The International Schools Review Forum

I am 54, years of age; I have a Bachelors of Physical Education Degree with a Minor in History, and a Fifth Year Education Certificate, both from the University of British Columbia in Canada. I taught in England for 2 years on a teachers exchange, I have done quite of bit of traveling throughout Europe and South East Asia, and over the last 35 years I have coached basketball, volleyball, swimming, water polo, and soccer to name a few. I would like to retire from teaching in Canada at 57, and go work at an International School for a few years. My wife is a nurse who has taught nursing in a third world country. I would really like to go to a school in Indonesia, or someplace in S.E. Asia. My concern is that I do not have IB training and I may be too old. Any comments would be appreciated. :idea:

You can easily get the training in Canada. Go to the IBO website and do it as a week long summer course. I know it runs in Toronto every summer. Obviously you wouldn't get experience, but you would have the training. It will help getting a job. My family just got back from overseas teaching and are working in Canada as well. I can retire at 57 as well and plan on heading back out again. Hope it goes well for you.

If you hope to teach PE then I wouldn't even worry about the IB training. It won't be a factor in getting a PE job. Given your experience and your commitment to coaching, you will find work.

Thanks for the replies, but I do not want to mislead everyone. I have a BPE, but for over 20 years I have been teaching Grade 6/7 (due to supply and demans - more demand than supply- I wasn't able to get a PE position), but have been coaching high school basketball for the last 8 years.

You could take the MYP training since you'd likely be targeting Middle School jobs, but you certainly don't have to have it. I'm Canadian as well. I don't have the training and that never came up in any job I was interviewed for or offered.

There seem to be a good number of PE jobs still available at this point in the recruiting season, so I bet you would have little trouble finding something.

IBO runs summer courses for PYP and MYP in Vancouver at King George's Secondary in downtown Vancouver (it's a Vancouver School Board school).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Georg ... ary_School