At my school we teach 5/8 periods (block schedule) and work 7:30-2:30 (plus some meetings after school).

Because they are known entities. Every year we get a few teachers who look good on paper but turn out to be total duds, and then the school is back to square one when they either pull a runner, get fired or don't have their contracts renewed.

So a person is not an asshole in their own right until 18? You're right though, it does come a lot from parenting, and up to a certain age it shouldn't be blamed on the kids.

Okay, sorry... I have hijacked this thread.

It's a character failing of mine.

At what age can a person be an asshole? I think it happens sometime around puberty. If you saw how some of my extremely rich kids treated their maids, the cleaning staff and the cafeteria staff you probably wouldn't hesitate to call them assholes! I spend a lot of time in my classroom talking about issues of systemic inequality, with the hope that many of my students won't continue the ways that they treat the poor.

That is a... very underdeveloped insult.

Moving on, I wonder how much it has to do with money? Do people "hack it" better at higher-paying schools because they feel like they are being compensated for the hard work?

I think Thames made a good point about entitled kids. I don't care how many tough inner-city schools you taught at, entitled rich kids are their own brand of difficult. Some of the teachers at my school simply can't deal with them. Personally, I like working with them because I take pleasure in making as many of them not assholes.

Hey all,

For discussion: what kind of people can't hack it in IT?

My school has its problems, but is overall pretty decent and is considered tier one for the region. The biggest problem is the poor pay, as it's in LCSA. Otherwise, I find plenty to be annoyed about but continue to enjoy my job and think overall it's a good place to work.

However, every year arrive new international teachers from the USA who are completely overwhelmed by the "crazy workload" and simply can't hack it. They leave every year saying it's an impossible place to work. I find this completely mind-blowing, as it's a 5/8 load, and most people teach only 2 different classes. Class sizes are small. There are a lot of meetings, but it sounds like that's standard for international schools.

Then, other international teachers arrive from the USA, work hard, and thrive.

What gives? Are there personality types that are destined for failure in IT? In general, I find that international schools expect people to hit the ground running, but some people want their hands held.

Half the guys at my school have big, lustrous beards. Some are super long too. I would just keep it nicely groomed for interviews but then if it grows wild after, whatever!

Wait... so... we are agreeing.

Most educated people in Latin America speak good English, but you STILL are likely to attract a higher quality dating pool even among English-speaking guys because they will take you more seriously if you speak their language. It just makes you seem more serious about living there, and a lot of guys who want serious relationships don't want someone who's there for an "adventure".

Oh, just to add onto that, it helps A LOT if you become fluent in the local language. (Yes, fluent! Yes, it is possible! It just takes work.) From what I've seen, that opens the dating pool from the "I want to date an exotic and possibly easy foreigner" gang to the "normal guys who want to date someone they care about" gang.

Latin America is good for dating, although it is easiest if you date among the middle class / educated class as the upper and lower classes can have wildly different values. And, contrary to popular opinion, not all latinos cheat. Most of my post-college dating experience has been in various Latin American countries (I have spent most of my career here), and although I've had occasional problems with machismo with one or two guys, overall I think Latin American men are wonderful and much more relationship-oriented than North Americans (minus Mexico).

Hmm... where do I want to be when the world is destroyed in fire and fury? Exactly where I'm living/working. So I'm staying put. (But then again, I'm a tentative lifer.)

I think it's pretty common that teacher-parents request certain teachers. Not to toot my own horn, but every single teacher's kid goes through my class, and never goes through certain other teachers' classes. That surely can't be a coincidence.