International School Community News v2011.02 – 7 June, 2011


v2011.02 – 7 June, 2011:
Well, the school year is winding down for most of us.  Some int’l schools are already out and some still have a month to go!  Either way summer is upon us and travel awaits.  Most of us go back to our home countries, some of us skip going “home” and explore new countries and then there are the few that stay in their host country to relax or because they have visitors coming.  Finally, there are the international educators that are moving on.   Lots of packing to do and shipping of boxes to their new destination.  Many will be taking a chance on a new school and new country; and a lucky few finally got a job to go work at their dream school in their dream country/city.

If you are moving on to live in a new destination, don’t forgot to update your member profile to show your new “current location” and your new “current school.”  Also, now that many of us have some more freetime on our hands, now is the time to share what you know by writing some new comments on the school profile page of the school you currently work at.

The offical launch promotion continues: All new members that sign up will automatically receive a free 1-month subscription of premium membership.  Make sure to forward this newsletter to your friends and colleagues so that they can also benefit from this promotion.  Current members can still benefit from this promotion.  Just sign-on and click on the My Account tab and then the renew your subscription link.  Use the coupon code “MESGRATIS” on the payment page (coupon code expires on 30 June, 2011)

New incentive program: Now when you submit comments on the school profile pages, you can earn coupon codes 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.

Site Stats
Current members: 74
School profiles: 778
Surveys: 3
Blog entries: 51
Pictures: 10
Posted comments: 221

Recent blog entries:

· Survey results are in – Which area of the world would you prefer to work in?
“it seems as if Western Europe is the top area of the world that internationals school educators want to live and work in….”
· Are students from one culture group “taking-over” certain international schools?
“Is it true that in most places in the world, where there are international schools, that there is many times a “dominant” culture group at each school…”
· Why do people leave international school teaching to go back to their own country?
“With regards to the single teachers, it seems that many of them move back to their home countries for reasons not necessarily related to money, but for love as well…”
· Highlighted article: Destinations and Dispositions (IKEA dependence)
“IKEA is indeed the best friend of international school teachers.  What a great friend too because…”
· It’s all about luck and timing: Getting the international school job of your dreams
“If you really want to live and work in a specific city in the world and there are only 2-4 jobs available at the two international schools there…”

Recently updated schools:

· International School of Ho Chi Minh City (6 new comments) (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
“The school goes to a number of recruitment fairs during the hiring season. Many times they go to…”
· International School of Chile, Nido de Aguilas (4 new comments) (Santiago, Chile)
“The campus is in an area that is one of the newest and…”
· Beanstalk International Bilingual School (5 new comments) (Beijing, China)
“The expat teachers at this school are mostly from USA, Canada…”
· American Community School (Amman) (4 new comments) (Amman, Jordan)
“The last time we went through the re-accreditation process was back in 2006, so now…”
· Academia Cotopaxi (American International School) (6 new comments) (Quito, Ecuador)
“There is a variety of housing options, but most teachers rent apartments that…”
· American Academy for Girls (Dubai) (4 new comments) (Dubai, United Arab Emirates)
“The school prefers to hire single women. You need to have a minimum…”

(The last 40 schools to be updated)

Recently added schools:

Requested schools to be reviewed:

Member spotlight:


Noah Bohnen: “Colombia is truly a gem.  Having traveled to over 50 countries, there is no place quite like it.  When we were there, there were still very few tourists and you really felt like you were on a cultural frontier…”

 

*If you’d like to be one of our next member spotlights send us a message here.  If you are chosen to be highlighted, you will receive a coupon code to receive 6 months of premium access to our website for free!

New members:
Nicole Dolce (Lincoln School – Argentina)
Brian Lockwood (Nanjing Int’l School – China)
Allison Davis (Beijing BIBS – China)
Robin Doherty (Shanghai Rego – China)
Troy White (Amer. Int’l School of Cyprus – Cyprus)

New Survey Topic:

 


Vote here!

Website updates:

We have added some more questions to the school and benefits sections of the school profile pages.  Many more updates are on the way, so stay tuned!

Highlighted Link
The International School Teacher is a forum/social networking/information gathering website designed for the international school teaching community.  The founder of this website is one of International School Community’s members: Troy White.

FAQ:
How do you figure out the population of each city?
We use the latest numbers from Wikipedia.   We also use the metro area population instead of just the city proper itself.   We thought it would give a better indication of the actual number of people that live in and around the city.

This last month we have had visits from 49 countries around the world!

Blogs of international school teachers: “Gringo writing a line at a time in Ecuador”

Are you inspired to start up a blog about your adventures living abroad?

Check out the experiences of another teacher from the moment they signed the contract to what they are writing about after a few years working abroad.

Our 3rd blog that we would like to highlight is called “Guayaquil Writer Blog.”   It has some great insight to what life is like living in Guayaquil, Ecuador and working at Colegio Americano de Guayaquil.

Entries we would like to highlight:

Back to School:
“International teachers generally sign on for two-year contracts so international schools generally have a high turnover. I’m looking at my fourth year and I feel like an old man at times. There are lots of teachers that need settling in and shown how everything works.”

It is quite interesting as an experienced teacher at an international school watching the new teacher settle-in each year.  It is so important for an international school to have a good “welcoming committee” and orientation week.  If the school doesn’t have that, many times that responsibility ends up on the other teachers to show the new teachers the ropes informally.

It’s Mango Time in Guayaquil:
“We live in Guayaquil, Ecuador and it should have claims to being the mango capital of the world. In our back yard we have one stately mango tree spreading its shading leaves over us. Our neighbors to both sides also have massive mango trees that spread above the walls and their heavily laden branches intermingle with ours.”

Let me just say that I love the idea of having your own mango tree.  Definitely one of the perks of living in Guayaquil!  I also love the different times of the year when different fruits come into season.  For sure, these times are special and unique for different areas of the world.  Is this a factor in your decision-making when deciding on which international school to go to next?

*The author of this blog also has another one here.

Survey results are in – Which area of the world would you prefer to work in?

The survey results are in, and it seems as if Western Europe is the top area of the world that internationals school educators want to live and work in.

It is no surprise I suppose that many teachers desire to live in Western Europe.  Every time I go to a recruitment fair, I hear many people getting very excited about the prospects of moving to France, Switzerland, Spain, etc.  And each time that I go to the orientation session with all the candidates, the presenter always brings up this exact topic.  “Don’t get your heart set on finding a job in Europe!  There are many other excellent places to live in as well.”

So, what attracts many people to live and work in Western Europe?  The list could include:

  • Salary (in some countries it is quite high!)
  • Benefits (some retirement benefits are outstanding to say the least, and we all know that most international school teachers are spending all their savings on traveling!)
  • Location (you are very close to many different countries, including ones in North Africa)
  • Established schools (many school in this area have been around for 40+ years)

On our website, each international school profile page has a city section.  Pictured here is the voting part for this section.  If you are unsure of a specific area in the world, check out one of the international schools in that area on International School Community.  You will be able to get some insight into what life is like in different cities around the world without actually having to go there yourself first!

All about schools

More features

Let's connect

Meet us on Facebook
Follow our Tweets
Join our Linked In Group

IS Community