Tier 1 Schools Vs Horses for Courses
Posted: Sun Sep 20, 2015 5:31 am
Hi All,
As the forum has been a bit threadbare in the last couple of weeks - I've decided to write a general post which may or may not be helpful to newer people coming into International Teaching. If you have something to add - please do.
At present, when I look at new schools I normally have 4 main things I look for (mainly 3 for me) which decides if I want to stay at a school. They are in no particular order
(1) Am I happy with the school? (do they treat staff well? do decisions make sense? is there enough resources? etc)
(2) Am I happy with my life outside of school? (are staff friendly outside of school? is there stuff to do outside of school? is there a larger expat community to make friends with? is life easy? is housing and other amenities good? etc)
(3) Am I happy with the kids and subjects I teach? (the question states it all - but I've found in most places kids are kids)
(4) Do I get paid enough to live comfortably and do what I want to do? (the lowest on the four of my list - but I don't apply for schools where I can't live well and travel a reasonable amount)
The only reason I bring up this list is at current I'm at what would be considered a solid Tier 2 school and often get asked why on earth did I leave one of my previous jobs which is seen as a Tier 1 school? For me - I've started to realise it's more about living in a school that suits you - not just looking for the highest paying job or most prestigious school possible.
In relation to choosing if a school is right for you before you get there - it's difficult as there is only so much you can find out before you get there.
As the forum has been a bit threadbare in the last couple of weeks - I've decided to write a general post which may or may not be helpful to newer people coming into International Teaching. If you have something to add - please do.
At present, when I look at new schools I normally have 4 main things I look for (mainly 3 for me) which decides if I want to stay at a school. They are in no particular order
(1) Am I happy with the school? (do they treat staff well? do decisions make sense? is there enough resources? etc)
(2) Am I happy with my life outside of school? (are staff friendly outside of school? is there stuff to do outside of school? is there a larger expat community to make friends with? is life easy? is housing and other amenities good? etc)
(3) Am I happy with the kids and subjects I teach? (the question states it all - but I've found in most places kids are kids)
(4) Do I get paid enough to live comfortably and do what I want to do? (the lowest on the four of my list - but I don't apply for schools where I can't live well and travel a reasonable amount)
The only reason I bring up this list is at current I'm at what would be considered a solid Tier 2 school and often get asked why on earth did I leave one of my previous jobs which is seen as a Tier 1 school? For me - I've started to realise it's more about living in a school that suits you - not just looking for the highest paying job or most prestigious school possible.
In relation to choosing if a school is right for you before you get there - it's difficult as there is only so much you can find out before you get there.