Thank you for all of the great responses. I should have better at clarifying that my son is only on a 504 - which means, he does not qualify for SPED services in the states. He is high functioning and is a great writer. His 504 stipulates things like, longer time to take standardized assessments and the ability to move to quieter/calmer surroundings because that is the sort of thing that throws him off. He struggles collaborating with other students at times and so teachers have changed group projects to individual projects here and there for him.

He does have some issues with math but it tends to be just needing longer on tests - for example, last week he took a very "mathy" chemistry test that he didn't finish and his teacher sent it home with him - he finished at home with no help from us. His needs generally are more social than academic. His teachers always love him though because he follows rules, almost to a fault, and is never a problem in class.

He is at a stage where he does not like anyone to know he is autistic so, we would definitely not mention it at the outset.

I do think if the school was there to serve the local culture - he would really struggle so - I will pay close attention to that.
The quick pace and lots of homework mentioned - that would probably be the biggest hurdle I think for him at the other schools.

I definitely want to walk in with my eyes fully open into any situation so this is all great advice!

Thank you - Sorry it took me so long to reply I wound up being away from computer all weekend.

I will look into Search Associates right away. I also starting combing over past posts here - loads of helpful info!

Hello forum – We have decided that international schools are a step we want to take and are just getting out feet wet. Looking to start for the 2017-2018 school year. So, of course, this is a new world to us – and I have questions.

My husband comes from a background of teaching special education for years. Was a special ed coordinator in a huge district for 5 years. Next was an elementary school principal for 3 years . The school had a huge ESL group and he loved that. He is now a Special Education Director for the whole district.

He wants to go the administrative route so, question, what services are best for admin entering into the International School realm? It looks like job hunting for this must commence far earlier – is this true?

I am a bit more complicated. I taught with a vocational license for two years in middle and high school – technology. I started having babies and left, with the intention to come back and convert all that to a “real” teaching license. Didn’t happen because I got an amazing job with the Library of Congress developing curriculum (primarily for Social Studies) and creating PD for teachers. I fell in love with libraries and so now I have an MA in Educational Technology from before and an MLS (Masters in Library Science).

We moved to the mountains, here in Colorado, and I took a part time position teaching Social Studies – with a sub license currently.

So, my question – is there any chance that I could teach at an IS school rather than being considered a “dependent.” I have seen some interesting licensure options mentioned. I am just not sure I have the time to spend in a teacher’s classroom this next year, especially with the remote location we are in and my current responsibilities.

We have three kids– they will be 11th, 8th, and 4th grade if we do this in 2017. Oldest is high functioning Autistic so, while he does well and is an amazing kid, words like “rigor” freak us out for his sake. I am not sure that he would survive at some of the schools I have seen. He is on a 504 plan here so – he does well enough to not need special ed services but he does get some accommodations. Do the International Schools have any kids like this? How can you tell if a school may be better for a student with difficulties than others?