Thanks for the info, folks. Seems like it would be difficult, at least, to end up there. I've always really enjoyed the country.

Years ago, I recall a twenty year HS History vet telling me he was unable to get a job teaching History in Turkey, because he did not have a History degree from college. I'm pretty sure he had at least a Masters (in Social Studies teaching or something like that), but this wasn't enough. He said that a school actually offered him a Language Arts job because they liked him--even thought he'd never taught LA--but that the Ministry of Education won't allow international school to hire a History teacher without an actual History degree.

Anyone know if that's still true?

Thank you for the useful tips, Sid. I'm not registered for any of those pages, so don't know how to try to access the info.

But I'm guessing that our school has a membership to one or more. Even if we can't access the info, we can ask the board to look into it.

You are right that, politically, we need to stress the impact on the students. In a way, that's frustrating, though. It seems so patently clear that teachers overworked and overloaded won't be particularly happy or have time to do their jobs properly. And even beyond that, I don't like the sense that the school may be trying to balance its budget on the backs of the teachers. At some point, teachers who already put in 50-60 hours a week have a valid argument in simply saying that there is more to life than one's work, that they need and deserve to be able to watch over their own families and have time for the things outside of work that matter.

But you are right, that that (sadly) won't be a convincing argument. And in the end, I'm aware that happy, engaged, and appreciated teachers correlates pretty highly with what's good for the students. Too often, these two considerations are posited against one another. They tend to be joined at the hip in my experience.

And thanks, Shadowjack, for your accounts. Six out of eight is the highest ratio I've experienced.

Thank you for such a thoughtful response, Sid. Interestingly, the *lightest* schedule I've ever had was at a British school, but that's because the place was so disorganized, they couldn't even put a schedule together properly.

If others are willing to weigh in with the current teaching loads at the schools they are at, that would be helpful. We're preparing a document for the board which indicates that 6/7 is not the norm and, as Sid suggests, probably won't be great for students or teachers.

The school I'm at--a reputable one--is considering moving from the current arrangement in which teachers teach five of seven classes to one in which they teach six out of seven. (The pay scale would remain the same.)

This seems like a lot to me. I've been in a few schools and systems and never had student responsibilities for 86% of the daily schedule.

Have I been lucky or would this 6/7 arrangement (if adopted) seem unusual and/or unfair?

You'd first want to check with your health insurance plan to see if it covers the requisite lobotomy.

Just saying you are expressing strong opinions about something you don't know about.

Internet has been uncensored for well over a year, really more. Even five years ago, you could easily access every site through a proxy.

And no, no one describes MISY--a three year old, for-profit place as "the best". And no, you can't find housing for $400-$500 a month. And ISY pays at least twice as much and *all* other schools pay as much or more and offer double the housing allowance.

I'm glad you visited Myanmar. I'm sorry you didn't like it. Neither fact makes you an authority.


[quote="PsyGuy"]Yes there are actually a lot of people that describe MISY as the best school in town, this is with the big caveat that its Myanmar after all. We are just going to have to disagree.

Whats your definition of SOOOOOOOOOOOO far behind the time? Mynamar just changed their censorship policies back in August of 2012, thats 6 months ago. Are you some tween where anything longer then a few weeks is forever?

No I dont read print newspapers, I have Apps for those.
Theres nothing amazing about it, the vast majority of the data is true. Thanks for the correction regarding censorship.

If you read, you would see that the package at MISY for the region is okay. There arent great packages anywhere in Mynamar. We disagree on what okay means.[/quote]

Their Search profile is bizarre. Something like 360 student contact days a year and you can save almost as much money as you make. They seem either dishonest or don't know how to fill out a form. My friends and I joke about applying there all the time.

Asiawanderer--

I don't know if you'd lose money or not. But it is possible.

Just re-reading PsyGuy and your response to him--it needs to be clear that absolutely no one has ever referred to MISY as "the best school in Myanmar". No one. He made that up entirely. I don't know much about it, so I can't tell you if it's better/worse than MIS or ISM or whatever. But it is a start-up, for-profit place and that's the rep.

Yes, Myanmar has a leave every 70 days visa policy. That might be changing soon, but you should find out if that's true and if the school pays for it.

PsyGuy---

You are sooooooooooooooooooooooo far behind the times here. I've been in Myanmar for almost eight years. Internet used to be heavily censored. it is NOT AT ALL anymore. You get complete (and increasingly fast) access to all website. Anti-government newspapers publish openly in print form. (Do you not even read the newspapers? I am amazed that you pass on such wrong info with so much confidence and certainty.)

I think you confuse MISY with a couple of other schools. The main ones in town:

ISY--embassy connected. Real international school with long history. Many don't like the current director, but is still a good pay and lots of resources.

ISM--about ten or fifteen years old. Very profitable. Was almost good a few years ago. But terrible director and owners. Most teachers stay two years and some leave mid year.

YIS--smaller and better resource that ISM. Owner is a military friend who makes his money other places. Very conservative socially. Probably least messed up school.

Horizon--part of the Islamist Gulen Movement. Scary.

MIS & MISY--used to be one school, but owners had a fight. I don't know either, but have many friends at MIS. They say elementary is okay, but the upper school is a total mess or kind of just a testing center. Owners might be the greediest in town.

I don't know about MISY, but it's also local, for-profit and I never hear anyone call it "best" anything especially "best school in Myanmar". It is small and is only maybe three year old. But I don't know anyone there. Search say they pay $26,000 a year w/$500 a month housing. Impossible these days. Maybe you cover expenses, but probably not, so "package is not okay".

Yangon was once great place to live. But the opening means terrible traffic and housing prices incredibly high. Houses are going for $2,000 or $3,000 or $4,000 a month and even apartments can cost at least $1,000.


Still, I love this country and the (non-rich) people, so I stay. But I am also not working in schools now, so I don't have to put up with the bad ownerships.

Pester.

Over the years, I have been amazed by how directors often make plans to meet or talk and then disappear. This past year, the director from Yaounde set up tentative skype interview over a three day period over Chrismas holiday. I never heard from him again. He ignored all emails.

Nearly all jobs I've had, I had to pester and be determined.

What is sad is that having a masters usually has little to do with being a better teacher. Possibly, at some higher level of IB or AP courses, someone with a Masters or PhD might have some content knowledge that is helpful.

But when we are talking a masters (or more) in Education? University departments of Education are staffed by mostly dull people and collectively dumb down American education.

Do read the pay half of this site. Please. I know two people who back up every awful word said.

Very general question, since immigration and labor laws are different everywhere.

But we are leaving our current country and moving to another and would love to bring our child's nanny with us for a year. She is so good with our son and has become family. It would also be a great experience for the nanny.

Anybody ever do or hear of an arrangement like this? Does it seem like something that should be possible or really unlikely/impossible to do?

Anyone can complain. Some people can write three negitive reviews of one school. Also administrators can write great stories about their own school. ISR is only a site to give you ideas about what to watch out for.

But when some schools have many major warnings from definitely different peoples, you should be careful.

Look at reviews for

Horizon--all schools (run by Turkish Islamists for political goals)
American International School Vietnam
International School Myanmar
Escuela San Pedrano Honduras

These schools (with many others) have many people who are not liking what they found there. Of course any school might be good for YOU. Or maybe there are new principals and directors who make a good difference.

But particularly with for-profit schools, be careful and ask many questions. Ask for an email list of faculties and to randomly contact them. If director at one of these schools says no, that might tell you something.

I wish ISR was not so lazy and put the most recent reviews first. It seem unfair when a school with problems in 2002 shows up with ten terrible reviews first that say nothing about the school today