Reprinted Articles

Just finishing college with a teacher’s certificate? Taught in American schools for X years and it hasn’t turned out to be all you thought it would be? Maybe you should give international teaching a try.

What would motivate a teacher to leave the comforts of the homeland to venture into a third world country to work with kids who might know very little English? Kelly Blackwell offers materials that would guide a prospective teacher through the process of getting an international teaching job. Her webpage opens with an audio blurb that outlines at least three benefits from international teaching. First, foreign students are often more motivated and disciplined than those in England, Canada, or the US. Second, the school year is usually about 180 days so this allows for time to get to see the adopted country firsthand. Third, she says the pressure on teachers in western schools is gone in international schools. Her salary is adequate to provide her needs and give her travel funds, and the administration is understanding of her need for preparation time.

Are you interested in learning how to get your resume considered in an international school? The experience of one couple in obtaining an international teaching position in Tanzania. On one website, he suggests the best place to learn about some of the over 4000 international schools is by going to a college’s recruitment fair. The experience he describes sounds something like an auction where prospective teachers have minutes to make their presentation, slightly longer to interview, with the expectation to make a decision before the two days are over. Those seeking employment abroad should attend something like this with personal goals and interests already in mind.

Of course, a major interest in international schools would be English teachers, preferably ones who spoke clearly and who knew English grammar well. Depending on a countries’ interest in teaching English, such a position could vary from self-supporting to lucrative. But when considering a position, salary should not be the only, or even the main criterion. After all, cost of living may diminish a handsome salary to mere subsistence. Do your homework before applying to any particular school. Besides ESL (English as a second language opportunities), some large companies provide employee education and this may include English, especially for companies working closely with American clients. Some foreign universities are increasingly offering summer immersion English courses to post-graduate students who are moving to an English speaking country to finish their education. This is a promising short term opportunity that may be long enough for someone to get a taste of international teaching before he or she commits to a longer period.

Reading about other countries and cultures is theory; being there allows one to experience it firsthand. Through an international teaching experience, a teacher can be paid to do what he or she loves and as a bonus, see the world as well.

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Tags: Education