The International Schools Review Forum

While ESOL experience such as yours doesnt count (some does). Learning support if in a classroom setting does count as experience. It sounds more like maybe you are tutoring (a single student) which doesnt count.

To answer your question, most teachers get there "2 years" experience in their home country for a couple years before heading off to a second tier school internationally. with the exception of China all the schools you listed (Hong Kong, Singapore or Japan) are typically highly desirable regions, and most teachers dont start their careers there.

Normally id recommend a recruitment agency such Search or ISS, but you really dont have the experience to be teaching internationally yet, unless your interested in starting at a low third tier school. Somewhere in the middle east, or the more rural areas of asia.

I'm not saying it can't be done, but I'd advise going in with a backup plan. Are you open to the Middle East? South America? You will have a much better chance with schools in those areas.

I have a very similar background to yours, and was in almost the exact same position a year ago. I signed up with Search and did manage to get some interviews at the job fairs with good schools in Asia, but no offers - it is VERY competitive, especially in places like Japan, HK, and anywhere in Southeast Asia. I ended up accepting an offer at the fair from a good school in another region.

Have to agree with everyone else... The good news is you are on it early. The bad news is that with your experience you are much more likely to get an offer in SEA later in the game. There are some dodgier places though... There are a lot of schools in Hong Kong. Don't discount it. Same as Singapore. Yes they are more desirable but HK has 1st, 2nd and 3rd tier schools. Let's be honest they have some 4th tier as well.

As for China... have you heard of Dalian, Tianjin, Chong Qing, Xian... they all have schools. Most don't pay all that bad either.

Don't give up hope and for the love of GOD if the school doesn't feel 'right' don't go there. There are horror stories about the middle east and teachers being trapped. Research before you take anything.

Best of luck.
G

Dont give up your current position. A job in hand is better then a position that might never materialize. Seriously, so MANY teacher stories Ive heard of from people who ended up unemployed. I dont want to sound discouraging but your not a strong candidate. Any offers you receive are going to all be at schools your going to need to think about, because I cant anticipate any of them being very good. Except for China, its unlikely (HIGHLY unlikely) you will get anything in any of your other regions. If you do take a position your school wont have too much trouble filling your position even after the notice/deadline time. I really wouldnt worry about it.

The whole tier system is really very subjective, there isnt a "master list".

Depends what your future plans are, if you want to stay in the GCSE curriculum, and prefer the British school environment, then stay. if you want to be more international and versatile, then IB experience would be a great benefit. GCSE schools tend to have a higher probability of being the "better" schools in a region. IB schools tend to be well everywhere, and there are simply "more" of them.

One thing to consider is that stepping down from an elite school "down" might cause concerns for some heads in the future. Then again you could easily explain that you wanted the IB experience.

Hi!

Can any of you recommend good areas to live in near ISKL Melawati location?

My husband and I are looking for an active area where we would only drive to work, but could step out our door and explore the restaurants, cafes, parks, etc. Even if we could walk to the nearest transit station would be a great thing too.

Thanks for all your help. :)