International School Community News v2011.03 – 9 July, 2011
v2011.03 – 9 July, 2011:
The summer has now officially arrived for basically all international school educators.  Some will continue their summer vacation until the end of August, but many international schools start up again at the end of July/early August.  If you are moving to a new school this year, many new teachers must start work around that same time frame or even earlier!  Take this time of relaxation (on a beach in Thailand or Mexico for example!) to fill out some information about the schools you know about on International School Community.  So far, our current members represent more than 45 different international schools!

Site Stats:
Current members: 86
School profiles: 831
Surveys: 4
Blog entries: 68
Posted comments: 461

Member spotlight:


Katie Jervis: “Originally, I was only going to go for a year in an attempt to save enough money to pay for teachers college…”
*If you’d like to be one of our next member spotlights send us a message here.  Highlighted members will receive a coupon code for 6 free months of premium access!

New members:
Tasha Fletcher
Chris Ma
Floralisa Badescu
Helen Temple
Nexus International School Putrajaya

New Survey Topic:

Vote here!

Website updates:

Many updates are planned for later this July!  Stay tuned for updated school and member profile pages and the blog format.
Highlighted Link
http://peacequilt.wordpress.com/ is a blog. This project began as an idea back in September 2008, the idea being to unite schools all around the world, in some way, potentially as a celebration of the London Olympics, 2012.  The people involved asked themselves to think of an idea of uniting schools all over the World. Many international schools have become involved already. A teacher who is inspired can inspire students and other teachers!
FAQ:
What do you mean by “kinds of student” in the school search function?
For many international schools the kinds of student there can be very important to know for certain teachers who prefer a certain type of students population.  “Mostly int’l” means that the majority of the student population is from other countries in the world, even if the majority of the population is from one specific country that is not the host country.  “Half int’l/half local” signifies that around 50% of the student population is from the host country.  “Mostly local” means that the majority of the student population is from the host country.

Incentive program for free premium membership:
Now when you submit comments on the school profile pages, you can earn a coupon code to receive up to 1 year free of premium membership access!  Putting-in 15-29 comments gets you 6 months free. Submitting over 30 or more comments will get you 1 YEAR FREE!  Please remember that the comments you submit on the school profile pages are anonymous, but we can keep track of which members write how many comments in our system.  Once we see you have submitted your comments, we will send you an email with a special coupon code to extend your current premium membership.

Recent blog entries:

· International schools that were founded in 1996 (China, South Korea, Moldova, etc.)
“Busan Foreign School opened its doors to the Busan community and its surrounding areas in October of 1996. With only two students originally, it has….”
· Which international schools do International School Community’s current members represent?
“At International School Community, networking and gathering information is very easy.  Get answers about schools that you are…”
· Do you want to teach in one of the most expensive cities in the world?
“I was just talking with an international school teacher friend of mine who is part of a teaching couple with 3 children.  They are looking for…”
· TEN COMMANDMENTS OF RELOCATING OVERSEAS: #1 – Learn as much as possible about…
“1. Learn as much as possible about the host country in order to have realistic expectations.  How much can you learn about a host country before…”
· To touch your produce or to not touch your produce: that is the question!
“I don’t know about you, but I prefer to touch my fruit before I buy it….”

Recently updated schools:

· American School of the Hague (5 new comments)
(The Hague, Netherlands)
“Take home pay examples: single teacher BA step 10 = 3488 EUR, single teacher…”
· Cairo British School (31 new comments)
(Cairo, Egypt)
“The school building is very small, no sporting facilities, the students have to go by…”
· Pechersk School International (11 new comments)
(Kyiv, Ukraine)
“Travel in the city is easy; taxis and mini-buses are plentiful and cheap. A single taxi fare…”
· The International School of Azerbaijan (5 new comments)
(Baku, Azerbaijan)
“Azerbaijan has a varied climate; notably hot summers, warm autumns and…”
· Qatar Academy (5 new comments)
(Doha, Qatar)
“I interviewed with 2 administrators at the Search fair in Boston (2011). They were very…”
· American International School Bucharest (1 new comment)
(Bucharest, Romania)
“The interview went very well, she was willing to allow me to lead the interview by…”

(Click here for the last 40 schools to be updated with new comments)

Recently added schools:

Requested schools to be reviewed:

This last month we have had visits from 51 countries around the world!

 

New survey: Which curriculum do you have the most experience in?

Survey number 4 has arrived!  Topic: Which curriculum do you have the most experience in?

Have you ever been at a job fair and had a school say “sorry were looking for…” teachers with more experience in a certain curriculum? I know I have.  Sometimes I wish I had experience in every curriculum so that I could be a more desirable candidate.  Because I have experience in one curriculum, does that mean I should teach in that curriculum the rest of my life? I hope that teachers get an opportunity to experience other curricula (if a school will hire you without experience in their curriculum), as it will broaden your frame of mind about your teaching and teaching in general.

So, which is it?  Go to the homepage of International School Community and submit your vote today!

Survey results are in – Which benefit is the most important to you?

The survey results are in, and it seems as if HOUSING and SALARY are the most important benefits for the teachers that voted.  They both received the same amount of votes.

I have worked at an int’l school where the housing wasn’t included and I have also worked at a school when the housing was included.  It definitely made a difference on how I spent my money in those cities.  Rent usually accounts for a sizable portion of your salary.  When that cost is not there, then of course you will have much more money to spend on travel and just “livin’ it up” in the city you are in.  It is nice to not have to worry about paying your rent.  Sometimes the housing allowance does not cover the total cost of the rent, but still in that case it is more ideal than getting nothing to put towards the rent cost.  Other times you can find a place under the amount of your housing allowance.  In many countries the landlords can falsify the rent receipt documents to say that it costs more so that you can pocket the remainder of the housing allowance for yourself!

Yes, salary.  We all want a higher salary.  At some international schools the annual salary can be upwards of 100K USD (e.g. in some schools in Switzerland), but in other schools you salary can be much, much less.  Usually it depends on the cost of living in the city though; which is usually the main factor in how the school decides the salary to give to its teachers.  In some cities where the cost of living is low, you can save much more money even when your salary is also lower.  You can’t just look at a salary and make your decision whether or not to take the job.  The other benefits for sure come into play.  You must factor in the other benefits when looking at the salary amount.

Luckily on International School Community you can find detailed information about the salary and housing situation on a number of international schools right now!  Go ahead and have a search through the hundreds of schools that have been updated recently and check out their housing and salary information.  Our members are encouraged to submit comments and information about the salary and housing on the schools they have worked at.  Just scroll down to check out the benefits section.  It looks like this:

Too many benefits (or lack of benefits) to consider.  The problem is though when you move back to your host country.  Then you are most likely not going to get any of the benefits we get as international school teachers!

Member spotlight #5: Katie Jervis

Each month International School Community will highlight one of our members.  This month we interviewed Katie Jervis:

Tell us about your background.  Where are you from?
I was born and raised in a city just outside of Toronto, Canada, but I haven’t lived there since 2005.

How did you get started in the international teaching community?
I first left Canada in 2005 to teach English in South Korea. Originally, I was only going to go for a year in an attempt to save enough money to pay for teachers college in the UK and get relevant teaching experience.  Then one year turned into two because I was really enjoying life there and started to recognise all the benefits of living abroad (eg. travel, new cultures, new friends, free accommodation etc.).  After the two years, I went to the UK to get my teaching degree as I had originally planned.  Living in the western world again was a bit of a shock and made me appreciate my experience in Korea even more.  It was then that I decided to look for jobs at international schools in Asia…life just seemed to be more exciting and a bit easier abroad.  After sending out applications to random schools, and going to a job fair, my boyfriend and I finally got offered jobs at the same school in Shanghai. We accepted and have been here ever since.

Which international schools have you worked at?  Please share some aspects of the schools that made them unique and fun places in which to work.
The only international school that I have worked at is Shanghai Rego International School. It is unique in that it is quite small but really has a nice mix of nationalities amongst the students. The children are really lovely there and are generally very easy to teach.

Describe your latest cultural encounter in your current placement, one that put a smile on your face.
At our school, all the teaching assistants are Chinese, so I usually learn something new about the Chinese culture every day.  There are lots of teaching assistants that always get really dolled up for work and dress to the nines every day (short skirts, high heels, hair done, lots of makeup, etc). Recently, I was very surprised to see one particularly glam T.A. come in wearing clothes that looked like pyjamas, a radiation-proof apron (supposedly), thick glasses, greasy hair, etc).  It turns out that she had just found out that she was pregnant and the Chinese have very strong ideas on what women can and cannot do when they are pregnant, so I learned some pretty unique rules and traditions.  For example, you can only look at beautiful things when you are pregnant if you want to have a beautiful baby. Although these traditions sound strange, they are very interesting to learn about!

What are some important things that you look for when you are searching for a new position at an international school?
When I’m searching for a new school, I look for several things. I like busy and bustling cities, so that is a must.  I also look at the salary and if that can provide us with the lifestyle we’re looking for. Health and dental care is also crucial and accommodation or living allowance is key.

In exactly 5 words, how would you describe the international school teaching experience?
Exciting, interesting, enlightening, educational and unique.

Thanks Katie!  If you are a member of International School Community and would like to be our next member spotlight, contact us here.  If we choose to highlight you, you will get a coupon code  to receive 6 months free of premium access to our website!

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