Search found 320 matches

by mamava
Sun Jun 06, 2021 3:45 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Covid Situation in Malaysia
Replies: 5
Views: 6311

Re: Covid Situation in Malaysia

I have a friend currently teaching here and are in lockdown, so they can't leave Malaysia for the summer break. If you are planning to start there in August, you're probably going to be delayed.
by mamava
Thu May 13, 2021 7:57 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Signs it is Time to Move On
Replies: 43
Views: 77869

Re: Signs it is Time to Move On

When you feel tired. When you start casting a negative or pessimistic eye at a new initiative or idea. When you look down the road a few years and see things basically going the same way they are now--and you don't really care. When you feel like you've done what you set out to do in your current setting.
by mamava
Tue Mar 30, 2021 2:15 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: TV with luggage
Replies: 13
Views: 14829

Re: TV with luggage

Definitely not a TV expert, but some countries use PAL and some use SECAM signals, so some TVs from some countries won't work in others. We had a big TV that was a great deal where we lived, but we couldn't bring it back to our house in the US because of this.
by mamava
Thu Mar 25, 2021 10:02 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Curious about trailing spouse careers
Replies: 6
Views: 9068

Re: Curious about trailing spouse careers

It would depend on the country and if the spouse can get a work visa. Additionally, the language of the country might be a barrier. Some trailing spouses work as subs/coaches/tutors at the school or volunteer at the school or another organization (again, the language might be an issue). I have not known a lot of trailing husbands--a couple that I did know struggled a bit because most of them are women. One of my colleagues has a trailing husband who is writing a book. Getting paid employment might be a challenge.
by mamava
Wed Feb 17, 2021 8:06 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Is it too late to begin?
Replies: 11
Views: 10975

Re: Is it too late to begin?

"I've heard that it is quite difficult to get decent teaching positions in your 50's and nearly impossible in your 60s (for those countries that even allow you to work past 60). Is this true? In my later teaching years would we be any more competitive because we are a teaching couple and she would still be relatively young?

This is a reality. As a teacher in my mid-50s (with a spouse, no dependent kids now) we're facing a awkwardness of wanting to make 1 more move and having so many countries unavailable to us because of the age thing. Yes, people will tell you you can teach into your 60s and they're right. But, you'll be trailing 2 dependents--and a lot of schools that might more easily hire you may be lower tier, and the higher quality schools that might consider 2 dependents will be quite competitive. Primary spots at good schools are often reserved for the spouses of high-need teachers (physics, chemistry, math, admin) and everyone's right--you'd be essentially competing with your spouse (unless you can both cover lower and upper elementary).

I don't think the child is the issue. Good schools hire the best teachers, even if they have kids--the issue is more the 2 dependents and age.
by mamava
Tue Feb 09, 2021 2:30 pm
Forum: Forum 2. Ask Recruiting Questions, Share Information. What's on Your Mind?
Topic: Teaching in Italian International Schools
Replies: 8
Views: 31155

Re: Teaching in Italian International Schools

The pay is quite low. After a couple of years, taxes kick in and your salary may not cover your expenses. Some schools don't offer housing benefits or annual flights. The places where the schools may be located and/or where you can afford to live are not the tourist areas that we see when we we visit. The national health care system can be very challenging to navigate and schools may not offer support to navigate the systems in Italy.

On the paid side of this site, there are numerous reviews of lots of different Italian schools and they all seem to cover similar complaints.
by mamava
Tue Feb 02, 2021 10:37 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Teaching Abroad and Home Ownership
Replies: 13
Views: 21228

Re: Teaching Abroad and Home Ownership

sid wrote:
> Think long and hard before going down this road. If you don't have
> the money to pay the mortgage, whether or not you have a job or tenants,
> this could be a costly mistake.

I would echo this. As good as it's been for us. when we sold our first home, we bought the 2nd so no mortgage. Very reasonable HOA fees and the row house formation keeps our heating bills down and we don't have frozen pipe issues. In these times, Sid's advice about carrying mortgages, etc. is certainly worth heeding. Unless you live near a university or in a desirable vacay spot, you probably can't rent it out and also expect to live in it. In that case, it's an investment property only and wear and tear is a factor.
by mamava
Wed Jan 27, 2021 11:10 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Teaching Abroad and Home Ownership
Replies: 13
Views: 21228

Re: Teaching Abroad and Home Ownership

We love it. We kept our single family home for 11 years and rented it out. We had a good friend act as our contact and she did a checkup on the house every 3 months for repairs, etc. The leases turned over in the summer so we were able to get new tenants ourselves as needed. We could see the house slowly deteriorating as a rental, however, and we wanted to establish a stronger base at home as our kids approached college-age, so we sold it and bought a townhouse.

Leaving a house vacant for long periods is hard on the building. Depending on the weather, serious issues can come up--we are based in Minnesota and were concerned about ice dams, breaking pipes, etc., and damage we weren't aware of. Our townhouse is a row house with no exposed pipes. Our friend still pops over and checks it out but the risk of damage is much smaller and our utility bills are much more manageable.

As our kids transitioned into college and life in the US our home base was invaluable. They could get driver's licenses, summer jobs, and start to build a connection to a place they barely remembered. It went a long way to making their transition smoother. And we love having it turnkey we when come home for vacay!
by mamava
Sun Dec 13, 2020 8:17 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Is it too late to begin?
Replies: 11
Views: 10975

Re: Reply

PsyGuy wrote:
> @seouljaboi
>
>
> 3) Sure there are, but those kids are school aged, they attend the IS.
> There are ITs with kids who arent school aged but leadership know that a
> newborn is going to require absences by a parent when stuff happens. Even
> if it doesnt happen, they dont know it wont. An IS will bend some for one
> of those ITs thats worth it, but your a noob IT couple with very, very
> light resumes, why would a recruiter or leadership take a chance on you and
> that headache when there are plenty of ITs with resumes like yours who dont
> have those challenges.

While I agree with a lot of what PsyGuy has said, the issue of a young child in an of itself has not been an issue that I've seen, or that colleagues in that position have reported. In Asia and here in Brazil nannies are very common and affordable for a 2 income family. A current colleague is in their first overseas post with 3 kids and the youngest was 6 months when they were hired. I worked in China with 2 colleagues that were pregnant when interviewing. I would think that more of your issues are related to your age and new teacher status...sure, some recruiters might take a pass, but they're more likely to pass on other issues.
by mamava
Wed Dec 09, 2020 8:52 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: The dilemma, take the bait?
Replies: 7
Views: 7739

Re: The dilemma, take the bait?

sid wrote:
> You’ve got to do an honest self assessment.
> If you’re weak on paper and strong in reality, they’ll keep you. If you’re
> just not the greatest with kids and deadlines and paperwork and attendance
> and collegial planning and and and... then you’ll be gone.

I agree. Are you willing to become QTS? If so, then the jump might be a good one to start moving up the quality ladder while you are getting qualifications. If you are not interested in that, then maybe you're better off staying because moving up the ladder in terms of quality schools means you'll have to be qualified anyway.
by mamava
Sat Dec 05, 2020 3:52 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Schools that pay in local and foreign currency
Replies: 11
Views: 10936

Re: Response

PsyGuy wrote:

> Its common in an IE contract or as policy to be paid a portion of your
> salary in a stable currency such as USD/CAD/GBP/AUD/EUR.

It's good to check that carefully. In every country I've taught in, we've been paid in local currency, but for the previous 2 schools, the currency valuation was very stable the whole time we were there. Now we're in Brazil, and ouch. Legally, schools are required to pay in local currency. It killed us the first year, and now again. Our bonuses are announced as USD so we get the equivalent in local currency at the time it gets paid out and if you can keep your $$ in country, you're actually pretty ok. For anyone who pays regular bills in their home country, it hurts.
by mamava
Tue Dec 01, 2020 8:37 pm
Forum: Forum 2. Ask Recruiting Questions, Share Information. What's on Your Mind?
Topic: Second Interview Tips
Replies: 1
Views: 14523

Re: Second Interview Tips

It depends. If you are interviewing with a different person on the 2nd interview, I often ask questions pertaining to that person job. So if I was interviewed by the Curriculum director, I'd target questions about that. If it's the head of school, I would might ask some questions about financial health or the role of the board.

If it's the same person interviewing you, I often ask the type of questions they ask me. Tell me about a time when.... where they have to give back some more detailed information.

I always ask a couple of softer questions about the lifestyle of the city--best and worst aspects, etc.
by mamava
Mon Nov 16, 2020 10:20 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: VPN For China
Replies: 6
Views: 7288

Re: VPN For China

We used Strong VPN when we were there and after. Good customer service! Now we're using Express VPN.
by mamava
Fri Oct 23, 2020 9:04 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: How to apply as a teaching couple
Replies: 5
Views: 5535

Re: How to apply as a teaching couple

cbadnc wrote:
> Thanks so much! Can you suggest websites/experts that could assist us with
> our CVs and Cover Letters?

Hopefully, others can. For my CVs, I google searched for examples from educators. For our cover letters, again I googled, but it's a LOT of writing, rewriting, and refining so it has the right friendly/professional tone, honest and not repeating my CV. I would say I probably spend easily 12-14 hours until I get it right. I also structure it so I can easily pop information in based on each particular school--if we have a connection to someone there, if we need to comment on some aspect of the school, etc. Again, we are both doing that in our respective letters, but in our own voice.