So my wife and I are deciding between staying in CO or going back overseas and I'm wondering if I should even try given my situation. Any thoughts would be helpful. Thank you in advance.
I have an elem teaching license and 9 years teaching experience My wife is Chinese w/ a green card and just got her CO teaching license this year. She's certified to teach Chinese k-12 and English 6th -12 grade. We have one son who is 2 1/2
Here's my career and my wife's career in a nutshell
1st year teaching reading in a school in co left b/c I wanted to be closer to my hometown
2nd year teaching GT in a different school in CO left b/c I wanted to go overseas
5 years teaching at a QSI in China 2nd grade
1 year as a full time sub back in CO while my wife taught Chinese at a private school.
1 year teaching in a small town in CO 2nd grade left b/c it was a one year only position
1 year (this year) ELL Coordinator and ELL teacher in CO
As far as I know, I've left on good terms in all my schools
My Wife taught Chinese 6 years at QSI and 1 yr private school in CO and this is her second year teaching Chinese at a public school in CO
For financial reasons we would prefer to go back overseas Since I've moved so much though I'm wondering if anyone would bother hiring me. We're okay with third tier but since we have a son we have to go to a school that would at least be okay for our child's education.
Do I have a chance or should I just suck it up and stay in CO?
Do I have a chance
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eion_padraig
- Posts: 408
- Joined: Sat Dec 11, 2010 8:18 pm
Re: Do I have a chance
A teaching couple with one dependent isn't overly problematic from what I've seen. I'm guessing you are male (granted there are same-sex married couple these days so that assumption may be incorrect), and I've heard from several people that male elementary (particularly earlier elementary) are valued.
Finding good Chinese teachers who use best practices in teaching is pretty tough. I think your wife is probably the one who should be in the lead for jobs. What grade level has she taught? Can she teach IB Chinese Language and Literature class type material as well as Chinese language learner subjects? Does she have IB experience?
Do you have PYP experience? That would make you more competitive.
Even if neither of you have IB experience, I think you could have some success. I think getting IB experience is something I would prioritize getting if I were you for marketability.
On a side note, Is your wife planning on applying for US citizenship? How much longer would it take before she can apply? I know it used to be 3 years as long as the person was still married to a US citizen. Having US citizenship (if she wants to get it) can make things a lot easier for travel if you're living abroad and it may even impact where she can get a work visa. I've been through this process, so I know what a hassle it is and my sense was it's harder to do if she is living outside the US and is trying to apply for citizenship.
Good luck.
Eion
Finding good Chinese teachers who use best practices in teaching is pretty tough. I think your wife is probably the one who should be in the lead for jobs. What grade level has she taught? Can she teach IB Chinese Language and Literature class type material as well as Chinese language learner subjects? Does she have IB experience?
Do you have PYP experience? That would make you more competitive.
Even if neither of you have IB experience, I think you could have some success. I think getting IB experience is something I would prioritize getting if I were you for marketability.
On a side note, Is your wife planning on applying for US citizenship? How much longer would it take before she can apply? I know it used to be 3 years as long as the person was still married to a US citizen. Having US citizenship (if she wants to get it) can make things a lot easier for travel if you're living abroad and it may even impact where she can get a work visa. I've been through this process, so I know what a hassle it is and my sense was it's harder to do if she is living outside the US and is trying to apply for citizenship.
Good luck.
Eion
Re: Do I have a chance
you bounced around a lot in colorado but overseas it seemed like you stayed put for a while. that is a good thing. if you have PYP experience that's good as previous poster said, but you can still get jobs without it.
best of luck!
v.
best of luck!
v.
Re: Do I have a chance
Thank you very much for the feedback V and Eion. It really helps My wife has taught k-12 Chinese and can teach literature. She prefers high school and middle school. Neither of us has IB experience. We will make sure to focus on getting experience with that. Thanks again for your advice.
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shadowjack
- Posts: 2140
- Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:49 am
Re: Do I have a chance
Coolpapa,
are you an inquiry-based teacher? Do you structure small tutorials and teaching moments within PBL? Do you individualize and use formative assessment to guide student learning? Have you ever done interdisciplinary units?
These are all the IB buzzwords these days, so even if you haven't taught IB, if you are an advocate for the systems/approaches mentioned above, then you would be a good fit for an IB school.
Shad
are you an inquiry-based teacher? Do you structure small tutorials and teaching moments within PBL? Do you individualize and use formative assessment to guide student learning? Have you ever done interdisciplinary units?
These are all the IB buzzwords these days, so even if you haven't taught IB, if you are an advocate for the systems/approaches mentioned above, then you would be a good fit for an IB school.
Shad
Response
In general ISs do not have issues when the traveler/employee issue is 1:1, an IT couple with one dependent is not going to be a problem especially considering that your child is only 2.5 and wont need a place in the IS.
Your spouse has several complicating issues. The advantage they have is that Mandarin is a very difficult language to find outside of Chinese speaking regions. The disadvantages are first, that with a residence permit (green card) and not citizenship their immigration eligibility will be based on their Chinese passport and citizenship. Second, they dont fit the demographic image that a lot of especially lower tier ISs want.
Your QSI experience is solid, and IE cares little about mobility within DE, its not an issue.
Your spouse has several complicating issues. The advantage they have is that Mandarin is a very difficult language to find outside of Chinese speaking regions. The disadvantages are first, that with a residence permit (green card) and not citizenship their immigration eligibility will be based on their Chinese passport and citizenship. Second, they dont fit the demographic image that a lot of especially lower tier ISs want.
Your QSI experience is solid, and IE cares little about mobility within DE, its not an issue.