Teaching Science at International Schools

[gangdulaowai]

Newbie to the forum here.

A little about me:
Mid-30s
Irish
BSc.
TESOL (120hrs)
Instructor skills certifications
My background is in industry (Research/Training/Technical/Management).
2 years Science teaching experience in China (Primary)
I currently work for the local department of an international school and I am aware that full home country registration is required for the IB/PYP departments of the school. And, also how their wages are considerably higher (so please don't shoot me down).
I am considering doing a post grad cert / Dip.Ed or equivilent. Prehaps a MSc. is my preferred option as my background is in Science and I wish to continue teaching the subject.

So, bearing in mind that I do not wish to return to my home country to study if at all possible, these are my questions:

1. Has anybody gone down a similar career path and obtained a teaching credential whilst teaching abroad (particularly in Asia)?
2. Will it be possible to obtain employment in an International School in China or SEA (Cambodia/Vietnam) with my current qualifications and experience?
3. I would like to continue to teach science at primary level, if possible. Is Science taught by homeroom teachers at primary level in IS in SEA, or are there subject teachers like where I am currently employed (Shanghai)?

Thanks in advance for reading the above and any advice/suggestions/feedback will be much appreciated.

[sciteach]

Just to let you know - as you don't currently have a teaching certification most international schools will not even look at your application.

Also - the better international schools like teachers to have a minimum of 2 years teaching experience once you have got your teacher degree - preferably in your home country. For some countries, there is also a need of teaching for a certain period of time so you can get a visa (Vietnam and China has this but others will know better).

For most elementary schools, science and most subjects apart from specialities (art, music, pe) is taught by the general classroom teacher. I have however noticed that a few Chinese schools which employ western teachers do seem to have elementary science teachers.

I have seen some people get their degree overseas, but most are a partner to another teacher and they have an international school ready to support them with their teaching rounds. This will be your biggest hurdle trying to complete your teaching degree overseas. Most western countries require you to actually spend quite a bit of time in the classroom which is of course quite hard to arrange overseas where they cannot vet the quality of the actual institution helping you learn.

I've kept my answers general and have not answered some questions where I don't know enough. Hopefully it's helpful though.

[shadowjack]

Been overseas for many years and never heard of elementary science teachers. Earliest level you get specialization in subjects other than art, music, and PE is grade 6/year 7.

[gangdulaowai]

@sciteach,
Thank you for your reply. I know that obtaining the proper teaching credentials (with experience post-certification) is the only way of getting into the better international schools. But, I have read/heard that with a Bachelors it is possible to get into lower tier IS. (but maybe not, hence my post here). Maybe I would be better off teaching Science at a good public school than at an IS at the lower end of the spectrum?
And I guess doing a one year post grad or MSc. will not make me a more desirable candidate for most IS positions (home licensure being the key to this)?
I have a lot of thinking to do, but your feedback is much appreciated.

@shadowjack @sciteach
In China (Shanghai anyway), there seems to be a trend moving towards Science being taught through English at elementary level (I even teach Grade one and know several other Science teachers doing the same in Shanghai). In Chinese ran 'International' schools that is anyway. Having a BSc. and 2 years experience allows you to teach Science legally here at these schools. The homeroom teachers at these schools generally teach Chinese only and manage their class. There are seperate English, Math, PE, Science, Music/Art techers. I understand that this is probably not the case in other countries so thank you for the confirmation.

[PsyGuy]

@SJ

Ive worked with departmentalized primary ISs where the HRT runs the classroom as far as numeracy and literacy and then ITs with science/art/music on a cart visit each HRT for specialized lessons in those fields.

@gangdulaowai

You can get an IT appointment with just a bachelors and no credential, but most of those ISs are toxic train wrecks of an IS. In most of them your teaching EAP and are little more than a specialized subject ET. @SciTeach is highly accurate without a professional credential in education the majority of ISs that are accredited by outside agencies and organizations wouldnt even look at your application.
The standard bar to entry is 2 years post certification experience to be an entry level IT. However, you may get some credit for your current experience.

Typically as @SJ stated prior, science is taught by the HRT in primary ISs (typically years 1-6).

It wouldnt be likely that a good municipal DS would be interested in your application, and there is nothing wrong with teaching in IE prior to your credential.

You are not limited to a teaching credential from your country of origination. Any professional credential from the UK, CAN, US, AUS would be acceptable, so would a credential from a number of Asian regions such as JP, SG, HK.
A masters degree is not in itself a teaching credential.

[sciteach]

You mentioned that some lower international schools employ teachers without certification. This may be true - but I see these schools as international schools in name only.

For some international schools which employ western professionals, they employ said teacher as an instructor and not a teacher. For countries such as China which requires a Z visa - the local authorities require different certifications for different positions.

To put it simply - people in the lower international schools in China are employed as an English language teacher such as TESOL and the like with a university degree. As such, people are often employed to teach English and not be a subject specific teacher (eg Elementary, PE, Art, Science, Math etc...).

Also note that China is in the process of significantly changing expectations for expats getting expert visas. This will stop most international schools in the next 1 or 2 years from employing educators without certification as a teacher. Such things have happened in Indonesia where teachers need to have 5 years experience to get a visa.

As mentioned previously, some schools may employ expats on an instructor visa - just like private english language schools do in China.

You are also correct that some schools in China do employ Science teachers for elementary, but these schools are almost exclusively aimed at Chinese students. An example of such a school is Keystone Academy in Beijing (http://www.keystoneacademy.cn) which employs both expats and Chinese nationals for the same position.

On a positive note - I can count on more than two hands the number of teachers I know who decided to become international teachers after completing the Jet program in Japan. You are not completing the Jet program - but it means there are quite a few people teaching internationally who started off completing something else (even language school related) and moved into teaching.

For your current experience - some international schools will accept it but some will not. Let's call it a bit of a grey area. However - the international schools I have attended would not accept these when looking at your pay scale. Nor unfortunately would any of my schools employ anyone without a teaching degree. Some schools or countries may also require full teaching registration which is similar to a CPA. From memory this was not needed for China.

The comment about not having to complete your teaching qualification in your home country is a correct one - you can choose the country and it does not have to be your home country. However - getting practicum or in class experience that the specific university/college will accept in China will be difficult to find. However - you may be able to go home or to that universities particular country for a month here and there for this experience.

Also note that I don't often post these days and carefully consider what I post before I do post. My area of expertise in both subject and location is what you are asking about (trust me - more than I would discuss openly on this forum!). If you were asking about the ME, Europe or South America, I would not have replied earlier today as I know little of these areas.

[gangdulaowai]

@sciteach @PsyGuy

Thanks for the information, it gives me much food for thought.

I appreciate you taking the time.

I am currently in a quite well paid Science teaching position, with a very manageable workload, at a public school managed by the IS that employ me. You are correct in saying that it's predominantly Chinese students with an Internationl department (IB/PYP) and a couple of local departments. I am happy here in this position and plan on doing one more year all going well.

I just want to obtain as much information as possible before commiting to getting certified as a 'real teacher' :)

Best Regards.