more advice for someone new to this

[teacherleah]

Hi all. I am new to the forum and I can see that a few people have asked for advice about whether or not it's feasible to try and get into international teaching. I'd like some advice about if my experience and qualifications are strong enough to provide opportunities?

I have five years of Elementary teaching experience as a Special Education resource teacher (I have worked with students with learning disabilities, ADHD, and emotional/behavioral disturbances) and as a teacher of all subjects.

I am certified EC-8 as a Generalist, EC-12 Special Ed, Gifted and Talented, and ESL (I am the ESL contact on my campus).

I have some experience traveling abroad to Central America and Mexico. I love to travel in general and recently completed a bike trip down the coast of Oregon and Washington State.

I have a non-teaching spouse who will be TESOL certified and able to find his own job.

I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature.

I do not have children.

I do not have my sights set on teaching at a Tier 1 school. I'd ideally work in southeast Asia--Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc.

I want to make enough money to be able to travel some and to save some. My spouse and I currently live very frugally, do not own cars or technology, so my financial needs are not sky high, but I would like to match what I make currentlly ($44,300).

Is my dream possible?
Even with a non-teaching spouse and no IB experience?

Thank you!

[mathgym]

Getting a job might not be that difficult, but matching that salary ($44,000) is Asia will be. I have 25 yr experience, and live/teach in Asia and my salary is not even close to that. I have friends in Viet Nam and China and they don't make nearly that much either (think half that salary for a beginning teacher, in a non-tier1 school). That being said, the cost of living is quite cheap here compared to America, so you could live comfortably and travel in many places in Asia (maybe not Hong Kong/Singapore/Japan) on much less.

[BobStrauss]

[quote="PsyGuy"]Special ed isnt very big in Asia, it's called learning support, and there isnt a lot of it (compared to the number if schools there are).

Gifted and Talented only is marketable at the elite "American" schools, again small market.

ESL is very marketable in Asia, and the EC-8 generalist (you must be from Texas) will qualify you to work in primary though not typically middle school or secondary.

Your definatley qualified for the second tier schools (even without IB experience), so youd have no problem finding a job, but that salary is not possible unless your talking Asia as in somewhere in Japan (maybe Hong Kong or Singapore) but the costs of living in those places is VERY high. [b]In places like China, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia your looking at top salaries around $25K. [/b]The cost of living though are much lower, but if you have "bills back home" then your basically just taking a 50% pay cut.

The non working/teaching spouse may be a a challenge. The school isnt going to include insurance/airfare for him so those would be at your own expense. Your husband will need to take care of his own work visa as well. Though in most big cities him finding work on the ESL circuit wont be hard at all (probably be hired in a week).[/quote]

I disagree with the bolded section above. I work in (what would be referred to here as) a tier 3 school in Indonesia, and I pull in well over $25k as a not-yet-certified English teacher. This isn't in Jakarta either, where the salaries are generally much higher. The tier 2 schools, in Indonesia at least, offer solid salaries. Maybe not what you made before, but it will feel like a hell of a lot more due to the cost of living.

[calciodirigore]

Many genuine schools in SE Asia pay well over $44k - and this is before you include housing, flights, insurance, wellness, etc.

If you market yourself correctly, you should be able to land a decent paying job.

Good luck.

[calciodirigore]

Search information is often incorrect. This is one of several issues I have with them. For example: the information posted for the Beijing and Bangkok schools is completely inaccurate, as is the info on several South American schools. But that's for another post.

At my last ISS fair in Bangkok I was offered positions by several 'top 1 or 2 tier' schools in SE Asia. Everyone of them had me starting at over $44k.

I am not an administrator. I do have 10 + years of IB experience.

There are schools in Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Indonesia that pay very well. And again, the figures for these schools do not include housing, flights, wellness, etc.

Cheers and good luck.

[overseasvet2]

PsyGuy has omitted International School of Beijing (ISB) as one of the top two schools in Beijing. I don't know their salary range but it's quite high. A friend had a nightmare experience at BISS and broke contract after just one year. I know it's changed heads since then but according to her tales, I don't see how it could be rated in top tier.

By the way, ISB has started posting the openings on their website. It's getting to be that season...

[bulegila]

Don't just look at the salary but rather the saving potential. Even though the salary in Indonesia is smaller than Singapore you'll likely to be taking home more. With your experience you'll likely get around 30million rupiah a month in Indonesia (after tax) and flights + accommodation are provided. Whereas in Singapore if you do have an accommodation allowance a lot of the time it wouldn't be enough (apart from top schools) and accommodation is expensive so will be a big dent in saving potential.

I'm on a similar salary as stated above and supporting my husband while he's studying and we still save at least 10million a month ($1100). This is without being frugal what so ever. I certainly have a better quality of life here than in the UK where we barely had a penny at the end of the month. If you are frugal you'll be able to save a lot more. I enjoy my weekend breaks and holidays too much ;)

There are many ESL schools in Indonesia for your husband to work at. However be aware that some schools are having difficulties getting visas for their teachers due to a new visa rule. Language school teachers need to have a BA English or similar some schools but some schools still get round this. There is also a possibility that he could network his way into a Tier 2/3 school to work. They don't seem to have the same problem with visas for some reason.

ESL language school teachers salaries range from 7million rp (EF's) to 15 million rp a month (Wall Street Institute/ TBI etc). The school will pay for his visa, health insurance, flights and in some cases provide a housing allowance.

[calciodirigore]

To PsyGuy:

Really? Proof? Of all of the individuals on this forum you are the person who has posted the most unsubstantiated claims of any I have ever seen. Like I said before, most of your info is inaccurate, and of late, it has simply been laughable.

Onto the matter of proof once again; there really isn't much more that I can say other than the fact that I have seen, since 2008, the contracts of about 15 schools in SE Asia. I'm not speaking of second or third hand information, I've actually seen the figures. I also have 30 years of experience in South American international schools. First as a student, then as the son of board members, and finally as a teacher at two 'top tier' schools. This is a public forum, so take that information and do with it what you like.

You bombard this forum with mostly ridiculous claims (the Kazakhstan and Hong Kong ones being the most recent)...and you are an administrator. Frightening.

I know you would never reveal the whereabouts of your location, so it's just a matter of pure luck that some of us don't end up at your school.