On of the most visited pages on ISC is our Recently Updated Schools page. It shows the international schools that were most recently updated with new comments.
Now there is a faster way to find those new comments with the Newest Comments link on each school’s profile page. It is located just under the Overview link in the left column of a school’s profile page.
The Newest Comment page lists the last 20 comments that were submitted on that school.
Each of those 20 comments shows the date it was submitted, the Comment Topic Section and Comment Topic it was submitted in. And, of course, the new comment itself.
Once you are finished checking out the last 20 comments to be submitted on a school, then you can read the rest of the comments by clicking on the Comment Topic sections in the left column (School Information, Benefits Information, City Information, Travel Information).
It is what makes ISC so unique. Our mission was to have our members share information about the international schools they know about. But instead of having that information hiding in long paragraphs, etc. we’ve organized all of the information to be easily found into 66 comment topics. This organization helps our members find the information they are looking for faster!
Also, one of the best ISC features is the ability to see how the submitted comments in one comment topic have changed over time. Here is an example from Western International School of Shanghai’s profile page about housing allowances, etc.:
ISC is always looking to improve the user experience of our members. If you have other ideas for improvement or new feature ideas, please send us a message here.
“Taking a year on” is what principal Nichole Schmidt called the time away from her international school position in the article “Taking a Year.” Schmidt, with her husband and sons, packed up to travel around parts of Africa for a ten-month adventure. Isn’t it more inspiring “to take a year on” than needing to take a year off?
What about retirement? In “The Power of Time Off,” Stefan Sagmeister shares his scheduled year off every seven years to work on projects he is unable to pursue during his regular year. Sagmeister breaks down a worker’s lifetime into nearly 25 years of learning, 40 years of working, and for those lucky enough to live to the age of 65, 15 years of retirement. Why wait for retirement?
What follows are a few opportunities available to U.S. citizens to take a year on while staying abroad.
Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching: U.S. American primary and secondary teachers interested in making a move to overseas schools, but not ready to commit to an initial 2-year contract can apply for short term (2-6 weeks) or semester-length programs (3-6 months). As part of the program, teachers can pursue individual projects, conduct research, take courses for professional development and actively share their experiences with local teachers in schools, teacher training colleges, government ministries, and educational NGOs. To review eligibility criteria: https://exchanges.state.gov/us/program/fulbright-distinguished-awards-teaching-us-teachers.
Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms Program is a year-long professional development opportunity open to primary and secondary school teachers interested in developing skills to prepare students for a competitive global economy.
For those trained to teach English language learners, the U.S. Department of State sponsors the English Language Fellowship and Specialist Programs. This role advertises a new challenge or a life-changing career move for TESOL trained teachers to teach in new contexts and gain unique international experience. https://elprograms.org
Peace Corps Response positions are open to U.S. Citizens with significant professional experience, not just former Peace Corp Volunteers. Positions vary from 6 to12 months, may have a language requirement, and include position titles such as educational specialists, special education advisors, deaf education specialists, environmental education teacher trainer, health facilitator, literacy coordinator, e-learning specialist, math education or science instructor, primary education curriculum and design specialist, and more. Visit for more information: https://www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/response-openingshttps://www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/response-openings/.
I took a “year on “working as a TEFL Teacher with Fulbright Taiwan. To learn about this opportunity, visit here.
A few months into my year on, I have to say I do miss some things: the academic calendar, full salary, and benefits, connecting with fellow international educators, and the bonds that come from working with students in the classroom.
What I am gaining this year is an opportunity to provide teacher training to local teachers and frequent travel opportunities as I give workshops at various schools in Taiwan. While not working, I have had the chance to pursue other interests, such as writing more as I spend less time grading.
While the opportunities shared may be limited to U.S. Citizens, what opportunities are out there to other nationalities?
This article was submitted by ISC member Ellen Johnston. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact here her. Check our her other submitted article on the ISC blog here – The Journey to School: Tarsus American College (Turkey),
It was a privilege
to speak at the Council of International Schools Conference in Melbourne recently.
The educators committed to educating for global citizenship and an ethical world,
were inspiring.
Didactic teaching,
while worthy, will have many students repeating the dictums that they have been
taught, without understanding, empathy and/or application. When the students work
out their ‘truths’ and how they interpret them, then it becomes lasting. By
inviting young people to become fellow travellers in story, it enables them to
empathise, explore, identify, question and understand, situations outside their
experience. They become emotionally involved, recognising their own value while
challenging prejudice, racism and intolerance.
Increasingly children’s and young
adult literature is tackling issues of social justice in areas as diverse as
emotional disorders, family relationships, autism, epilepsy, anorexia, learning
difficulties, cancer, war, racism, the plight of refugees, environment, world
issues. There are powerful children’s
books that have opened dialogue for social justice from The Curious
Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon with its sensitive exploration of Asperger’s syndrome and acceptance
of difference to The Boy in the Striped Pyjamasby John Boyne
exposing racism, the outcome of a world without moral responsibility and the
redemptive power of friendship.
Young people read differently to adults,
where if story touches to them, they will read and re-read that book, testing
it against their developing value system. Fiction that addresses ethical issues
such as bullying, inclusion, disability, racism,
multi- culturalism, gender identity, feminism, peace, sustainability, diversity,
through relatable story is a powerful way to create empathy and action for positive
change.
Ethical
issues are deeply personal for me. My parents were refugees who went though
war, communism, the ultimate in power abuse. They were targets, bullied and
vilified, not registering as human. We know about the Cambodian Killing Fields,
Armenian genocide, the Anfal genocide of the Kurds, Rwandan genocide, the
Holocaust. But we cannot fully comprehend those huge atrocities. We see, are
horrified, but they often are outside our experience, of interest, but what can
we do about it? People feel powerless, shocked, close their eyes, maybe donate
some money, send some clothes. These stories of victimisation are too big, too
foreign, make us turn away, as we go about our lives.
But
there’s a way to relate, to engage, to get under the skin of everyone. It’s
through the small stories of ordinary lives. My son Jack, is one of those small
stories. ‘I Am Jack’ is his fictionalized story, when he faced school bullying.
Jack’s
a great kid, funny, inventive, smart, a deep thinker, a good but annoying
brother. He has great mates, supports his grandmother, wants to be like his
Grandad, helps his mother. JACK is your son or daughter. He’s you or your mate
or the neighbour or a kid in your school or someone you know. His family is
yours, mine, ours. A mix master family with its quirkiness like all our
families, in our mix-master communities with all the permutations of what makes
up family today.
Jack
didn’t understand how he ended up targeted, isolated, bullied, until it wasn’t
funny anymore. He was afraid, powerless, victimised. It was a hard journey to win against
bullying, but he did with the support of family, school, community.
JACK invites you into a real home, family, community, life. Narrative truth can be powerful story and everyone loves JACK – our everyman – who takes bullying into your heart and makes you shout ‘no’. When Jack and his Vietnamese mate stand up together and lead the school, teachers, parents, kids, neighbours, everyone to stand up.
How
do I make JACK’s world yours? I’m a tricky writer. I draw unsuspecting readers
into the familiar, the safe, with humour and narrative, until they’re captured
emotionally, crying, laughing, angry, heroic, until JACK’s story is theirs.
The four ‘I Am Jack books’ invite critical thinking about bullying, blended families, aging grandparents,
bush fires, multi-culturalism, community,
terrorism, social responsibility within the safe and familiar context of
family and community.
There are outstanding middle grade authors, whose books take readers
into these areas. Authors include the classics such as the Narnia books by C.S.
Lewis to books by Jackie French, David Almond, Jacqueline Wilson, Kate Di
Camillo, Lois Lowry, Philip Pullman, Michael Rosen, Michael Morpurgo.
Young adult novels are edgier than middle grade, reflecting that
perilous journey between childhood and adulthood. They are a time when identity is fragile, communication high-risk. It is a
time of spiritual, sexual, emotional searching, friendship, peer group power, leadership, gender, dependence-independence
in that journey for identity. There
is a wealth of extraordinary authors who take young adults on this journey from
the classic ‘Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger to the verse novels of Ellen
Hopkins, the teen novels of Cath Cowley,
Meg McKinley, A.J.Betts, Neil Gaiman, Laurie Halse Anderson, Markus Zusak, ‘The
Hunger Games’ by Suzanne Collins.
In my YA novels I
tackle the tough issues of search for identity, driven by extraordinary
characters like JACK, who are ordinary too, like us. Despite the tough
challenges, my books always offer hope. I have issues where YA books offer
despair as the outcome. Adolescents are smart and filled with ideas, but have
little experience of dealing with life. Story can take them into the darkest
places. However there must be pathways out, so they can embrace their talents
and address their world and the global world. The line I wrote in my YA novel ‘The
Cave’, still moves me deeply:- ‘war
is not brave, but men can be brave in war and in life.’ (The Cave, Chapter 13,
page 141, HarperCollins)
Finally, what is the role of picture books in working towards global citizenship? The multi award winning picture book author/illustrator Mo Willems writes:
‘We create our work
for children not because they’re cute,
but because they’re human beings, deserving of respect.’
― Mo Willems
There are so many picture books that provide a quick rhyme, a rollicking jaunt, cliched themes with predictable outcomes. They are fine, but when you find the gems, they will enrich those very young readers to create a world that is filled with possibilities, ideas, exploration. Who can bypass ‘The Giving Tree’ by Shel Silverstein with its ethical question of what is unconditional love or unconditional selfishness? Or the books of Oliver Jeffers, David Wiesner, Munro Leaf, Julia Donalson and Axel Scheffler, Maurice Sendak. In my picture books I am driven by my commitment to partnering children as they face the world in those early years of development. ‘Ships in the Field’ is autobiographical as my family found home and hope in a new country, while ‘Gracie and Josh’ is about the bond of siblings despite the challenges of illness. ‘Elephants Have Wings’ embraces mindfulness and pathways to peace. I have had enormous pleasure from the endorsement of Good Vision for Life and Vision Australia, for ‘The Boy in the Big Blue Glasses’ which within the ambit of pirates, play, friendships, raises the issue of sight impairment and self and group acceptance of difference.
International Schools are at the forefront of creating global citizens and
leaders of the future, as we seek to create an ethical world.
I will end with an endorsement I received for my YA novel, ‘Butterflies’
which still makes me emotional. I spent two years researching and writing ‘Butterflies’.
Speaking at the World Burn Congress about the power of ‘Butterflies’ to provide
succor and hope to burn survivors, families and community, was one of the great
moments of my life. ‘Butterflies’ was written for all those who face the
challenge of teenage years and coming out as warriors for an ethical world.
Dr Hugh Martin OAM
President of the Australian and New
Zealand Burn Association and
Head of the Burn Unit, The Children’s
Hospital Westmead, Sydney.
Every survivor has a story. Often the story is of interest, and even
more often instructive. “Butterflies” is the story of a burn survivor, and is
both interesting and instructive. It explores the complex areas of the
emotional impact of a burn on the individual and family while giving insight
into the world of hospitals, patients and doctors. It traces the development of
the personality from insecurity and relative isolation to a healthier level of
self esteem that enables the individual to form balanced relationships with
family and friends. It shows how the inner person can triumph over a
preoccupation with surface scars and know that basic values of commitment,
caring and trust are more important than the texture of the skin.
‘Butterflies’ has relevance outside the narrow circle of burn survivors
and their families. It shows the ebb and flow of emotions that affect us all,
particularly in the transition between childhood and adulthood, and how
parenting and family life make these bearable.
Those of us who are involved in the world of burns know how
survivors need help from time to time, but slowly develop a depth of character
and an inner strength which is rarely seen in others. Like tempering steel, the
process of passing through the fire helps make a person of exceptional quality.
“Butterflies” captures these subtleties for the reader, and gives a stunning
insight into a difficult topic.
In 2015, I was deeply honoured to be
awarded a Lifetime award for Social Justice through my body of works for young
people, by the International Literacy Association.
———–
This article was submit by guest author, Susanne Gervay OAM.
