Hello,
I am writing this out of procrastination? Yes.
Question, out of curiosity: those of your that have taught in both domestic (US, Canadian, etc) schools and international schools, how does the overall workload compare?
Don't get me wrong, I am a total workaholic and will put in a ton of hours no matter what my workload. But I would like to be a workaholic so I can do a fantastic job, instead of being a workaholic just to stay afloat.
Please, soothe me.
Workload
Re: Workload
I taught for 15 years in Canada and am in my 14th year overseas and I would say the in school workload is about the same. When necessary I put the hours in and that didn't change when I moved overseas. Some differences I have noted are: I get paid to coach overseas while in Canada it was an expectation (though not rigourously enforced) with no pay, overseas I am expected to chaperone school trips (not a hardship, just a fact) and there are many more committees overseas almost to the point of ridiculousness and they all take time.
Response
It really depends what you consider "work". For some people work is anytime they have to be at school, for others work means doing something, sitting in meetings isnt really work to some people. Workload encompasses a broad spectrum, to describe some generalities:
Top tier schools tend to demand the most, but they are also paying the best. These schools are larger in general, and so you have larger classes and more students but fewer preps (since you teach more sections of the same class). Larger schools also have more administration so you have more meetings. A teacher who likes to make 1 or 2 really good lessons and then can keep them self entertained or occupied at meetings would probably be very comfortable with the workload. Top tier schools dont have much to prove, and so they dont have the ambition of mid tier schools.
Small schools tend to reply on their teaching staff to do everything, so you as a teacher are the school. You have fewer meetings but your going to have to do more at them or as a result of them. If there is a science fair even if you dont teach science your probably going to have to do something with it. Smaller schools also mean less marking since you have fewer students but your going to have more preps. If your one of 2 science teachers in a small secondary school one of you is going to do MYP 1-5 preps while the other is going to do the DIP preps, thats a lot of preps.
Bottom tier schools act like they have a lot going on (lots of curriculum design and collaboration) and your production tasks are higher (they have to get accredited) but you can slack on everything and do the minimum. There are a number of very experienced and credentialed teachers who prefer to work at lower tier schools because outside of delivering the lesson they dont have to do very much.
Mid tier schools are probably the hardest because they really want to rise to first tier status, and they dont want to drop down to third tier status. They cant coast like first tier schools, and arent content with being the money machine of bottom tier schools. This means work, and lots of it. What are you doing to improve your exam scores? How efficient are your lesson plans, can you get more out of instructional time? Do you have the right balance of push and pull, independent and peer work? How well are your lessons aligned to the curriculum, are you using enough descriptors from the learner profile/mission/vision/philosophy statements/goals? Whats your student/pastoral care contact? Are you collaborating? Have you made your parent contacts and communication? Mid tier schools are always working on something, and always have something to strive for, their like treading water after a sinking. You cant stop moving or you drown, and its a long, long way to shore.
Top tier schools tend to demand the most, but they are also paying the best. These schools are larger in general, and so you have larger classes and more students but fewer preps (since you teach more sections of the same class). Larger schools also have more administration so you have more meetings. A teacher who likes to make 1 or 2 really good lessons and then can keep them self entertained or occupied at meetings would probably be very comfortable with the workload. Top tier schools dont have much to prove, and so they dont have the ambition of mid tier schools.
Small schools tend to reply on their teaching staff to do everything, so you as a teacher are the school. You have fewer meetings but your going to have to do more at them or as a result of them. If there is a science fair even if you dont teach science your probably going to have to do something with it. Smaller schools also mean less marking since you have fewer students but your going to have more preps. If your one of 2 science teachers in a small secondary school one of you is going to do MYP 1-5 preps while the other is going to do the DIP preps, thats a lot of preps.
Bottom tier schools act like they have a lot going on (lots of curriculum design and collaboration) and your production tasks are higher (they have to get accredited) but you can slack on everything and do the minimum. There are a number of very experienced and credentialed teachers who prefer to work at lower tier schools because outside of delivering the lesson they dont have to do very much.
Mid tier schools are probably the hardest because they really want to rise to first tier status, and they dont want to drop down to third tier status. They cant coast like first tier schools, and arent content with being the money machine of bottom tier schools. This means work, and lots of it. What are you doing to improve your exam scores? How efficient are your lesson plans, can you get more out of instructional time? Do you have the right balance of push and pull, independent and peer work? How well are your lessons aligned to the curriculum, are you using enough descriptors from the learner profile/mission/vision/philosophy statements/goals? Whats your student/pastoral care contact? Are you collaborating? Have you made your parent contacts and communication? Mid tier schools are always working on something, and always have something to strive for, their like treading water after a sinking. You cant stop moving or you drown, and its a long, long way to shore.
Re: Workload
There are definitely more physical hours in international teaching, because you have to clock in and out at some schools.
In my government school in my home country I often put in whole weeks of my vacations sorting chem store rooms, mowing the agricultural plot (etc) but I did this because I wanted too, I wanted a good work environment (efficient, safe, pleasant, organised) for my team, and I decided when to do it.
In my recent IS experiences, I was often expected to hang around until a certain time. You had to be present, at the price of having pay docked. Sitting at a tidy desk was considered 'work'. Many admin staff spent time surfing social media etc. There was also an emphasis on 'pretty work', i.e., 'decorating classrooms' that I didn't value because, unless aimed at celebrating the work of students, this has little to do with education and learning.
Perhaps on balance, the workload is similar, but as a person who equates work with productivity, I would say my experiences in my home country had better outcomes.
In my government school in my home country I often put in whole weeks of my vacations sorting chem store rooms, mowing the agricultural plot (etc) but I did this because I wanted too, I wanted a good work environment (efficient, safe, pleasant, organised) for my team, and I decided when to do it.
In my recent IS experiences, I was often expected to hang around until a certain time. You had to be present, at the price of having pay docked. Sitting at a tidy desk was considered 'work'. Many admin staff spent time surfing social media etc. There was also an emphasis on 'pretty work', i.e., 'decorating classrooms' that I didn't value because, unless aimed at celebrating the work of students, this has little to do with education and learning.
Perhaps on balance, the workload is similar, but as a person who equates work with productivity, I would say my experiences in my home country had better outcomes.
Re: Workload
I'd say the workload is the same, but my time is split a lot differently. Back home, the majority of my time was spent on prepping, making materials, setting up displays and lessons, grading, managing, and planning how to manage my kids. Now some of the reason for it was that I was a young, new teacher, and some was because it was quite a challenging school for student behavior.
Overseas, I feel like a lot more of my time is devoted to a ton of different meetings. And a lot of time is devoted to things that have to do with the teacher leadership roles I've taken on. Now that I have more experience, I don't have to spend so much time planning. And I have a TA to do a lot of materials prep. Plus my kids take a language each day, in addition to art, music, PE, etc., which gives me an extra prep period I never had back home. Oh, and the kids are better behaved, so less time on classroom management.
Overseas, I feel like a lot more of my time is devoted to a ton of different meetings. And a lot of time is devoted to things that have to do with the teacher leadership roles I've taken on. Now that I have more experience, I don't have to spend so much time planning. And I have a TA to do a lot of materials prep. Plus my kids take a language each day, in addition to art, music, PE, etc., which gives me an extra prep period I never had back home. Oh, and the kids are better behaved, so less time on classroom management.
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chilagringa
- Posts: 335
- Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 7:19 pm
Re: Workload
Ah, kids with good behavior.
I'm in a somewhat dubious mid-year contract that the previous teacher quit suddenly because the kids were so badly behaved... so....... it's been interesting.
I'm in a somewhat dubious mid-year contract that the previous teacher quit suddenly because the kids were so badly behaved... so....... it's been interesting.
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shadowjack
- Posts: 2140
- Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:49 am
Re: Workload
Workload overseas has been better than at home, where as a secondary teacher at my last school I taught 4/4 one semester and 3 of 4 the next semester (which was pretty standard). So one semester I taught 6 hours a day and the other, 4 1/2 hours a day. Granted, I was very well compensated, even by Canadian standards, and it wasn't why I left.
My first overseas job I taught 2 hours and 40 minutes one day and 4 hours the next day (4x80 was the day). I thought I had died and gone to heaven.
Fortunately, I have not had a lot of discipline problems in my career - overseas or at home. I do, however, make sure I know all the rules so I can run the system at maximum efficiency when students do need to be disciplined. Makes it so much easier all around.
That said, I have worked with people who have told me some pretty amazing stories about student behaviour at their school!
My first overseas job I taught 2 hours and 40 minutes one day and 4 hours the next day (4x80 was the day). I thought I had died and gone to heaven.
Fortunately, I have not had a lot of discipline problems in my career - overseas or at home. I do, however, make sure I know all the rules so I can run the system at maximum efficiency when students do need to be disciplined. Makes it so much easier all around.
That said, I have worked with people who have told me some pretty amazing stories about student behaviour at their school!
Re: Workload
The workload is a lot lighter than when I taught in the US. However, in the US I was paid for running an afterschool program, at my IS it is expected and I am not paid for it. In the US, I had 50 mins. of prep time, a day, to myself. At my current IS, I have about 1.5 hours on average. During this time, I am able to mark all papers, plan, etc. In the US, it was not possible b/c at least 1 day a week was taken up by meetings and PD. However, I hear other teachers complain and say our school's workload is heavy and there is too much paperwork and non teaching related tasks. It's all relative, as another person said it just depends on what you consider work and what your previous school was like.