Thank you everyone for your time in reading and responding to my posts.

Android,

International teaching is of great interest to me. I firmly believe that this where I belong, professionally speaking.
[u]What I learned from being here in Central America is that I will never work in another under-developed nation again. [/u]

I have lived in Japan, South Korea, eastern and western Europe previously and enjoyed the experience, which is the reason why I would like to secure a teaching position in these locations.

As a reminder, I left my post in South Korea, but I did not find teaching English as a foreign language challenging and I wanted to teach within my certification area as a homeroom class teacher. I enjoyed my time there, but I was unhappy with the work I did.

Yes, I am well aware that I have been hopping around from country to country. I do not like it. I would like to stay with a school long term in one of my desired countries.

Sure, I knew that Central America has many social issues (crime, poor infrastructure, poverty, etc.) before I signed my contract. I was hesitant, but decided I would bite the bullet and signed it because I needed the experience and told myself: "I will be open minded and give Central America a try. I'm sure it is not all that bad."
Well, here I am and it is really BAD. I really did try my best and gave this nation a fair chance. The school is great, though.

Hopefully, I will secure a new position at the San Francisco fair.

Thank you for your insight, PsyGuy.

I am not completing the second year with my current school because
the quality of life here is poor. As a female, I am concerned for my safety. I am trying my best to stay positive and finish up this year.

On the contrary, teaching is my calling and I am great at what I do! I have been praised by the entire school community (administrators, parents and students) for my passion, enthusiasm, teaching efficacy and professionalism.
I have also received stellar teacher evaluations from my administrators.
I have so much I could offer to a school, but schools do not see that because they just want a teacher with x amount years of experience.

I am not interested in American public schools. Private school positions are almost non-existent. Upon completing my Masters program, I had a strong ambition to teach abroad at an international school in my desired locations, however, I did get that lucky break. So I accepted the English position with a local South Korean primary school. I was not happy with the position as I felt the work to be unchallenging and so I left. Here I am in Central America working at a great international school and learning a great deal! The problem is the unattractive and dangerous location. The poor quality of life is taking its toll on my body and mind. Frankly, I feel depressed here. In school, I put on my "happy mask" and when I head home, I often catch myself crying.

I am not concerned with the "tier system" of schools. I simply am trying to work for a school in a location that suits me best, i.e., Japan, Korea, Eastern and Western Europe.

Thank you again and I will update.

Hello everyone,

I would like to know what my chances are in securing a new teaching position for the next school year in my desired locations Japan, Korea, Eastern and Western Europe.

I am currently an elementary school (homeroom) teacher at an international school in Central America. I will not be returning for the second year of my contract. Yes, I am "breaking" my contract, however, the head of the school will "release" me from the contract upon mutual agreement via a written statement. I will also be receiving stellar references from my supervisors.

I am American, have a Masters degree in Elementary Education and have taught English in South Korea at a local primary school for one year.

I am registering with Search Associates and would like to attend the Cambridge fair, but my recruiter recommends the San Francisco fair or the Maryland fair in June, instead. I am not fond of the locations that seem to dominate these fairs such as the Middle East and Latin America.

I have been contacting the heads of schools directly and received mostly generic emails such as "Thank you for your interest in XYZ School. You will be contacted should your qualifications match our needs ..." or "We have not determined our staffing needs, yet."

Additionally, I am subscribed to TIE Online and will be registering with QSI (Quality Schools International).

I would like to know whether there is anything else I should be doing to secure a position next year in my desired locations (Korea, Japan, Eastern and Western Europe) or should I just give up and leave the international scene? I just feel like it is extremely difficult to find a position in my top locations due to my limited experience.

Any advice is greatly appreciated, especially from poster PsyGuy.
Thank you, everyone!

If offered a great teaching position in Tokyo, would you accept it despite the radiation risks?

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this forum and would much appreciate your thoughts and suggestions regarding my situation:

I have a bachelor's degree in English Literature and a Master's degree in Elementary Education. Since receiving certification, I decided to pursue my teaching career abroad. I really wanted to work at an international school due to the fact that English is the language of instruction, however, I lacked teaching/international experience. Fortunately, upon graduating from my graduate program, I was offered a position to teach English as a Foreign Language at a public primary school in South Korea for a year. Although I had a great overall experience, I declined to return for another year because I found the work unchallenging and most importantly, I desired to teach in my certification area (general education, grades 1-6) in my native tongue, English.

I returned to the States last month and have started to send resumes out to international schools that pique my interest. Scandinavia and Japan are my top countries.

With my limited teaching experience, how difficult would it be for me to secure a position for 2011-12? I notice that numerous schools request a minimum of two years experience. Does having a Master's degree help me? Does experience always trump education and/or talent?

Also, I heard that some schools demonstrate a bias toward hiring "Westerners" or Caucasians. Is there truth to this?

Thank you very much in advance!


:D