New Survey: How much Professional Development money do you have to use this school year?

A new survey has arrived!

Topic:  How much Professional Development money do you have to use this school year?

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Working at international schools has its perks, that’s for sure.  One of those perks is getting an annual Professional Development allowance (well at most international schools). Public-school teaching back in your home country does have it moments of getting PD for its teachers, but typically that money is being decided on by somebody other than you!  At international schools, you are (mostly) in charge of your own personal PD monies and how you want to use that money. It is important to note that international schools do dictate some of the PD for their own teachers (e.g. for in-house PD), but the other PD money (the money that hopefully you are getting as part of your contract) is for you to use on your own PD theme and topic.

It is so important for our careers to keep learning new things in the field of education. Luckily there are numerous PD options for international school teachers. There is the annual ECIS conference (who’s going to Nice this year?).  Maybe you live in Asia and are planning on going to the annual EARCOS conference in Kota Kinabalu.  Some international schools are leading the way and hosting their own conferences like NIST International School. They recently have started their annual ELLSA Conference in Bangkok.

905866_320405608135805_7598251834492740465_oIf conferences aren’t looking the best this year, then there are still many other options for international schools teachers on which to use their personal PD allowance. The Creativity Workshop has been very popular this past year as well as the staple Teachers College Summer Institutes (Reading and Writing) in New York.

Wherever you end up going this year, you are bound to learn a few new things and get inspired for your return back to work.  You are also bound to run into some people who you know in the international school community; good times catching up with former colleagues.  Going to these conferences and workshops are also a great place to network and meet others teachers in your field.  It can be quite helpful having some new peers to contact when you want to get some feedback on something or learn more about a new technology that person is using for example.

The main problem though in getting to these workshops and conferences is money. Not only do you have to pay for the conference registration fee, you must also pay for your flight to get there and the hotel. Many times one year of PD money is not enough to get you to a conference every year.  Some teachers can save their PD money from one year and add it one to the next one (up to three years typically).  If you don’t have enough money to attend a certain workshop, then it doesn’t hurt to ask your boss if there might be any PD money around that you can use to help you pay for the rest of costs involved. Your administration might say no to you, but they also might say yes!  It’s worth a try.

All international schools handle their PD allowance differently, so let’s share about the international schools we know about.  Go ahead and vote on How much Professional Development money do you have to use this school year? Go to the homepage of International School Community and submit your vote today!  You can check out the latest voting results here.

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We actually have a comment topic related this to this issue. It is called: Professional development allowance details.

Right now there are over 180 individual comments (about 100s of different international schools) in this comment topic on our website.  Here are a few of them:

“In general, the school has a four-tiered approach: in-house PD, required external PD, goal related PD and personal professional support.
Upon school approval staff have access to a personal professional development sum that can be used annually or accrue for up to three years.” – Anglo American School of Sofia (Sofia, Bulgaria) – 28 Comments

“Professional development is a strong focus. Quality of in-house varies wildly as it does in every school. Lots of training for IB available and all IB teachers go on prep courses as soon as possible.” – Nexus International School (Putrajaya, Malaysia) – 44 Comments

“PDs are usually done in-house therefore there is no structured amount for PD per teacher. Principals are up to date regarding international and local PDs so when there is an appropriate PD some teachers are selected to attend. Teachers, on the other hand, can always search for possible and appropriate local/international PDs.” – Royal Tots Academy (Jakarta, Indonesia) – 35 Comments

Top 10 things you need to figure out when moving to a new country

Nekropolis [2014]

Moving to another city is always a stressful thing. Stress can make us forget even the essential necessities that we need to settle down. Here’s a useful to-do list for all the newcomers:

1. Get your local ID and tax number

Getting or updating your documents is something to be made a top priority, as this can prevent you from doing many things on this list, such as opening a bank account or access the local healthcare.

2. Choose your doctor/dentist

Street dentist

Secure your health first. In countries where the public healthcare is available, you need to pick a personal doctor to whom you will be going first when something’s wrong with your health. Ask your colleagues at work to recommend a good dentist who wouldn’t rip you off.

3. Pick a bank

This is so much fun for some people, like myself. I love comparing conditions and benefits that banks are offering, but it is also of great importance. Check if the bank is offering all the services that you need, and what are their conditions on transferring the money back to your home country. Believe me, you want to do your research before you sign a bunch of papers without reading the “fine print”. Nobody wants to go through all that administration twice.

4. Find the best ways to commute

Ask around what are the common ways that people commute in your new city. What is the availability of the public transportation? In some cities bicycles and taxies are more popular than dated trams or busses that are circulating around. Use the Internet routing tools such as Google Maps to find the best way to get to work, gym or your favorite green market.

5. Pick your favorite grocery store

We are spending a too big chunk of our lifetime shopping for groceries to waste it in some dump hole that looks like warehouse. Surely, from time to time it is worth going to these places to get a good deal on some products, but you want to be enjoying your shopping at a nice place. Try it, and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

6. Get the new clothing and furniture

IKEA girl ~

Moving to a new place is an excellent excuse to get rid of the clothes and the furniture that you always secretly hated. If your new city has IKEA or H&M, that’s great, but try to find out where locals are buying their clothes and furniture. Buying at those stores will make you immerse yourself in the local way of life.

7. Choose a hairdresser

Everyone needs a hairdresser. Ok, almost everyone. There are still the ones and twos of people whose hair trimmer skills are good enough for a self-haircut. But everyone else needs a professional to do it. Since the prices of their services can vary significantly, investigate before you are sorry.

8. Involve in learning the local language

Going to these classes is a good way to meet other expats and expand your circle of friends. Plus, it makes your everyday life much easier. In case that you already know the local language, I suggest you involve in learning a new language or a craft, or join a cause or a club, (e.g. a drama club, pet rescue centre).

9. Ask people about the cheaper ways to get stuff

Flea markets, thrift stores, used bicycle auctions, local bidding websites can save you some money that you can use for a day trip around the city or going to that amusement park that everyone is talking about.

10. And don’t forget to find your asylum

Find a special place where you can get yourself on a date time-to-time. It can be a restaurant, a café, a park or just a bench in your neighborhood. But having that one spot that you love is really important to have, wherever in the world you are.

MadCity: Indie Cafe

 

This top 10 list was submitted to us by a guest author and International School Community member.

All guest authors to our blog get six months of free premium membership to our website.  Email us if you are interested in becoming one of the next guest authors on our blog.

 

 

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