Working in Gülen/ Hizmet Movement schoools

[Iteach456]

Hello,

Heres a quick update on what it is.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%BClen_movement
http://truthinmedia.com/exclusive-fbi-w ... r-schools/
http://www.theatlantic.com/education/ar ... ic/375923/

I work at a school (not in the US) and I recently found out was part of this movement. We are run by Turkish and have very important Turkish people come to visit the school often who give us donations. It is not clear to the teachers what the actual purpose of the donations are. I was accidentally told by one of the staff members, and it is not publicly known, unless you do a good amount of searching on Google.

I was wondering if anyone else has experience working in these schools? I am really looking for a way out within the next year as I don't want to be a part of this movement.

[reelprincess]

Hi,

May I ask if you were paid on time. I have an interview with a "Gulen" (That's what a link on the internet is saying about it) school in Europe.

Thanks

[PsyGuy]

If you want a way out, its no different then an exit plan with any IS (unless your worried about some Turkish criminal element coming after you).

[coin_operated]

I have worked at such a school in Eastern Europe. I will never, ever work at one again. It would be one thing if members of the movement were on the board and hired staff who were competent and qualified regardless of background, but this is not the case. Senior management was entirely made up of Turkish Gulenites; these two qualities seemed more important for leadership than actual competence or qualifications.

Lots of teachers were Turkish Gulenities - some were good, most were terrible. They once had our English department train a Turkish English teacher whose English was so bad he asked me to repeat myself, an English teacher and native English speaker when I said, "Hi, I'm coin_operated, how are you?". When he attempted to teach a bottom set KS3 class the students were correcting his grammar. There was a Turkish teacher of the local language who would just let the kids do whatever he wanted while he stood awkwardly in the corner... But these teachers are never really sacked; if a teacher received enough complaints they were just moved to another Gulen school...

There was a constant low-level hostility between the Turkish staff and the foreign staff. This place had the lowest employee morale of anywhere I've worked. The management style was all about shows of power and authority and trying to swindle everything they could out of the (non-Turkish) teaching staff.

At best, you'll get an okay Tier 2 school where you'll be okay if you keep your head down and focus on the kids. At worst you'll get a terrible school with an administration that really screws you over. You'll have to do research on the individual school to suss it out.