The International Schools Review Forum

Hey Folks,

What are my options for getting IB experience/training as a HS math teacher without actually teaching at an IB school?

I've been reading about how it can be a plus when it comes to getting hired, want to know if there's something I can do about it.

I've got 5 years teaching stateside, I'm certified and everything, but I figure I could really use any boost since I have a non-teaching spouse and 2 preschool age kids.

Any advice would be helpful, thanks!

Those are two VERY different questions, i'll address the easier one first.

The only way to get IB teaching experience is at an IB school. Thats pretty much it.

Getting training is a different question. Training and experience are not the same thing. Generally schools do not equate training with experience. IB training is better then nothing, but no amount of training equates to any amount of experience. IB schools will typically send their new teachers to training.

That said, there are a number of IBO training opportunities. There are basically two types workshops, and the IB teacher award. On site/in person workshops are available across the globe. The problem is that usually involves travel which when added to the cost of the workshop (between $300 and $900) is expensive. There are also online workshops you can attend as well. They all produce the same training certificate. There are 3 levels of workshops. Level 1, are the "Intro" workshop which entry level teachers take and focuses on methodology. The level 2 workshops focus on pedagogy, and the level 3 workshops are focused on various parts of assessment and curriculum design. You can find the online catalog of training workshops here:

http://onlineworkshops.ibo.org/workshop ... _date:2012

If you want to spend at least a year you can get an IB teacher award. These are university programs (most at the graduate level) that get you a sort of pseudo IB certification.

You could try doing an online workshop or 2 and using those to show your commitment to wanting to work within the program. My school signed me up for Making the PYP Happen online a while ago and there were a couple on there doing it to try and gain approval of IB employers.

Thanks for the info!

I went to to the Intro to the PYP training back on early 2011. Upon completing the weekend workshop,I went back to my school and applied a lot of what I learned to my already inquiry focused teaching practices; including some of the IB language & planning etc.
When discussing with potential employers, in an early 2012 job fair, I was able to explain at length my desire and commitment to the IB's philosophy. I could tangibly explain how I tried to plan and teach towards the PYP. As a result, I received offers from 6 top PYP schools in Asia.