Where is the least stressful country/place to teach?

[dragonguy]

Just looking for some opinions from all you experienced International educators. I know there are lots of factors and every school in every country is different but, in general are there countries/schools that have a good reputation for the following?: reasonable workload & after school meeting/responsibilities, small class sizes, length of school day/year might be a little shorter, hardworking and/or respectful students, and enjoyable co-workers. Obliviously whatever the country has to offer outside of the school day is important too. I don't think I'd ever be able to live in a compound.
I’ve read some posts about on this site about salary/package rankings. My question is less about that and more about living the easy life.
I'm not super concerned with $$$. I’m just fantasizing about where a good location would be to wrap up my career. I've made good choices with my financial planning.
My experience is mostly in the U.S. at a Title 1 inner urban school with 95% of students receiving free or reduced lunch. I did that for many years and it was challenging but rewarding (I don't think I have it in me to do a job like that when I’m 60). I'm new to International teaching, I’m now in Korea and very happy. Probably like most International Schools, in terms of workload, it's heavier in some ways, lighter in others (compared to US schools).
Lighter: Smaller classes, and typically fewer teaching blocks, and very self-motivated students. Heavier: workload in terms of expectations, supervisory duty, expectations to coach and things like that. It's a trade-off. This is a great job too but I'm guessing in a few years I'll desire a change of pace. When I'm done with this I'll have 20+ years and I’ll have the resume and IT experience to have lots of choices; I realize this career is in some ways always going to be difficult, I’m looking to make the last 5-10 years a little more chill. Is that possible?
If it helps you answer my question I'm a happily single male, no kids. I tried marriage once and I wasn't very good at it. I'm open to almost any location, I do have a few places in mind but I'd like to hear people’s opinions before sharing what I'm thinking.

[higgsboson]

Dragonguy - I think I have the PERFECT school for you. Its a complete dawdle, the ultimate big easy:
Shenyang Pacific International Academy in beautiful Shenyang, China!

1. The most respectful students you can imagine. They are by and large on the lazy side, but very pleasant and friendly.
2. An average class size of about 6. My largest class has 11 students and my smallest class has 4 students.
3. The workload is ridiculously light. I teach four 40-minutes classes per day - that's it! You are required to lead two after school activities per week, one hour each but its a dawdle.
4. I know you said you didn't care but the money is good - in the range of $50,000 per year tax free plus free housing and free medical.

[Micky]

In regards to workload, I am with a QSI school and have a small class and the workload is quite light. I am in a small school and this year 2 of my fellow teachers had only 2 students each in their classes. In regards to location though, they have schools in some not so common locations. Another thing you should keep in mind is your age, many countries like China, have age limits and schools also often discriminate against older teachers. QSI does not. Salaries are reasonable and health insurance is the probably one of the best out there. Good Luck

[nikkor]

It sounds like Higgs nailed it on this one. Not bad at all.

[shadowjack]

Shenyang Pacific Academy had their director leave to start a school in Laos. It's enrollment is tiny - and it is a private school, not really for profit, because the owner has not made any money off of it. With that small number of kids, at some point the owner is going to finally say, "Why am I doing this?" and throw in the towel. Or...he is going to make his teachers work harder, jump through more hoops, and toe more lines - at which point HB will pull out.

Yes, I was offered a job. No, I didn't accept. It was a good choice, but I appreciated the offer - and the honesty of the director at the time!

[higgsboson]

ShadowJack - you are right that the owner is loosing money hand over fist and will probably do so for some time to come but he continues to invest in the school and is actively recruiting new teachers for next year. I don't see him closing down this school any time soon. Certainly, SPIA will be here next year. Teachers speculate it will be here at least through 2016/2017 school year - enough time for the current grade 9 students to graduate.

Bear in mind that the owner, Mr. Hou, is not a poor - he is a billionaire! Who knows why the incredibly rich do what they do, but one thing is for sure, the job is incredibly easy, well paid and stress free.

I just don't understand why they are having such problems recruiting new teachers.

[redrider]

dragonguy, South America is known for some of the characteristics you refer to: shorter school day, lighter expectations, more laid back in general. Whether the students are motivated or well behaved probably depends on the school. My bets are that you are likely to see better behavior than the average US inner-city school, but not likely to find the motivation that is part of Korean culture in a SA school with other lax expectations of its teachers. Pay is reputed to be not good to horrible, although some teachers go there after they have saved their 'pensions' so to speak, and 'retire' (working) there, when they are not worried about money. You can find a lot more about South America in general and specific countries in particular on the TES forum.

Of course, there are exceptions to all of this, a little bit of research would show you the few well-paying (but more demanding) schools in SA.

[Rover]

The better paying schools in Latin America tend to be in the more stressful places to live in. The big cities, essentially, and often they are the capitals. So, there you have the traffic to deal with, pollution etc. Sao Paulo, Bogota, Santiago, Caracas, Lima, Mexico City etc etc. So...it's a bit of a mix.