue how to read the ingredients labels or even realizing what some of those strange food products actually are, a local employee (or even a local customer) will start to interact with you. While they are asking you if you need any help, you realize that the local person can speak a little bit of English. The employee then starts to show you around the store, answering any specific questions about some products you are interested in buying. After you make your purchases and leave the store, you might be thinking “that store worker was so helpful and nice helping me out in English!” It is possible that during these potentially embarrassing and stressful moments during your trip, when a local comes in to “save the day” and bring some clarity into your day’s travel, your brain starts to make conclusions that everyone in this country is so nice. And what a great thought about the world! Of course when you get the chance though to sit down and have a longer chat with a local at a cafe or something, you then find out that the he/she might just think the opposite of his/her own people. He/She might be thinking that the people in the city are not always so nice! Of course, being that you will only interact with less than .1% of a country’s people during your trip, you cannot necessarily say that all people there are nice. The people you see during your trip are just a glimpse really of all the people you would encounter if you actually lived there. It is very possible that these people you do have encounters with are nice to you for other reasons, not just only because of the kindness of their heart. Maybe they have money on their minds. As a taxi driver, you might want to be nice so that the tourist will call him/her later when they want to go back to the airport. As a store worker, you need to be nice to customers so that they will stay longer in your store and hopefully buy lots of things.
But it is not just money that can make people be nice to you, it might be because they want to leave a good impression about themselves and their country. Some countries don’t have the best reputation or high status in the world, so the more the people show their nicest side to you, the better image that you will have about their country and tell your friends about their country (maybe your friend might want to make a trip there as well). There are other reasons for sure. The big question then is if those locals (from the country you are traveling to) go and make a visit to YOUR home country/city. I wonder if those locals will think YOUR people are so nice and welcoming! If you have a culture-related story to share about your experience living abroad, send us a message here and we will see about getting your story as a guest author on our International School Community blog!
Discussion Topics
culture shock, expat life, international school educator, international school teacher, life abroad, life as an expat, life of an international school teacher, linguistic encounters., living abroad, local people nice, nice, nice country, nice people, nicest people, teaching abroad,
New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves at International Schools: A starter supply of groceries for your new home. March 16, 2013
In this blog series we will talk about the ins and outs of an excellent new teacher orientation programme at an international school. A new teacher orientation programme can really play a very important part to the start at your new school, in your new host country. What are all the must-haves then? Check out our blog series here to read about the ones that we have discussed so far. Must-have #8: A starter supply of groceries for your new home.
Luckily, many international schools out there are getting this one right. Someone in the “new teacher orientation” committee is going out to a grocery store before you arrive and getting you the basic necessities for you. What are the basic necessities? Typically you get some a carton of milk, a loaf of bread, a box of crackers, a roll of cookies, etc. You will also get a package of toilet paper and some paper towels maybe. In countries where you cannot drink the water, you will most certainly get some fresh water supplies as well. Some international schools even provide you with a couple cans of beer! It is possible that you will not even end up using some of these items, but it is definitely the thought that counts. You will probably end up using the unused food supplies at your house warming party that you should hopefully be having during the first month of so. Some might think that the new teacher can just go out and get their own groceries after they arrive, what is the big deal? Well many times new teachers arrive at odd hours (read: your flight might be delayed!) and the nearby grocery store just might not be open. Also, just leaving your new home for the first time in the first few days can be a daunting experience. You might be a bit nervous about where everything is in the neighborhood and not be ready to “explore around” just yet. You also might maybe be preoccupied with not locking yourself out of your new place to even think about getting up and out to the nearest super market! Many people though who live abroad do though enjoy exploring around foreign grocery stores. And there will for sure be time for you to explore all the grocery stores around the city, especially all the ones with expat products in them! Who knows what they might have that will be your new favorite thing to buy?! So why wouldn’t an international school provide a new teacher to their school with an emergency bag of groceries/supplies? Are there any out there that don’t do this? It does take some man power and time to get the emergency supplies all prepared and ready. Imagine if you had to get these same supplies for 10 or 20 new teachers; not an easy task (read: many international school teachers, even veteran ones, don’t have a car). But if the international school budgets for this, then they will most likely budget paying for a veteran staff member to find a way to organize getting these groceries and supplies. Kind of fun I bet to be one of the first people that the new teacher sees. After a long journey, it will most definitely put a smile on the new teacher’s face when they realize that his/her new school has thought about them. And that is what new teacher orientation must-haves are all about…making sure the new teachers are happy and comfortable. ****** So, does your international school supply you with a starter supply of groceries for your new home? Please share your experiences!
New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves
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New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves at International Schools: A dinner outing with the director and administration February 16, 2013
In this blog series we will talk about the ins and outs of an excellent new teacher orientation programme at an international school. A new teacher orientation programme can really play a very important part to your start at your new school, in your new host country. What are all the must-haves then? Check out our blog series here to read about the ones we have discussed so far. Must-have #7: A dinner outing with the director and administration
How nice is it when the administration treats you to a nice dinner out somewhere in your new town? It really just sets the stage right to have a great start to your first year. Sure it is not that important and of course it does not have anything to do with your job specifically, but it is nice to get some bonding time with the other new teachers as well as your new bosses. Also, there is the fact that you probably don’t have so much money when you first arrive to be going out to eat at a nice restaurant. Plus, you probably do not even know where the good restaurants are just yet anyway. If there is not a dinner planned though for all the new teachers, it definitely feels like something is missing. If there is a dinner planned, then there are a few scenarios that might happen. Most often the admin plans a dinner out in the center of the city at a nice restaurant. You can really take in your new “expat lifestyle” in this scenario! If you have a director that is a little bit more personable, he/she might invite you over to have dinner at their house. In this scenario, the director is really making an effort to show the new teachers that they are now “one of the family” on the staff at the school. A less desirable scenario is when the dinner is just held at the school itself. Maybe the admin staff will get the cooking staff to make something special for everyone. Having the “dinner out” at the school is probably not making a very good impression on the new teachers, but depending on cooks, it could actually be quite nice. Another way to not make the best impression is to have the dinner at some cheap restaurant (just across the street from the compound where all the teachers are living) with little planning involved on making the outing special in any way. In either scenario, the conversations and experience had at the “dinner out” with the new staff will surely be ones that you remember. A fun time is usually in store with a lot of laughter. Take it all in because this dinner-out evening is just the beginning of your new and exciting expat life in your new host city. Some members on our Facebook page have shared about eating out with their administration during the new teacher orientation week they experienced at their international school: International School Geneva – Campus des Nations – “At IS Geneva there was barely an orientation week (just 2 half days) let alone any sort of dinner.” International School Singapore (10 Comments) – “The head of school throws a BBQ dinner for the new teachers and one later for all staff to mingle with the new staff.” Discovery College (Hong Kong) (5 Comments) – “We had a dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Also a drinks/appetizers with the larger ESF organization.” ****** Not that you would ask about this topic at your interview or anything, but it might be important to ask the administrator who’s interviewing you the details of the new teachers orientation week. You do want to know how they support new teachers to make a smooth transition. On International School Community we have a number of principals and directors of international schools that are members. Currently, we have 20 Directors/Heads of School that have joined. Some of the international schools they work at are: • The Bilingual School of Monza Log-on today to check out the many comments and information submitted in this section topic! Become the most informed you can be when it comes to finding out the benefits an international school offers to its new teachers. So, does your international school include a dinner out with the director and administration as part of their new teacher orientation? Please share your experiences!
New Teacher Orientation Must-Haves
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Discussion Topic: Standing at the check-out counter can get uncomfortable!!! January 30, 2013How much do you need to say when you are going through the check-out line? Not much usually. Just get your items through the scanner, swipe your credit card, bag your goods up in a reusable bag that you brought and then you get on your way.
Even if you do know the local language, it is not always an easy thing to speak up in public. One colleague of mine just mentioned to me that even after 20 some years of living and working in her host country, she specifically plans the right time to go to her local bakery. She prefers to go during a time when there are less people there; when they are not so busy. Even know she is highly proficient in the local language, she is still uncomfortable at times yelling out her order when everyone around maybe judging her on her pronunciation, etc. It is not always fun to let all the locals know that you are not from their country/not a native speaker. Whether the other people in the bakery even care or notice, this is a very common feeling to have when living abroad. Unfortunately you can’t live you life in your host country trying to avoid all linguistic encounters with the locals. You must eventually go through a check-out line and you will eventually have a cashier trying to tell you things. Not all linguistic encounters with the cashier (while living abroad) though end up in embarrassment for you. Some situations might end up being quite funny. They might be quite memorable for you and a good experience; giving you a good story to share with your other expat friends. One time in Spain, I was checking-out at a grocery store. As the cashier was ringing up the items I was going to purchase, she motioned towards a one liter bottle of Fanta. I thought she was trying to get me to buy it. In turn, I told her no. But the cashier kept on trying to give the bottle of Fanta to me. Finally, I realized that she was trying to just give it to me for free as it was a special promotion (it was a new flavor of Fanta…pineapple!). I told her “OH, es libre!” Of course, some people around me and the cashier laughed a bit at me. The word libre does me free, but it is the word free that you would use like when you unlock a cage of a zoo animal and letting them be free. I should have used the word gratis. This comical situation is what happens all to often to expats. You are in a situation that you weren’t prepared for ahead of time. Because of the unpreparedness, you get nervous. And because you are nervous, your brain does not think too clearly to either try and understand what was being said to you or get the words that you know in the local language out in the correct manner. It is all part of living abroad I guess. How boring and monotonous to go through a check out line in your own home country, when you can go through multiple check-out lines in your host country and experience the unexpected? If you have a culture-related story to share about your experience living abroad, send us a message here and we will see about getting your story as a guest author on our International School Community blog!
Discussion Topics
check-out lines, culture shock, expat life, international school educator, international school teacher, life abroad, life as an expat, life of an international school teacher, linguistic encounters., living abroad, shopping, teaching abroad,
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