Howdy. I have been interested in pursuing a career in international school teaching for a while and have finally taken the step to get certified through the TeacherReady program. Looking for some advice from those who have gone through the program or know someone who has.
Just a little background on myself- I am a US citizen living in the USA working in a non-teaching job. I have a BA in English and am interested in getting certified to teach English at the middle or high school (grades 6-12) level. I did take a TESOL course in China many years ago, and spent 2 years in South Africa in the Peace Corps (2005-07) training primary school teachers. I've also taken 15 hours of undergrad education classes (intro to ed, human growth and development, special education, multicultural ed, technology in the classroom). I’m not married and have no dependents.
At the moment, I realize I am not qualified for International Schools. I can and may need to work on the program through a school in the States. Still, I’d prefer to do the course work while working at an international school since that is where I would like to eventually teach. From those who have gone through Teacher Ready, any suggestions on how to get my foot in the door at an IS even though I have no experience or certification? I peruse the vacancies on CIS, TIE, and School Spring. Does contacting schools directly work? I’m open to working anywhere in the world; developing countries are not a problem for me. From what I’ve read in these forums, schools in developing countries may be more receptive to hiring someone in my shoes?
Thanks!
TeacherReady program advice
Reply
A couple ideas:
1) Find out where a school head has the bodies buried.
2) Sleeping or getting married to someone in a schools senior administration.
3) Blackmail/Extortion
4) Becoming a famous celebrity
5) Marrying someone in the royal family
6) Being adopted by someone in the schools local or national government
7) Create a sizable standing army or start a banana republic/dictatorship
8) Making a sizable monetary donation to the schools endowment.
9) Find a school that hires inexperienced and unqualified teachers.
10) Build your own school.
The typical bar to entry is 2 years of post certification experience. You have nothing, the only teaching your qualified to do is teaching ELL. Your best bet is looking for schools with internship programs, and working with an agency, SA (Search Associates) has a program, but there are other agencies as well. Your very likely to find your self in a third tier school somewhere, probably in Asia or the ME. Its a coin flip whether your experience is positive or a nightmare. The other option is you find a school to do your fieldwork at, while working in the ELL market on the side.
1) Find out where a school head has the bodies buried.
2) Sleeping or getting married to someone in a schools senior administration.
3) Blackmail/Extortion
4) Becoming a famous celebrity
5) Marrying someone in the royal family
6) Being adopted by someone in the schools local or national government
7) Create a sizable standing army or start a banana republic/dictatorship
8) Making a sizable monetary donation to the schools endowment.
9) Find a school that hires inexperienced and unqualified teachers.
10) Build your own school.
The typical bar to entry is 2 years of post certification experience. You have nothing, the only teaching your qualified to do is teaching ELL. Your best bet is looking for schools with internship programs, and working with an agency, SA (Search Associates) has a program, but there are other agencies as well. Your very likely to find your self in a third tier school somewhere, probably in Asia or the ME. Its a coin flip whether your experience is positive or a nightmare. The other option is you find a school to do your fieldwork at, while working in the ELL market on the side.
I am doing the TR program now while teaching esl in Korea.
Not sure you will find what your looking for.
My advice would be to sell your stuff and head abroad to teach ESL and do the TR program on the side. Will be finished in 7-9 months.
Then try to get the best job you can after you get certified.
Not sure you will find what your looking for.
My advice would be to sell your stuff and head abroad to teach ESL and do the TR program on the side. Will be finished in 7-9 months.
Then try to get the best job you can after you get certified.
Re: Reply
PsyGuy, LOL! I like the internship idea as a way to complete the TeacherReady program. I will get in touch with Search Associates regarding this. The worst they can say, I suppose, is "call us back when you have completed the program and have 2 years of experience".
Pretty straight forward. There is like 6 lessons. Each lesson you have a month to complete the 12-15 assignments. Then for the last lesson / month you are to teach for a week in your mentors class. In each lesson you have your field assignments to do at your school. I still havent gotten placed yet so I will have to go back and finish those assignments I missed.
[quote="CaliPro"]Pretty straight forward. There is like 6 lessons. Each lesson you have a month to complete the 12-15 assignments. Then for the last lesson / month you are to teach for a week in your mentors class. In each lesson you have your field assignments to do at your school. I still havent gotten placed yet so I will have to go back and finish those assignments I missed.[/quote]
CaliPro, thank you for sharing your experience with the program so far. I like the fact that there is some flexibility about doing the field assignments and working with a mentor teacher. That is a relief to hear it all doesn't have to be set up on day one of the program. At any rate, sounds like I'll be busy. I'm looking forward to starting and getting certified.
CaliPro, thank you for sharing your experience with the program so far. I like the fact that there is some flexibility about doing the field assignments and working with a mentor teacher. That is a relief to hear it all doesn't have to be set up on day one of the program. At any rate, sounds like I'll be busy. I'm looking forward to starting and getting certified.
[quote="sangster2"]How come you were training primary teachers in South Africa when you aren't a teacher yourself?[/quote]
A good question, I'm not sure I know what the answer is. The ways of the Peace Corps are mysterious? From my limited experience, I think it's fairly common for the Peace Corps to take people who aren't experts in a field, give them a little training, and put them at a site. Maybe not in all types of projects, but with some. In our group, I'd say less than a quarter were certified as teachers. Of those, some were middle/secondary, not elementary.
Our project involved training teachers to implement an outcomes based education curriculum to replace the apartheid era Bantu system. Lesson planning, classroom management, alternatives to corporal punishment were some of the areas we worked on. Oddly enough, I just did an internet search and read that South Africa abandoned OBE in 2010.
http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2010 ... -come-back
A good question, I'm not sure I know what the answer is. The ways of the Peace Corps are mysterious? From my limited experience, I think it's fairly common for the Peace Corps to take people who aren't experts in a field, give them a little training, and put them at a site. Maybe not in all types of projects, but with some. In our group, I'd say less than a quarter were certified as teachers. Of those, some were middle/secondary, not elementary.
Our project involved training teachers to implement an outcomes based education curriculum to replace the apartheid era Bantu system. Lesson planning, classroom management, alternatives to corporal punishment were some of the areas we worked on. Oddly enough, I just did an internet search and read that South Africa abandoned OBE in 2010.
http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2010 ... -come-back
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chilagringa
- Posts: 335
- Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 7:19 pm
Try Mexico. Besides the top tier schools (such as the American School or Greengates in DF), most of the schools don't give a rat's ass about your certifications. Check out all the schools listed on the IB website. Most will pay decently. They won't exactly be "international" though - mostly rich Mexicans.
[quote="chilagringa"]Try Mexico. Besides the top tier schools (such as the American School or Greengates in DF), most of the schools don't give a rat's ass about your certifications. Check out all the schools listed on the IB website. Most will pay decently. They won't exactly be "international" though - mostly rich Mexicans.[/quote]
Thanks, Chilagringa. I had not found that IB website before; it is in my bookmarks now, though! Extremely useful resource there.
I have visited Mexico several times (done some scuba diving in Cozumel and Zihuatanejo, as well as visited many Mayan ruin sites in southern Mexico), like it quite well, enjoy breaking out my basic Spanish knowledge, and would consider living and working there.
I'm intrigued/encouraged to hear that schools in DF would be willing to consider hiring someone such as myself who is not yet qualified nor experienced. From reading other posts you've made about schools in DF, some of the schools sound like decent/good options. At least not horrible, considering my circumstances. I'll have to focus more on DF and/or Mexico for my first post.
Thanks, Chilagringa. I had not found that IB website before; it is in my bookmarks now, though! Extremely useful resource there.
I have visited Mexico several times (done some scuba diving in Cozumel and Zihuatanejo, as well as visited many Mayan ruin sites in southern Mexico), like it quite well, enjoy breaking out my basic Spanish knowledge, and would consider living and working there.
I'm intrigued/encouraged to hear that schools in DF would be willing to consider hiring someone such as myself who is not yet qualified nor experienced. From reading other posts you've made about schools in DF, some of the schools sound like decent/good options. At least not horrible, considering my circumstances. I'll have to focus more on DF and/or Mexico for my first post.
[quote="sangster2"]The Peace Corp obviously doesn't seem to think you need to know much to be a teacher. Is it just a matter of having white skin so automatically we know more than the Africans?....[/quote]
Hey, sangster2. Hopefully I have not inadvertently opened a can of worms. And I hope I'm not digging deeper any hole I may have already dug. I definitely do not intend to hijack this thread and turn it into a discussion about the Peace Corps.
In my experience, I don't see the intentions of the Peace Corps as being to insult people who are professionals in a field or to advance white supremacy. Aside from the project work, there are 2 other goals of the Peace Corps that involve cultural exchange which I see as positive. If nothing else, it is in these 2 areas where volunteers generally succeed. Whether any of this is effective, a good idea, or a wise use of taxpayer money or people's time is certainly up for debate.
Hey, sangster2. Hopefully I have not inadvertently opened a can of worms. And I hope I'm not digging deeper any hole I may have already dug. I definitely do not intend to hijack this thread and turn it into a discussion about the Peace Corps.
In my experience, I don't see the intentions of the Peace Corps as being to insult people who are professionals in a field or to advance white supremacy. Aside from the project work, there are 2 other goals of the Peace Corps that involve cultural exchange which I see as positive. If nothing else, it is in these 2 areas where volunteers generally succeed. Whether any of this is effective, a good idea, or a wise use of taxpayer money or people's time is certainly up for debate.
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chilagringa
- Posts: 335
- Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 7:19 pm
Try the following schools in DF:
Churchill
Edron
Eton
Modern American School
Colegio Ciudad de Mexico
Colegio Williams
Colegio Peterson
These schools will probably hire without certification (they range from my knowing for a fact they take teachers without certification, to I think so from hearsay.)
From what I know, they range from great to tolerable places to work. The range of pay is great to enough to live on decently.
Churchill
Edron
Eton
Modern American School
Colegio Ciudad de Mexico
Colegio Williams
Colegio Peterson
These schools will probably hire without certification (they range from my knowing for a fact they take teachers without certification, to I think so from hearsay.)
From what I know, they range from great to tolerable places to work. The range of pay is great to enough to live on decently.
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chilagringa
- Posts: 335
- Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 7:19 pm