The International Schools Review Forum

Hi Everyone,

My current teaching contract is up for renewal and I am unsure what to do. This school has been my first experience teaching the PYP. I really enjoyed the experience of working with this curriculum's framework, however I am ready for a change in location.

Because so many international schools are adopting the PYP, I would ideally like to continue working in IB-PYP schools. However, an opportunity has arose in a very desirable area of the world at a reputable school. Would it be wise to accept this position and risk having a difficult time being hired at another IB School in the future? I do realize it is quite difficult to get positions in IB schools without IB experience and I'm worried about being "out of the circle" for too long.

Thanks!

Hiya
I understand your dilemma, but looking at it from another way, you can say that you are getting experience in a non-IB/PYP school! This shows flexibility and adaptability and of course, you can incorporate some of the IB philosophies into your classroom.
If the school is good/the country is good and the package is good--I say give it a shot! Experience is experience, and a two year contract is not TOO long out of the IB circuit. Plus--you have IB experience, which is the main thing. At your new school, you will be getting experience in whatever curriculum/accreditation program THEY are using....so it all balances out, no?
Just my two cents.

If you want to do it, go for it. But, understand that at your next recruiting round, if you are trying to get back into a PYP school, you will get questions like, "Why did you leave the PYP program?" "What did you dislike about the PYP program that made you go to a non-PYP school?" and, rarely, "How has teaching at a non-PYP school made you a better PYP teacher?"

If you have well reasoned out answers to this, and you are not away too long from the PYP, you should be ok. If you go away for six years, lots of things change in that time and many more people are trained with more recent PYP experience.

What's my gut reaction? If you are a good teacher, there are always jobs around SOMEWHERE. If you want to go, and the job appeals to you on lots of levels - GO FOR IT! At the best, it's a two-year adventure. At worst, you take a PYP job at a smaller school to get back into it and then move up again.

Good luck!