I think this is easy. Go with what is best for your family. You have not signed anything. Your life situation changed. Do you really want to hurt your family because you said yes mere hours before something else came through. No one can judge what you are going through. No contract signed, take the second offer. A polite email saying your family situation has taken a turn over the last week and you will no longer be able to accept the position. Someone might get upset, it might hurt you in the long run somewhere (doubtful) but your child and family is more important than their moralistic approval!

I know 2 people who have done this sucessfully. 1 has a masters in tesol. The other got 2 years after making contacts through an internship. If you can get into a school as a teacher, with a teaching degree, in 2 years you have really "broken in" and are no longer in the cycle of ESL.

I know many people that hit that 10 year limit of uni in Korea and see they are going nowhere else. As long as you keep getting a job, and can get enough privates, it is decent money. You just feel like a rat in a cage.

DP results are fantastic. 7 students scoring 45's last year is amazing!

Met the HOS at BKK, thought he was odd. Definitely an academic program. Does that fit who you are as a teacher? Some DP teachers are highly academic, some are inspirational. All types are needed, that is what "fit" is all about.

Keep calm, keep focused, talk to others in the lounge, great contacts are made this way! Be sure to keep enough time between interviews! You never know when that 1/2 hour runs into 45 minutes or an hour and you miss part of the next one. Stay confident. I have seen the best candidates I met at fairs get turned down for interviews for seemingly insane reasons. Recruiters have agendas and parameters along with 500 resumes! Your good, that is why you are there, sell yourself. Choose wisely. It is just February, it is not desperate season!

Good luck!!!

What subject? There is no universal publisher who everyone uses and loves across all subjects.

You want to learn about IB quick and dirty? Download the syllabus, and get one of the study guides ( not the ib approved ones! They are good at test prep only imho, and about 10usd only) and go over unit by unit. You can see the general depth and breadth in that way fairly quickly.

I assume you will continue with your card playing career. If it is being conducted online, be sure that you can continue to do so where you relocate. Having your accounts set up is key. You want to be able to remove money from that account.

Also sounds like your wife has been out of teaching for some time, that might also concern schools beyond the kids and yourself. Remember also not everyone is intp "cards" for a living...

Daves is ok for free but they specialize in esl, much better to pay the small fee for joyjobs and tieonline! Cheap compared to the overall amount of info you get. I would not pay for ISS or search unless you have several years of recent experience. CoIS would also be excellent.

Good lck!

1. Are you sure it is 12k? Many schools increase for teaching couples, but they do not double the housing allowance!

2. Are you both making 21k per month? If so you will be pulling 7k USD. This is pretty good, unless you are talking before tax numbers. The tax in different cities varies, but you can expect 15-20% in general in China. That will be bringing in @ 65-70k USD a year for 2 people. In general that is kind of low for China. It is not low for many other places.

3. Where do you want to travel for your holidays? This will be your biggest expense behind food. Think about spring and fall trips in China, maybe Thailand or Philippines beaches for Christmas/CNY and home for the summers only. Or stay cations exploring Shanghai!

4. Food. As mentioned before, shop as much as you can at the large Chinese supermarkets (or get a good Ayi who does that for you) and occasionally splurge on some high end western items at the trendy western outlets.

5. Entertain friends in the home, and drink Tsindao instead of imports and all should fair ok.

6. Sending home 2.5k USD a month is really going to depend on 1. If you have to pay tax, 2. How much you travel, and 3 how you eat.

Good luck!

Psychbean... Yes

Calcioderigore... Also yes

One side good, other side recovering. Guy in charge (Simon) seems to be on the right path. Didn't feel it was right for me.

I just wanted a discussion of a topic I thought had multiple angles and view points. This is a message board that I believe has the aim of helping teachers. This is something that has hit close to home for me, and for other people I know, and having an anonymous forum of discussion allows people to maybe speak more freely from the heart. I think it is cool and interesting that there have been responses covering the whole gamit of what could be done, and how it would be perceived. I am personally bored with, hey do you know about this school topics, which are also VERY helpful. A good socratic dialogue leader requires the ability to oppose even points which you might see as "more" valid. Stir the pot, beat the hive, whatever you call it, eventually interesting things come out and there is a thread that keeps me coming back.... : ). Thanks for seeing my passion heyteach!

Sid, while I highly respect your insight and comments as a recruiter and an administrator, I also think there is the other side of the coin that could be looked at. Of course it is troublesome and tiresome that you would have to recruit again, but don't you believe that the person would have to have and extremely compelling reason to break such a contract. It might be like the situation I described above, where a job presents itself that just propels that individual right where they want to go, and just because you happen to have been there first and they felt scared something better might never arrive, professionalism alone would cause them to miss what might be a HUGE opportunity. It isn't the best thing, but I don't think making that decision defines an individual. Also it could be that life circumstance just simply changes. Mother gets very ill, wife dies etc. etc. and the person just doesn't feel they can or should start the contract. Of course it isn't like you will be bff's but the world is large, and there is always another way to look at things.

It was my least favorite interview in BKK. The guy I talked to had just come in March, and although he seemed competent, the whole of the program seemed in disarray. This was the AP side of things (i think, I was very unimpressed!) I was so unimpressed I told him right there that I was not interested in pursuing the position any further. It seemed like a mess! They wanted me to teach a section of AP, 10th grade, and 2 6th grade sections. I asked why? Would I want to do that? Apparently the best answer was because that was how it had been done before.... All downhill from there!

Many countries require 2 years experience post certification to get a visa. You can do it stateside, or abroad if you find a position. Only a few schools south of the border will help you chop down the debt. The middle east can help you save, but also look into China. Plenty of lower tier schools that pay well enough, and a pretty good life taboot! You also might be able to forgo that 2 years experience, or they might count your other experiences in order to get a visa. Most of these places are for profit, so a cheap new teacher is high on their agenda. There are always opportunities, it is just the amount of nonsense you are willing to suffer. Lots of post re very similar to yours. Take a few hours to cruise through this board.. You will learn a lot!!

I have had an offer rescinded. I was in complete agreement with them taking it back as the parameters changed and it would have not been suitable for me to take it. I see and understand where you are drawing a line in the sand. I also see that if something were to present itself and it is just better for your career, damn the signature. Such a slippery slope. I am really enjoying the insights to this possible scenario.

It sounds to me like you need to have a sit-down with your principal. A good one will understand when you say you are still interested in teaching internationally, and will support you to a point. You should just determine that point. Say April 1st. If you have not found a position by then, you stay. Then come the fall you start your search in earnest and go for the 15-16 school year.

That would be my approach anyway...

Interesting points have been brought up. Let's deal with those. The contacting of references. If you speak to your references and inform them, it is quite possible they would not let the cat out of the bag. The network of international educators though, that would be a killer one!

I think the safest way is to not interview. The best way however would be the amount of risk an individual is willing to take. I think if you truly felt this was "the opportunity" you have been wanting, it might be worth it to throw caution to the wind and go for it. Every individual would have to weigh that based on their situation and the assessment of all the variables.

Personally I would take the interview and talk to my references letting them know how the opportunity was worth the risk. If it so happened you receive an offer, then it is all about numbers. A good old Ben Franklin to the rescue! Draw up those plusses and minuses and let the chips fall. The next 20-30 years make up your career, might as well go for the shot when it is presented. I definitely hear the "just say no" argument though!

Interesting