The International Schools Review Forum

There are two factors that contribute to the salary scale:

1) The vast majority of teachers are in the public sector, and in education the private sector has a harder time competing with the private sector. Teachers in public/municipal schools generally get paid more and have more benefits and protections then those in private/independent schools. Minority entrants (schools) within a profession generally have to adapt the practices of the dominant majority players in a field. When public/municipal schools have a published salary schedule they expect to see one at a private school, and if they dont they conclude that they are being cheated or negotiated with unfairly or dishonestly, and why would a teacher do that for less money?

2) Teachers are one of the few remaining entry level professions that still uses contracts. In the vast majority of private enterprise and even public service employment agreements are generally at will. Education is also a pretty "flat" organization structure. There isnt really any advancement and still be in a classroom. There simply isnt a lot to be promoted too. You dont start at Teacher I and go up a hierarchy to Teacher II, or Teacher III. Your either a teacher or an admin. So we have a step and salary scale because without one we have no means of distinguishing teachers from one another
In Denmark our school didnt have a step/salary scale. Salary was determined by job function, and all teachers had the same job description so all teachers got the same salary. Didnt matter if you had 1 year of experience or 20 years experience. Their was a senior teacher position which was basically a HOD but the salary difference was less then 5%.

I have had many offers over the last 2 years at more than the school's official salery scale and I have also had schools that have replied with better offers when I have refused the first offer. One school in the philippines even doubled the offer that they had orriginally made.

If you teach a shortage subject at IB deploma level and have the right experience some schools will be flexible with salary scales.

@AnnieT

The difference between those is good and bad schools, and whether the school has an open salary scale or a closed one. Open doesnt just mean having a salary scale it means having public or at least published salary scale, one thats been standardized for at least the current year and approved by ownership.
Any school can put together a salary scale in Excel and say its their salary scale, and change those numbers with each candidate they bring in. Just because it "looks" like a common salary scale doesnt mean it is.

Even in the case of an open salary scale, these scales use "steps" and while a year is equivalent to a "step" its not the only factor that can shift what step you enter in.

[quote="PsyGuy"]@AnnieT

The difference between those is good and bad schools, and whether the school has an open salary scale or a closed one. Open doesnt just mean having a salary scale it means having public or at least published salary scale, one thats been standardized for at least the current year and approved by ownership.
Any school can put together a salary scale in Excel and say its their salary scale, and change those numbers with each candidate they bring in. Just because it "looks" like a common salary scale doesnt mean it is.

Even in the case of an open salary scale, these scales use "steps" and while a year is equivalent to a "step" its not the only factor that can shift what step you enter in.[/quote]

You are, of course, right. None of the schools that made the offers could have been called good schools. I have in the past made offers that moved people up a few steps on the salary scale but only for teachers that I needed to fill difficult gaps. The subject that often asked and was always refused tended to be PE teachers or american coaches who seemed to feel that were special. I always groaned when I had a PE post to fill because I knew my inbox would be swamped with iliteracy for months.

My last place did not publish a salary scale and they made it up as they went along. I got an allowance on my salary (one no one had heard of) and it turned out to be an additional sweetner to get me over the line.

My current place has a published salary scale and published responsibility points scale.

Literally, I can add up my years as a teacher, add the allowances and A+B+C+D = what I get. They stick to that and I prefer open and structured to mysterious and invisible.

My last place did not publish a salary scale and they made it up as they went along. I got an allowance on my salary (one no one had heard of) and it turned out to be an additional sweetner to get me over the line.

My current place has a published salary scale and published responsibility points scale.

Literally, I can add up my years as a teacher, add the allowances and A+B+C+D = what I get. They stick to that and I prefer open and structured to mysterious and invisible.

@AnnieT

In American education, sports rule. P.E. teachers who coach and bring home titles and trophies are special, at least back int he states. They seldom realize that except in a couple situations that big game athletics doesnt have the same priority in IE.