The International Schools Review Forum

Hi, Are there any Art teachers using this forum who are embarking on teaching internationally or are already teaching overseas? I am just starting to explore the idea of teaching abroad and need some advice please. I have a (non- teaching) spouse and 1 year old and 15 years of experience of teaching Art to Y 3-13 in the UK. I am secondary trained but have had 4 years experience of teaching Art in Primary schools as well. Does this mean I could apply for Elementary Art jobs? There seems to be a lot more of them than middle and High school positions available. So far I have just applied for Secondary level. If anyone can provide any advice on the above, experiences and recruitment advice please get in touch. Thank you!

Im assuming you have QTS, but in IE an art IT is an all grade/all level/whole school art IT. If you can teach drawing, painting, ceramics and some art history and theory, it doesnt matter from a qualification standpoint what you have done recently. Since you have classroom experience in both secondary and primary levels of teaching art, you are considered qualified to teach art to anyone in KS/K12 education. You can certainly apply for elementary/primary art teaching vacancies.

You will likely face some logistical issues as you have a spouse and a dependent, though not at school age yet, you are a more expensive hire.

Thanks for the reply I was feeling a bit lonely. Yes I have QTS and have a PGCE with experience of primary and secondary. I had a second interview recently and lost out to a teaching couple :(

You can absolutely apply for and are qualified for elementary art positions. Understand though that many more of them may be art on a cart, etc.

Understand youre asking an IS even without a place exemption or fee waiver to travel 3 people, house them, secure their entry documents, insure them and everything else that goes into expatriating 3 people to fill one art classroom. Thats a harder sell than a single or IT couple, why pay more for drawing and sculpture.

Hi there, welcome aboard! Yes - you can probably guess from my name on here that I'm an art teacher. You will be able to apply for primary and secondary art positions. I don't think your little child will be a problem at the moment due to their age, if dependents are a worry for a school, as they won't be in school for a while. While it can be a bit harder for single teachers with dependents to get a foot in the door sometimes compared to teaching couples I'm confident you will find something wonderful out there if you give it a go! You have lots of experience so I say go for it!

Thanks for the helpful replies. Artrageous, can i email you with some more questions?

Hi there Thomas, I'm not sure how to give you my email and still remain anonymous- feel free to ask me anything on here, I'll answer as truthfully and openly as I can :)

@Artrageous

You can include contact information in your profile:
First, start by creating a new free email address that does not identify any personal information.
Second, after logging into the forum click on the "User Control Panel Link" (near the top of the page by the title) Third, click on "Profile" you will find a number input fields for various messengers, etc., at the bottom you will find a text field titled "interests" you can then insert your email address in this field.
Fourth, another member can then click on your user name from anywhere in the forum which will display your profile and then copy and paste your email address.

How many years MYP/DP Visual Arts experience do you have? Do you have a Masters? Are you an examiner?

Hi Thomas, I'm an elementary teacher and have taught overseas in three art depts for 7 years. I don't have a masters and I am not an examiner. With your experience at both primary and secondary you could apply for positions anywhere in the school. What is your preference? If your recent experience is at a particular level then some heads may look at that first. It depends on the school and their needs. I have 5 years PYP experience.