By the way…. my school does cover housing and tuition for 2 children, luckily my third child is still an infant. But healthcare and flights are my responsibility. So financially, you won't be as well off as a teaching couple or a single. That being said, we still have a good quality of life and manage to save a bit and take a major vacation in the summer, something that was not happening when I was working at home.

I have a non-teaching spouse and 3 children, and am just finishing my second year in an international school in China, and have just extended my contract for 2 more. I think your chances will be affected by what subject you teach and how experienced you are, If you have excellent references etc. You won't be spoiled for choice as many schools won't see you as a good fit. when I decided to move into international teaching I had interviewed with only 3 other schools before my current school. A school interested in hiring someone in our situation isn't looking for the cheapest hire, but for adding some stability to the faculty. They will see you as someone who is likely to stay past the initial contract.

Upon some further thought, I still think that I would bring up any questions I had about the package at the first interview. That being said, prior to the interview, I would attempt to find out as much as I can through these types of forums.

I think during the interview is the appropriate time to ask. Asking prior to that appears presumptuous to me. On Search each schools site gives sample salaries for points on the pay scale, so you can get a ballpark estimate before you apply.

Could be any of these, or different ones in different circumstances…….I was hired via TIE and am loving my current position. Schools often use TIE and Skype to supplement their efforts at fairs.

Today was the first day back after the CNY holiday.

Flyingpigs wrote:
> Just an observation--its China. Why should anything be in English?


It doesn't ….. But in most world class cities, multilingualism is encouraged in order to encourage economic investment and tourism. English is usually the most convenient language.

China is such a large country that generalizations such as these are meaningless. I have been in Shanghai for 2.5 years and I have never had to use Chinese in a place of business except for the local wet market. The staff at my bank, supermarket, clothing stores, the guy on the corner who sells bootleg dvd's, fast food places, coffee shops all speak basic english. Shanghai's metro and bus system are easily navigated because signage and maps are in english and chinese. I share this experience, not to discount the OP's statement, but to clarify that their experience of Qingdao won't be your experience if you work in Shanghai or Beijing.

Another problem here is jurisdiction. If the job fair was held in say… Hong Kong, the school is in India, the OP is from The US but currently teaches is Japan….. what court would an action be brought in? Which countries employment law is applicable?

Where I come from, I know from personal experience, that there is no such thing as a verbal contract in employment law. All agreements are considered conditional until the signing of a written contract. However the issue of whether the OP's action is legal is a moot point, since we all agree that a verbal contract (whether legally binding or not) is virtually unenforceable.
I think we were more concerned with whether the OP's actions are ethical and whether those actions might negatively affect her future career.

Given the circumstances described, the short time between initial acceptance and the subsequent change of heart, and the rationale given; I would say that the OP's actions are ethical. In hindsight, perhaps she should not have accepted a job she had reservations about, but schools have a tendency to make us rush to a decision ( after making us wait for what seems like an eternity ).

As to the issue of whether this hurts her future career….. well, the school she turned down will probably never hire her. But if she is successful in her new school, that should not be an issue.

I realize that my opinion is contrary to what most will say, but I think a verbal offer is always conditional. The school can always change its mind. Between the time that the school makes its verbal offer and sends you a written document (and this can take weeks if not a month or more!!) the school will be checking your references, your credentials, possibly even checking up on you on social media sites to verify that you are what you appeared to be at interview. A teacher has every right to do the same.

In fact, I am in my current job now because I kept interviewing after I had been verbally offered a job. The contract ( emailed 3 weeks after the offer was made) did not match what was said in interview. Thankfully I had decided that until I had a signed contract, I did not really have a job.

In your position , I would politely tell the first school that after further thought, you feel that you must decline their offer. I would not go into any more detail than that. Your reasons are personal.

One further thought. Make sure the offer from the second school is solid. It's a small world out there, you can do this sort of thing as a one-off but you don't want to find this happening again.

Then in that case, I see no reason not to apply to international schools. While it is true that some prefer to have teachers whose certification is from an english speaking country, many schools hire teachers with certification from all over the world. The thing is that both your written and spoken english have to be fluent. In my school, we have a teacher from India, one from Malaysia and a Czech. But as a general rule they prefer native english speakers since english is the language of instruction. If you are a native speaker who just happened to have studied in a different country, that might actually be a point in your favor.

If your children are not school age, you'll have to factor in childcare costs. If your kids attend school with you, you will still probably want to hire part time domestic help. A good ayi will cost between 25-35 RMB an hour. Apts within your budget will be easy enough to find. There are 2 and 3 bedroom apts in Minghan going for between 8K and 12 K

As I see it your dilemma is lack of teacher certification. To teach in most schools you need to be certified to teach by a Government Agency responsible for education. Does your masters in education qualify you to teach? Most countries require an induction or probation period before issuing a teaching certificate or license. There is also the issue of curriculum. Most international schools run a version of the UK, US, or IB curriculum. An experienced teacher could switch from one to another, but a new teacher with no experience of either would find it hard to be hired. I hate to be discouraging, but to teach internationally, you need to get experience teaching in your present location.

Are the flights every year for your kids as well, or do you foot the bill for them?

Eion….. don't knock it till you've tried it!!!!! YUM!!!!