Our school profile search feature is one reason that makes International School Community unique. The search feature allows our members to search for the international schools that best fit their specific criteria.
This fast and easy-to-use search feature also helps international school teachers find the school profile pages on our website that have some useful comments and information on them. You can easily see how many comments have been submitted on each school profile page by looking to the right of each school listed on the Schools List page.
The “Schools with Comments” tick box feature is at the bottom of our school profile search box (see the above picture). If you only want to see school profiles that have comments on them in your search results, tick this box! Then on the search results page, you will only see the schools that have comments. Genius!
Example: First we selected East Asia in the Region drop-down menu. Then we selected China in the Country drop-down menu. Finally, we selected Shanghai in the City drop-down menu. But instead of getting ALL the school profile pages for schools in Shanghai, we put a tick next to the ‘schools with comments’ part before we pressed the Search button.
As of 22 December 2024, 27 schools in Shanghai have had comments and information submitted on their school profile pages.
Log-on right now to our website and start your searches using our ‘schools with comments’ feature (which is available to all members).
Currently, we have 1269 schools that have had comments and information submitted on them. That’s over half of the 2345 schools that we have listed on our website!
It is also important to note that there are over 52285 individual comments and information that have been submitted on our website. All of these comments mean more informed teachers in our international school community! We encourage all international school community members to share what they know by submitting comments on the international schools they currently work at or have worked at in the past. Why not become a Mayor of a school for unlimited free premium membership? Become a Mayor today!
Our new blog series will review the most informed member-submitted comments from a specific month. This article looks at the ones submitted in November 2024.
We ask our members to submit detailed and useful comments. With these informative comments submitted to our 71 comment topics about each school, ISC is the place to go to get the information you want fast!
So here is the list for November 2024 that we thought stuck out as the most informative comments:
Describe their hiring policies and procedures.
“The school is one of the few places in Asia/SE Asia that does not have age restrictions on the teachers they hire. Several faculty are in their late 60’s, and a few have probably seen more than 70. The result of this is an older faculty with a great deal of experience. The school is also wise to hire older instructors as the political situation means all night life shuts down WAAAY early, and food delivery after 5:30pm is basically impossible…”
Recent things that the school has taken on (i.e. new curriculum, specific professional development, etc.).
“We are in the third year of offering the IB Diploma. This complements our AP course offerings as well as the general pathway students can access. These options for students allow for a multitude of options in terms of university applications…”
Describe the language abilities of students at this school and what is the “common language spoken in the hallways”. Is there one dominant cultural group?
“Sunway International School, KL, has a culturally rich and diverse student body, with most students coming from nearby Asian countries. Mandarin-speaking students make up the dominant cultural group, though English is the primary language of instruction and commonly spoken in the hallways. Around 80% of the 1,100 students speak English as an additional language, adding to the school’s multilingual environment. Children of expatriate teachers from English-speaking countries like Australia, South Africa, Canada, and the United States contribute further to this diversity, while families from regions like Eastern Europe also enhance the school’s global community…”
Average monthly salary after taxes and in what currency (explain taxation situation). How often do you get paid throughout the year?
“Salary differs based upon experience, educational level, and position. No maximum number of years of previous experience limiting salary Fully paid in Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) Local Taxes paid by the school…”
Describe what kinds of teachers work here (local vs. expat, qualifications [or lack there of], etc.) and staff turnover rate. Is there a native English speaker or nationality requirement? Is it LGBT friendly country/school?
“Very, very few truly international teachers. It’s a very Cypriot faculty. And they try to say it’s an international staff, but in reality they are considering foreign-born teachers who have been working at the school for a couple decades, married local and aren’t involved in the expat community…”
What advice can you give on how to set things up like internet, phone, experience dealing with landlord, etc.?
“The school helps with all of these things – most teachers arrive to all utilities set up, and landlord negotiations figured out. (If they have picked where they want to live before they arrive) Sometimes repairs are delayed – it always takes longer to fix something that you expect…”
Detailed info about lifestyles: singles vs. couples, gay vs. straight, nightlife vs. quiet and big city vs nature.
“As with any big city it depends what you want to do. There are a good many clubs both sporting and otherwise that one can join. Life can be lonely if you live to work so I would advise going out and meeting real people rather than internet dating stuff as my female friends tell me that they receive a lot of unwanted pictures…”
What controversies have been happening lately? Please be objective.
“Staff did not receive their annual index point pay rise due to the school struggling financially. The procedure for claiming for PD changed, narrowing the time to apply for the reimbursement and adding a clause to say you must pay back all or 50% if you leave 1 or two years after the reimbursement…”
Describe the school’s location in relation to the city center and to the teacher’s housing. How do staff get to school before and after school?
“Single faculty housing is a studio apartment: bed, desk, 2 straight back chairs, kitchen sink, small counter space with a single burner portable stove, and a bathroom. The window view depends on which building and side you are on – some have views of the city, some have views of the next building. Couples housing is significantly larger. All international faculty must live on campus. A couple of nice perks come with the housing: housekeeping cleans the apartment once a week and washes, irons, and folds laundry the same day, all for no charge…”
For teachers considering international school opportunities, understanding class sizes and the availability of aide support can be crucial in choosing the right fit. Class size affects not only the teacher’s workload but also the ability to provide individualized attention and foster a dynamic learning environment. Similarly, the availability of aides—whether instructional, EAL, or special needs support—plays a pivotal role in addressing diverse student needs and easing teacher responsibilities.
International School Community (ISC) members have shared hundreds of comments over the years (1240 to be exact – November 2024), providing invaluable insights into this topic. Their experiences highlight the wide range of class sizes and aide support across schools worldwide.
Class sizes at international schools can vary significantly depending on the institution, curriculum, and local factors. Here’s a snapshot of what ISC members have shared:
• Small and Manageable Classes: Some international schools maintain exceptionally small class sizes, enabling teachers to provide individualized attention and foster a focused learning environment. For instance, Hillside Collegiate IS keeps classes at no more than 12 students, creating an intimate setting that encourages active participation. Similarly, Bandung Independent School typically limits class sizes to 10–15 students, ensuring tailored instruction for every learner.
• Mid-Sized Classes with Support: At International School of Zug and Luzern, primary classes typically host 15–20 students. Each grade level benefits from an EAL teacher, offering additional learning support for language acquisition and special needs.
• Larger Classes with Varied Support: International School of Panama has seen growing elementary class sizes, with some exceeding 25 students. While schools like this may lack the one-on-one attention possible in smaller settings, they often offset this with shared aide support and co-teaching models.
Aide Support: A Vital Resource for Teachers and Students
The level of aide support varies widely across international schools. At schools like the Copenhagen International School, even primary classrooms with relatively small class sizes (13–18 students) benefit from a robust support team, including EAL and learning support teachers. On the other hand, some schools, such as the American International School Riyadh, offer minimal aide support, even for students with additional learning needs.
For teachers looking to make informed decisions about potential workplaces, ISC offers unparalleled access to firsthand accounts of class sizes and aide support across hundreds of schools. Luckily, International School Community has a comment topic on our school profile pages related to this topic of class sizes and aide support at international schools. Our teacher members shared what their experience has been working at various international schools around the world. There are a total of 1240 comments (November 2024) that have been submitted by our veteran international school teachers in one of the 73 comment topics called – “Average class size for primary and secondary. Describe any aide support.”
Highlights from ISC Member Comments:
• “In the elementary school, classrooms top out at 20 students. Junior Kindergarten to Grade 1 have teaching assistants in every classroom.” — Korea International School (Jeju) (56 total comments)
• “Primary classes are capped at 18 students, with dedicated learning support educators available for most classes.” — Verdala International School (57 total comments)
• “All primary classes have TAs, and there’s significant EAL support, although the school could benefit from additional staff for SEN.” — Utahloy International School (Zengcheng) (176 total comments)
• “ICS Elementary School now uses the HUB model where one grade level is in one big space with a couple of breakout rooms. It is also a Professional Learning Community (PLC) school so teachers and Educational Assistants collaborate to team teach. There are 4 lead teachers (one of them is a learning support teacher) and 3 educational assistants. The hub of students is divided into advisory groups (about 23 students each) for report writing and to have a communication point person otherwise students mix up and work with ALL educators during the day.” — International Community School Addis Ababa (92 total comments)
• “Each PYP has a local teacher as an additional support teacher. There are NO learning support teachers at MYP or DP even if there are kids who need help. The new learning support teachers have a tough job as the school is resistant to supporting any kids with learning needs, and most parents are in denial that their children even need support.” — Kazakhstan International School (11 total comments)
• “Max class size in EY-K sits around 16 but most are below this. 24 is max in elementary school and about the same in Middle and High School. The enrolment is growing and in Grades 10-12, some classes are still much smaller than this. EY teachers have 1 or 2 teacher aides, each Elementary School Grade has a Teacher Aide. There is also support provided by counsellors, speech pathologists, language specialists.” — Hangzhou International School (55 total comments)
With this wealth of data, ISC continues to empower educators by providing transparency and insights that make choosing the right school a more informed and rewarding process.
