From what I see, of the Tier 1 / Elite Tier schools, about 50% is IBDP only, 25% is IB & AP, and 25% is AP (and sometimes US common core.
I'm not allowed to name schools here, but I'm talking about the top schools in Malaysia, Argentina, Luxembourg, Czechia, China, Germany, Switzerland, Bangladesh, The Netherlands, Philippines, France, Singapore, Venezuela, Chile, Japan, Vietnam, Pakistan, South Korea, and a lot more that I can't think of right now.
I'm talking about the schools that are mentioned most as being top tier.

So both curriculums will serve you well, but IB is definitely used (exclusively or in combination with AP) in a lot of the top tier schools. Having taught both will be great on your CV.

There are plenty of Tier 1 or Elite Tier schools (as well as Tier 2 schools) that teach IBDP, so having IB experience would be good.

The IB curriculum is, in my experience, the most challenging and demanding for students - I know quite a few students who were academically not good enough for IB, go through AP more easily.

As PsyGuy says, a good teacher will be able to teach either though.

Yes, a friend of mine was told by her associate that her references weren't great, but of course didn't disclose any specifics. Not sure if all associates will do this, but you can always ask.

Since it's offered in collaboration with the International Baccalaureate (IB), I assume it's decent enough to be taken seriously by international schools, since IB is quite serious, so it should count as any other proper MA.

Unfortunate name indeed though.

I agree that there are plenty of honest positive reviews, as well of plenty fake ones (a lot of which you can spot quite easily). Same for negative reviews.

I don't look at the average, but am more interested in the schools score on certain subjects.

I'm less interested in:
Attitude of local community towards foreigners
Satisfaction with housing
Community offers a variety of activities
Availability and quality of local health care
Family friendly / child friendly school and community
Security / personal safety

And more interested in all the others, having to do with the school and savings potential.
So if a school has a six as an average, but scores eights where it matters for me, then that school is an eight to me.
Overall I would say a 7 is good enough, an 8 makes a school desirable, but I always try to get more information about a school from other sources (ex-colleagues of colleagues who work there for example).

Yes, a question like this should be posted on the forum in the paid section of this website.

Or...

Find someone on the forum who's also afraid to post, and both post each other's review.
Or find someone on the forum who is willing to post on your behalf, if that's allowed.
Just know that ISR can see from where the review is posted (so they can flag them as suspicious) - perhaps ask them for permission?

Just post from a public computer and not your own, and register with a email address that can't be traced back to you. If you want to be extra cautious, have someone you know pay for it with his/her credit card and reimburse him/her. Just make sure he/she isn't your Facebook friend, so can't be linked to you easily.

But I wouldn't worry too much about the school being able to obtain any of the information.

Also, maybe time to look for a new school?

Fact remains that @OF2018 hasn't responded yet, and it is indeed an unlikely story, as explained by @vincentchase
But maybe we're all too distrustful. Either way, let's move on, unless @OF2018 wants to chime in.

Don't underestimate the value of a good pension. We don't have pensions, and are now trying to save lots to finance our retirement through investing in low-cost index-funds, but it since the Dutch pension system is rated (I think) the best in the world (or top 3), the peace of mind that comes with that is worth a few K per year.
However, since you're a teacher couple, the pay increase will be substantial, so you could probably take care of retirement yourselves, and if you want to buy a house, making the jump might be worth it, depending on what your post-retirement plans are.

Make sure you research the school well (how are the ISR reviews for the school?), as well as the city, to see if you would enjoy yourself there long-term, as since you have a kid, I wouldn't recommend moving every few years.

As PsyGuy says, I wouldn't be bothered with political stability in Thailand, and travel opportunities are plentiful in Thailand and the region, with lots of cheap flights, so that shouldn't make a difference.
Clean water shouldn't be a problem in Thailand (water filters), and you can buy air purifiers for clean air indoors (expensive, but if you stay long-term, worth it), but I understand why outdoor air quality would be a concern for a parent. Maybe have a look at how much air pollution varies per district of the city you'll be moving to.

I thought all or most of the decent international schools in The Netherlands provide flights and good PD, but I guess you're not at one of those then. PD is overrated as a benefit anyway I think.

If your long-term goals can't be achieved by staying in The Netherlands, and the health, education & happiness of yourself, your spouse and especially your child wouldn't be seriously harmed by the move, I would go for it.

I sometimes use this website to read about cities if a good school has an opening, but I don't know enough about the city it's located in. Most reviews are by embassy staff, but it will nevertheless give you a sense of the different cities, and how it is to live there as an expat: https://www.talesmag.com/real-post-reports/all

They also have a section where they review schools (as parents): https://www.talesmag.com/real-school-reports/all

PsyGuy wrote:
> @Heliotrope
>
> No they dont

I want to say "Yes, they do." but I don't want to pretend I know it all for sure, like some people.
They DO want the best selection of the candidates that apply at least, and quite a few schools have a hiring budget that allows them to also hire teachers with trailing spouses and/or dependents. Obviously they can't hire only teachers with dependents and/or trailing spouses (and they shouldn't), but they are certainly free to hire a few.

I once talked to a group of 4 recruiters at a fair about this very subject (at the hotel bar after the fair had ended), and they all said they prefer to have a mix of teachers at their schools, and these talks were social and when I was still a single teacher, so weren't telling me what I wanted to hear (they were getting quite drunk actually, and were painfully honest). These were upper tier 2 and lower tier 1 schools, not top tier 1 or elite.

Recruiters don't get rewarded for spending more coin, but they do get rewarded for getting great teachers, even if some of these teachers come with trailing spouses and/or dependents.

Diversity applies to more than just skin colour. It's good for a school to have teachers with different backgrounds and in different stages of their life. I would very much like to see fewer Caucasian teachers actually, also for the benefit of the students. I hope I never have to work at a school that wants to hire the whitest teachers they can find, as part of a marketing effort.

Anchors can be very good for a school. I've been at a upper tier 2 school where every two years all the young & single (and therefore cheap) teachers would leave, since a lot of them just want to move on to a different country every two years.
Teachers with families would typically stay a lot longer (6 years at least, but many 10+), and it's from this pool of teachers that new members of SLT would emerge, and these are the teachers that really know the school, feel responsible for it's wellbeing, make an effort to improve it, and guide the new teachers where needed. If you only hire the cheapest teachers your school will never be truly great.

PsyGuy wrote:
> @vandsmith
>
> Yeah, because of a lack of options, not because of anchor kids. No
> recruiter says "we really like your a teaching couple, but our HOS
> wants to spend more coin on a IT with a family so that we can have anchor
> kids, so sorry good luck with your job search".

Plenty of recruiters just want the best teachers, even if they have families, and also realise that a diverse teaching staff has benefits. Yes, kids as anchors can be good, having some continuity in teaching staff is a good thing.
And let's be honest, some schools have plenty of coin and won't think too long about your dependents if they really want to recruit you.

fine dude wrote:
> - You can sell more books than the average teacher if you gain some
> reputation

Sell more books????

Apart from this, I'd say some teachers shouldn't go into admin even if they have 20 years of experience, and some are ready after 4 years, as long as you keep your ear to the ground and don't assume you know everything. Keep consulting staff, ask how they are doing and how they feel about things. Try and do both, plenty of admin still teach a class or two - that might a good way to experience how policies from admin work out in the classroom.

Thanks for all the info!

She's NOT a Singaporean btw, but an overseas hire at an international school.

And since supply work won't count towards the 'two year experience' that decent schools require, I don't think supply work is what he's going to be looking for.

A follow-up question:

If he will be a local hire at a different international school than her, will she still be able to add him to her contract as a dependent (and get flights, higher housing allowance, and international healthcare)?