Search found 32 matches

by Smurf
Thu Dec 07, 2017 3:07 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: contacting schools through SA and through their school email
Replies: 3
Views: 5591

Re: contacting schools through SA and through their school e

For me, the golden rule is do whatever the school asks. I’d look at their Search page and also at their website to see how they prefer applications. If there are no specific instructions, I’d send a letter of application (with my resume) that clearly states you’re registered with Search.
by Smurf
Mon Nov 27, 2017 12:15 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: GRC Fair 2017, Dubai
Replies: 7
Views: 10272

Re: GRC Fair 2017, Dubai

fine dude wrote:
> The recruitment cycle can be summarized as below:
> 1. Elite/tier 1 schools either wait until the BKK / London fair to do their
> hiring.
> 2. Experienced single / teacher couples already have jobs by Nov or
> mid-Dec, thanks to Skype.
> 3. Exceptional math/sci teachers with trailing spouses do land jobs at big
> schools occasionally.
> 4. Everyone else land at tier 2/3 schools and wait for their turn by
> upgrading their skills/education.

From my experience, this isn't always the case anymore. I've got a trailing spouse and teach a subject that isn't particularly difficult to recruit for schools, so far I've had four interviews with elite schools and received two offers this week that we are currently deciding between.

I really think that the whole cycle is moving earlier and earlier for the whole market and if people presume that traditional timelines still apply then they could be missing out on some great opportunities.
by Smurf
Tue Oct 17, 2017 7:16 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: How to impress on a school tour
Replies: 2
Views: 6261

How to impress on a school tour

Hi all, I'm hoping for some help from the collective wisdom of the board. I'm visiting a school in Singapore this week during vacation that I want to interview for shortly after when jobs are listed.

What would you do to create a positive impression with a recruiter on a school tour?
by Smurf
Wed Sep 21, 2016 7:40 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Aquatics Directors
Replies: 8
Views: 12818

Aquatics Directors

Hey,

I am considering switching career paths to become an Aquatics director and hoped to seek out collective wisdom. Without wanting to 'out' myself publicly, I believe I have the necessary background and qualifications so that is not what I need to know.

My question is how common are the positions and how intense is the competition? I've heard mixed things ranging from the number of quality candidates being sparse through to it's a tough gig to get into.

Thanks!
by Smurf
Thu Jun 09, 2016 8:09 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: QTS Certification
Replies: 18
Views: 35286

Re: QTS Certification

wrldtrvlr123 wrote:
> PsyGuy wrote:
> > @Rhysboy
> >
> > Yes I have, and also in a UK university. Have you compared the instructional
> content
> > across PGCE programs?
> >
> > There was nothing about your chemistry/science PGCE that had anything to do with
> > general chemistry, organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, ana1ytical
> chemistry,
> > physical chemistry or bio chemistry. Chemistry was the vehicle for which you
> studied
> > "teaching" the meds/peds of being a professional educator. Comparing
> a science
> > PGCE or a literature PGCE or a Humanities PGCE the instructional content is
> highly
> > congruent across subjects. Nothing you learn in a PGCE is going to give you any
> > significant competence in the teaching subject field.
> >
> > @Helen Back
> >
> > Yes, thats what everyones letter from the NCTL says but their is a significant
> and
> > important difference between the lack of age and subject specificity and
> assignment
> > eligibility. A maintained DS would be able to hire you, but they would have
> major
> > standards issues and inspection problems if they assigned a DT to a classroom
> outside
> > of their assignment eligibility course fields.
> > Being able to "seek any posts" doesnt mean there isnt very strong
> guidance and regulations
> > to what a maintained DS could assign you to teach.
> >
> > @Smurf
> >
> > QTS is not a license it is a credential, it validates that the holder completed
> the
> > prescribed course of study and/or a successful induction period.
> > While QTS can be revoked (this is extremely rare, the standard for revocation
> requires
> > that QTS was issued in error or that some element necessary for issuance of QTS
> > was invalid. Disbarring and prohibitions rarely result in the revocation of
> QTS).
> > A DT can possess QTS and not be licensed to provide instructional services
> (teach).
> > This is what happens when an NQT is unsuccessful in their induction year. They
> retain
> > their PGCE and their QTS but they are barred from providing instructional
> services
> > in a maintained DS.
> >
> > This isnt entirely true, there are other routes to QTS other than QTS that also
> identify
> > which subjects and age ranges a DT is eligible for assignment. A DT that
> completes
> > a school direct will have subject and age identifiers in their QTS database
> profile,
> > absent the PGCE.
> >
> > A Generic (general studies) PGCE has the same QTS as as any other PGCE,
> Nottingham
> > etc have F2F programs that provide QTS as well as "international" or
> distance programs.
> > They arent "generic".
> >
> > The TES post is inaccurate and outdated (there is no time limit for beginning
> induction,
> > etc.)
> ----------------
> While I don't claim to have trained and/or worked in the UK (and haven't been
> bothered to get my QTS), I do read a lot about UK schools and education. From that,
> it doesn't seem that being "struck off" is all that rare and it generally
> involves misbehavior of some kind on the teacher's part, not some problem with the
> issuance of the QTS.
>
> Or is being struck off different than having one's QTS revoked?

Being struck off is exactly what you have suggested. It is rare and you'd have to be extremely unlucky or make a serious error of judgement to find yourself in that position.

I guess that Psyguy has searched Google for his answer, a problem with issuing QTS would have been some thing along the lines of you had deliberately lied about your identity, entry qualifications or past criminal record etc. that prevent you from being eligible to teach. This would be very unusual not to have been picked up prior to being accepted onto a course, let alone qualifying.
by Smurf
Thu Jun 09, 2016 8:02 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: QTS Certification
Replies: 18
Views: 35286

Re: Reply

PsyGuy wrote:

> @Smurf
>
> QTS is not a license it is a credential, it validates that the holder
> completed the prescribed course of study and/or a successful induction
> period.
> While QTS can be revoked (this is extremely rare, the standard for
> revocation requires that QTS was issued in error or that some element
> necessary for issuance of QTS was invalid. Disbarring and prohibitions
> rarely result in the revocation of QTS). A DT can possess QTS and not be
> licensed to provide instructional services (teach). This is what happens
> when an NQT is unsuccessful in their induction year. They retain their PGCE
> and their QTS but they are barred from providing instructional services in
> a maintained DS.
>
> This isnt entirely true, there are other routes to QTS other than QTS that
> also identify which subjects and age ranges a DT is eligible for
> assignment. A DT that completes a school direct will have subject and age
> identifiers in their QTS database profile, absent the PGCE.
>
> A Generic (general studies) PGCE has the same QTS as as any other PGCE,
> Nottingham etc have F2F programs that provide QTS as well as
> "international" or distance programs. They arent
> "generic".
>
> The TES post is inaccurate and outdated (there is no time limit for
> beginning induction, etc.)

Whatever you want to call it, it serves as the equivalent to a license in UK government schools - whatever training route you have taken, you can't work as a teacher in a UK government school without QTS. You can have completed any prescribed course of study (such as a PGCE, SCITT, School Direct) and then subsequently lose your QTS for misbehaviour without changing the fact that you have a PGCE (admittedly this is extremely rare but I'm just saying this to give a simple example of how the two parts differ).

You are correct that without successfully completing the NQT year you lose QTS but this was never argued. You are also forest that Nottingham and Sunderland Universities will have F2F programmes that award a PGCE with QTS. However, as I have already said, the international PGCE that is not specific to any subject does not give anyone QTS.
by Smurf
Wed Jun 08, 2016 10:01 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: QTS Certification
Replies: 18
Views: 35286

Re: QTS Certification

Helen Back wrote:
> I have a one year B.Ed. and a teaching certificate from a country other
> than the UK. I applied and received QTS in the UK simply by sending off a
> couple of transcript, This is what the return confirmation letter said;
>
> "QTS is non-subject specific and non-age range specific. You are
> therefore, eligible, to seek posts covering the full range of National
> Curriculum subjects, to any age-range".

Yes, the PGCE and QTS are different things, although they are linked.

QTS only says that you are licensed to teach in a UK state school. The PGCE qualification will specify which subject area you are trained to teach in.

It is possible to have one without the other. For example, overseas trained teachers can obtain QTS without a PGCE whereas those who complete online generic PGCEs (Sunderland, Nottingham etc) will not have QTS. Also, UK teachers who have their license revoked will lose QTS but will still have their PGCE qualification (they are a trained teacher without a licence to teach).

There is an old post from a different forum that explains the difference.... https://community.tes.com/threads/pgce-qts-nqt.204300/
by Smurf
Mon May 16, 2016 1:03 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: American or Brit Certification/Credential for non-citizens.
Replies: 36
Views: 74563

Re: Response

PsyGuy wrote:

>
> 4) You can only pursue elementary, English (lit), math, science, social
> studies and special education certification.

This has now changed with Teach now, it is now possible to complete in a wide range of subjects:

• ART (K-12);
•PERFORMING ARTS – VISUAL ARTS (K-12)
•BIOLOGY (7-12)
•BILINGUAL EDUCATION (K-12)
•BILINGUAL SPECIAL EDUCATION (K-12)
•BUSINESS (7-12)
•CHEMISTRY (7-12)
•COMPUTER EDUCATION LABORATORY TEACHER (K-12)
•COMPUTER SCIENCE (7-12)
•EARLY CHILDHOOD (PreK-3)
•EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION (PreK-3)
•ELEMENTARY (1-6)
•ENGLISH (7-12)
•ENGLISH as a SECOND LANGUAGE (K-12)
•FOREIGN LANGUAGE SUBJECT AREAS (K-12)
•SPECIAL EDUCATION: NON-CATEGORICAL (K-12)
•GENERAL SCIENCE (7-12)
•HEALTH & PHYSICAL EDUCATION (K-12)
•HOME ECONOMICS (7-12)
•MARKETING EDUCATION (7-12)
•MATHEMATICS (7-12)
•MIDDLE SCHOOL ENGLISH (4-8)
•MIDDLE SCHOOL MATHEMATICS (4-8)
•MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE (4-8)
•MUSIC – INSTRUMENTAL OR VOCAL (K-12)
•PERFORMING ARTS – MUSIC (K-12)
•PERFORMING ARTS – DRAMA & THEATER (K-12)
•PERFORMING ARTS DANCE (K-12)
•PHYSICS (7-12)
•SOCIAL STUDIES (7-12)

http://teach-now.com/programs/#14563686 ... 3b43c-4663
by Smurf
Tue Nov 10, 2015 5:40 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Living and salary in Zurich
Replies: 3
Views: 5969

Living and salary in Zurich

Does anyone have any idea of the standard of living in Zurich for a teacher with a trailing spouse?

I'm looking at the elite tier schools where the salary comes in over 70,000+ swiss francs on search ( I have no clue what the actual salary would be). It doesn't seem like housing is included....

Would we be able to save and live well? How would it compare to being in one of the elite Thai schools? How about retirement savings/pension?
by Smurf
Sun May 03, 2015 8:04 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?
Replies: 32
Views: 43045

Re: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?

Thanks Psyguy. I have more than three years experience post certification and I'm just looking to add a U.S. licence. I'm at an elite tier school already but I'd like to open up the option of working in the big American curriculum schools which doesn't seem to be likely without being a U.S./Canadian citizen or a licence from these countries.

So either D.C. Or Hawaii are equally good options for someone who has never lived or taught in the US but is already certified with experience?

Why do you recommend CA as a destination?
by Smurf
Sat May 02, 2015 8:15 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?
Replies: 32
Views: 43045

Re: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?

Thank National,

Doe you know which states accept non U.S. citizens who do not live in the U.S. for a licence? My understanding is that many states have a requirement that a non U.S. Citizen must teach in the state from be eligible.
by Smurf
Sat May 02, 2015 6:48 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?
Replies: 32
Views: 43045

Re: Beneficial to have multiple teaching certificates?

So, following on from teachingagain1945, is there a way for a non US citizen with QTS to get an American licence?
by Smurf
Sun Apr 12, 2015 7:45 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Career Strategy and Planning - International Schools
Replies: 9
Views: 11176

Re: Career Strategy and Planning - International Schools

Carl wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> I'm a new teacher and am going to graduate with my teaching qualification
> in July this year. I will be qualified to teach 7-12 Visual Arts, Visual
> Design, Ceramics and Photography. I'm single with no dependants.
>
> What would be the best career strategy focused on eventually attaining a
> top tier international job?
>
> From reading the forum, I gather there is a consensus that new teachers are
> preferred to have local experience before going international and that top
> schools want teachers to have IB experience. I've also read that schools
> don't want to see on your resume that you have changed jobs every year and
> that you are non-committal.
>
> Therefore would the most efficient strategy be;
>
> 2 years local experience, then;
>
> 3 years at an international tier 2/3 non-IB school, then;
>
> 3 years at an international tier 2 IB school, then;
>
> a shot at the tier 1 (and elite/premier) IB schools?
>
> Is 8 years total experience sufficient to be considered for the tier 1
> jobs?
>
> Is it possible to be a candidate with less than 8 years experience?
>
> I'm looking for the most direct route to access the better/more desired
> schools in the IT jobs market.
>
> One of the problems of even attaining the 2 years full-time local
> experience initially is that full-time positions, or full-time contracts in
> many of our home countries such as Australia (where I'm from), Canada, New
> Zealand, Ireland are in short supply and hard to get. I'm considering to go
> to the U.K. to get an initial 2 years full-time teaching experience as
> there seems to be many more full-time jobs available there than here in
> AUS.
>
> Can any experienced teachers chime in on their thoughts and advice?
>
> Cheers

I think any new teachers career path should begin with focusing on making yourself the best possible teacher you can be - the first couple of years are formative of what kind of teacher you will be throughout your career. Wherever you end up taking your first post, throw yourself into it and focus on developing yourself and your skill set to make yourself an exceptional candidate. If you go into the post thinking of the position as only a stepping stone, you might not be applying as an exceptional candidate a few years down the line.

If you end up in the UK, I'd advise looking at high performing state schools in challenging areas of London. Be prepared to work very long days and have to tick a lot of government boxes. Having worked at one school, the quality of learning and teaching was exceptional - in my opinion, way better than the elite tier school I'm now at in my 6th year. The other benefit of these schools is that there are always opportunities to take on additional responsibilities/promotions that help make you an exceptional candidate.

A close friend without IB experience has just been offered a DP english position at a very desirable elite tier school after 3 years of teaching in such a school. This is despite there supposedly being a glut of English teachers and not as many jobs.

Don't sell yourself short, focus on being an exceptional teacher that offers lots (inside and outside the classroom) then the rest will fall into place.

Best of luck!!
by Smurf
Fri Mar 14, 2014 9:10 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Sinarmas World Academy, Jakarta
Replies: 3
Views: 5409

Re: Sinarmas World Academy, Jakarta

There has also been a huge amount of recent negative reviews of the goings on there on the paid section of the site. I'd pay the $30 to read them.