WISS used to have an excellent reputation. I had many friends with kids there and they loved it. I did not know any teachers. This info is 4 years old. Also, I know that what the kids and parents experience can be very different from what the teachers experience.
As an aside, I am finding that there is a dearth of info on schools in general on the paid side. And the schools that have been reviewed, many are out of date. I feel that we need to keep the info flowing in order to inform our fellow teachers. I have been guilty of this as well.

We were there in during some of the golden years and into the beginning of the dark time, read the tea leaves and hit the trail. We had a few months of late rent paid and a couple of salary scares. We were just in time. Luckily we received all of our gratuity. We were very lucky to leave when we did. It was the best place to work then the worst place to work. So very sad.

Also the water. It caused or exacerbated my son's exzema. you can't drink it but you do bathe in it. You'll need to think about air filters and water filtering. You should check out shanghaiexpat forum and echina cities; urbanatomy, Shanghai family magazine online and shanghai mama. all of these are online resources that have forums articles and other info for living in Shanghai.

On the other hand, living in the most dynamic city on earth (I think) is pretty great. Having your kids learn Chinese is also pretty great.

Lots of things to think about.

We seriously think of going back all the time. We miss it. Two of my kids were born there, it's like a second home. I miss the challenge, the language, the food, the people. I also hate the challenge, the food, the people too. It's a crazy, wonderful, dirty, strange, dynamic, interesting place. We were never, ever bored. However, my parents would disown us if we took our kids back. Really, the pollution is a worry.

HereThereEverywhere wrote:
> Based on your post I will assume two things which very much may not be true
> for people who teach in China, or may be so depending on the job they take.
> First, it seems that you have taken a job in an international wing of a
> national school. Secondly it seems that you were not in one of the 5 major
> cities where most people end up. I will proceed with those assumptions.
>
> Ok, agree with your good stuff. Totally true and basically the big reasons
> people go to China are to save and because China is the new west as far as
> opportunities goes. Bad stuff, I have some qualms with. Assuming you are in
> an international wing of a Chinese HS,
> 1 Yes, they may not follow the western calendar. Why should schools in
> China follow the western calendar? Some do, some don’t, some mesh. Really
> depends on the depth of the internationalization of the school you teach in
> and the government’s stance to it. There are advantages and disadvantages
> to both calendars which you nicely point out later. 6 weekends in a row is
> insane, which also leads me to believe you were in an Int wing of Chinese
> school and not a full fledged International School.
> 2. This is true and can be frustrating. Yes, prices go up. Have you ever
> travelled on Christmas/Easter, etc. in the western world? Welcome to the
> eastern equivalent. Completely agree with the fact there a billion people
> moving around during these times, perhaps more like 1.3 billion give or
> take. It can be terribly stressful to travel inside China during these
> times, avoid it. Stay home or go abroad. At other times travel in China can
> be very cheap considering the breadth of the country and the service
> received.
> 3. Agreeing here with point 3. People are generally very nice once they
> know you, by western standards. They do spit, cough, pee, and stare.
> Remember that China is experiencing the most rapid movement of populace
> from the country to the cities in the world and most likely these people
> are first time city dwellers. Take it in stride, take it as the way it is.
> To do otherwise will drive you insane because that baby with the split
> pants who just pooped on the subway platform, that’s not the last time you
> will see something like that. Just remember, no one else blinked an eye.
>
> 4. Now that is just not true. Many people don’t speak English, but a lot of
> people do in urban centers. Yes, it is hard to get around even in the most
> urban places, but you can. Learning 100 words of Chinese gets you 90% of
> everywhere and having a friend who is Chinese gets you the extra 9%. Its
> odd that the poster says in section 4 that its hard to get, “clothing, and
> basic things” when in number 1 they say you can get everything on Taobao.
> If you live in an urban center you can get anything at all. The end. Yeah,
> you can’t buy your red cheddar at the corner shop but hey, you are living
> in a foreign country with different priorities. Take a cab ride or
> underground to get what you like in any major city. Its there, you just
> have to take an extra step for it. True, you need locals to open accounts
> and transfer money, which sucks.
>
> 5. The pollution is worse than you think. Really, it is. This is because
> you come from the west and because it is terrible much of the time even if
> you are from China. In this case it doesn’t matter much where you live.
> Pollution in China seeps into everything. Air is bad, water is bad, etc.
> you really have to look for the bright spots. I look at the AQI a lot for
> the major centers and much of the time it does read above the highly
> polluted levels, but there are cleaner days as well. My advice here is to
> just be careful. Get a mask, put filters in your home, watch the AQI and
> buckle in for the ride. If it’s not clean outside then watch a movie at
> home. Get out when you can.
>
> As a general information I lived in a major center of China for a few years
> and am about to go back again. Yes, go back. Despite the warts there is
> something about China that attracts, besides the high salaries. It’s a
> place where things seem to be moving and shaking and if you keep your
> priorities straight you can probably find a nice little slice there. If you
> are a nature lover who is adverse to eastern culture you will hate it. Just
> choose carefully.


Yes, yes, yes!!!!!

"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." quote from tdaley

We have and are currently. I agree that it is probably because the school is looking for stability. During our last job search, at every interview, the interviewer was very excited that we stayed 8 years at our last school. It's a positive to be stable. One of the biggest negatives of international schools is the turnover of staff and students. Honestly, that was the most important reason for us putting our kids in local school instead of our international school in our last country.

Our current school covers health care, flights every contract but not housing. Here, we are struggling compared to China. We had bigger better bennies before. Of course, we can breath and see the blue sky here, every day:)

You can look into a PGCEi which is a British teaching certificate you can obtain overseas. You will not be able to use it in Britain, but can use it in international schools. I'm on the University of Nottingham course. I have many former colleagues who have taken this course. Check it out.

It's easy Asia here. English spoken is a start. There are some challenges and benefits of the multi religious-ness. For once our kids are learning about different religions and cultures. I love the openness of the society here. we don't live on the mainland though. we're in Penang. We have other acquaintances also from China (long term 9 years) that now teach in KL and really love it. Easy to drive here. Cars are expensive, but petrol, insurance and resell is good. Oh, and the weather is the same all the time. In the summer forest fires in Indonsesia blow smoke over here. Also, pork products are not so acceptable here but available.

We moved from China recently. Money/package is not as good here, but much better than the U.K. We're going through our savings here. We were footloose and fancy free in China.

We did 14 years in China til just about a year and a half ago. I could have told you all of that. When you say no one told you. Maybe you didn't ask the right person.

Thanks. How can I forget? Used to play softball out at Concordia. I've friends working at Dulwich. Friends' kids going to WISS. I've been away too long.

British International School
Rego International School
Shanghai American School
Shanghai United (many campuses with different curriculums)
Singapore international School
YK Pao
Shanghai Community International School
Wellington
Yew Chung
French and German School
Then there are local schools that have international streams and have some foreign teachers and do combo curriculums, curricula?

Did I miss any?

Some do British curriculum, some American or AP, many do IB, Some do combos of an international and Chinese curriculum, one does a Canadian curriculum.

I have not lived in Changzhou, but I have lived in 2 nd and 3 rd tier cities in China and I have travelled extensively in the country. Living in a 3 rd tier city is a very challenging proposition. You will need to learn Chinese, as much as you can, in order to have some independence in your daily life. Otherwise you're asking your Chinese colleagues to help you every day. Talking to a landlord, ordering food In a restaurant, asking directions, talking to a taxi driver, getting a phone, bank account, buying water, shopping anywhere, or having domestic help will all be extremely difficult unless you speak Chinese. If you have children they will be a big curiosity, stared at and approached and touched by all the locals. What is the health care like? Outside the big three cities like Shanghai, the hospital situation is very challenging. If there isn't an international hospital, your ability to get good care where you can communicate clearly will be nearly impossible. I have used a lot of local hospitals and while it is ok sometimes, they are very crowded and the queuing and queuing can get you down. And I can speak enough Chinese. Getting your hair cut and buying clothes will also be interesting. Hopefully there'll be an international hotel chain where you can escape occasionally. I know the previous poster was more on the glass half filled side, but don't fool yourself. Daily life challenges can get you down and effect your work. Hopefully the school will have a well organized welcome wagon. Our last school, in a tier 2 city, actually said that international teachers should be able to deal with any living challenge and were given no support. No help to set up their living situation like a phone or orientation to the city and pressured to rent from friends of the Chinese co-director.
I'm not saying don't have a go, but go with your eyes wide open. Check out e-China cities, Shanghai expat, urbanatomy sites online and search for info on the forums.

We did over a decade in Shanghai and really loved it. Moved to see what it was like in other places. We miss the city, money and variety. Don't miss the pollution, lack of green spaces and difficulty in getting below the surface with the locals. You really should learn Mandarin to make the most of your stay. It helps you save money too. You should also learn some local Shanghai dialect so you don't get ripped off all the time. I think about returning all the time. I would worry about the air and water quality for my kids. That was a bit challenging when we were there. If we didn't have kids, we'd go back in a heart beat. Also, my kids grew up speaking Mandarin, something they are losing quickly now.
I have a little advice. When you have your first holiday, don't jet off to Thailand. Hang out in the city and bike around. Getting to know the city really helps with adjusting to life. The National Holiday is a great time because the city quiets down and you can bike around easily. Biking around is a nice way to get familiar.
So, there you go.

I can say that the package is very, very good. But you may have to sell your soul a little.