Western Academy of Beijiing
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fran
Western Academy of Beijiing
Can anyone give me any information about this school? Its website looks great. Can you give me any information about what it is like to live in Beijing and to work at this school?
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Worked in Beijing
WAB
Hi,
I recently worked at an international school in Beijing.
The Western Academy of Beijing has an outstanding reputation in the city and has grown massively over the past few years. It is a full IB school with great facilities and a terrific package for teachers. One thing that impressed me was the fact that all teachers and students had a notebook computer. If I was to return to Beijing, this school and the International School of Beijing would be the only 2 that I would consider.
I do have some misgivings with WAB. First, the overriding impression I got after meeting their administrators was incredible arrogance. At the Sydney Search fair in 2005, many candidates felt the same way about their administrators. As an example, they really freaked out the Search guy by running way over time when they gave their presentation - this seems kind of trivial, but those fairs run like clockwork, with the administrators having interviews scheduled throughout the day. By ignoring the Search guy's plea to wrap it up, they kept the next school waiting. Given that this Head may have had interviews scheduled straight after his presentation, it really struck me as quite selfish and inconsiderate.
A second concern is that the staff at WAB always appeared highly stressed. The expectations on teachers there are extremely high. Although I have a considerable work ethic, I do want to work in an environment where people are happy and enjoying themselves.
I'm not sure how helpful this has been. All I can say is that I would consider working there, but would do some more research by trying to talk to some WAB teachers before signing up. My number one question is "are teachers given enough time to actually look after their students?" There are a lot of 'bells and whistles' at WAB - so is enough attention paid to simple day to day teaching?
As for Beijing, there are some negatives. The first and biggest for me was the pollution. The second was the lack of green space - it is a very grey city.
However, I really enjoyed my time in the city. The people are very friendly and accommodating - although you do have to realise that they do not have the same concept of 'personal space' that westerners may have. This, and their habit of spitting did annoy some of my colleagues.
There is lots to do - great food, travel and sporting opportunities etc. Housing is fine - a school like WAB would give you something like $US1000 a month (more for families). You can find a really nice place for that amount - although it will be small. And, last but not least, you have the Olympics coming up in a couple of years.
In short, I'd jump at the chance to get back to Beijing when my existing contract expires.
I hope this was of some assistance.
I recently worked at an international school in Beijing.
The Western Academy of Beijing has an outstanding reputation in the city and has grown massively over the past few years. It is a full IB school with great facilities and a terrific package for teachers. One thing that impressed me was the fact that all teachers and students had a notebook computer. If I was to return to Beijing, this school and the International School of Beijing would be the only 2 that I would consider.
I do have some misgivings with WAB. First, the overriding impression I got after meeting their administrators was incredible arrogance. At the Sydney Search fair in 2005, many candidates felt the same way about their administrators. As an example, they really freaked out the Search guy by running way over time when they gave their presentation - this seems kind of trivial, but those fairs run like clockwork, with the administrators having interviews scheduled throughout the day. By ignoring the Search guy's plea to wrap it up, they kept the next school waiting. Given that this Head may have had interviews scheduled straight after his presentation, it really struck me as quite selfish and inconsiderate.
A second concern is that the staff at WAB always appeared highly stressed. The expectations on teachers there are extremely high. Although I have a considerable work ethic, I do want to work in an environment where people are happy and enjoying themselves.
I'm not sure how helpful this has been. All I can say is that I would consider working there, but would do some more research by trying to talk to some WAB teachers before signing up. My number one question is "are teachers given enough time to actually look after their students?" There are a lot of 'bells and whistles' at WAB - so is enough attention paid to simple day to day teaching?
As for Beijing, there are some negatives. The first and biggest for me was the pollution. The second was the lack of green space - it is a very grey city.
However, I really enjoyed my time in the city. The people are very friendly and accommodating - although you do have to realise that they do not have the same concept of 'personal space' that westerners may have. This, and their habit of spitting did annoy some of my colleagues.
There is lots to do - great food, travel and sporting opportunities etc. Housing is fine - a school like WAB would give you something like $US1000 a month (more for families). You can find a really nice place for that amount - although it will be small. And, last but not least, you have the Olympics coming up in a couple of years.
In short, I'd jump at the chance to get back to Beijing when my existing contract expires.
I hope this was of some assistance.
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No snobs or spitters
WAB
The comment about the arrogant administrator at the Search Associates Fair brought back a not-so-distant memory of a similar incident from an ISS IRC a couple of years back. I walked up to the WAB table and attempted to introduce myself and share a a bit about my background, while giving this woman my resume. The snooty woman barely looked at my resume before shooting me down with an overly abrupt comment like I was not experienced enough - despite having a masters degree in education and nearly 10 years of experience. What was especially annoying was that she didn't even give me the consideration of letting me reply, quickly dismissing me like yesterday's newspaper. I was left there stunned for a moment. This 30 second (if that!) meeting left me with a sour taste in my mouth about WAB. In saying this, I am not saying the school is bad. Like the other poster said, it has a good reputation and a good package from what I hear.
Just out of curiosity, where are most of the teachers at WAB from? the U.S., Canada, England, Australia, NZ...?? After my very brief encounter with that woman (a Brit or Aussie, but can't recall), I was wondering if they tend to hire teachers mostly from the UK.
Pay heed to the warning from the other poster about working at high stress schools that are WAY too demanding with committee work, stragegic objective plans, accreditation or re-accreditation etc. etc. Good luck and I hope you get a job at WAB, if that is where you would like to work.
Just out of curiosity, where are most of the teachers at WAB from? the U.S., Canada, England, Australia, NZ...?? After my very brief encounter with that woman (a Brit or Aussie, but can't recall), I was wondering if they tend to hire teachers mostly from the UK.
Pay heed to the warning from the other poster about working at high stress schools that are WAY too demanding with committee work, stragegic objective plans, accreditation or re-accreditation etc. etc. Good luck and I hope you get a job at WAB, if that is where you would like to work.
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fran
Western Academy of Beijiing
Thankyou for your posting regarding my inquiry. All of the information is very helpful and I really appreciate the time you took to respond! Can I explore a little about the comments regarding overworked, stressed-out looking teachers? Do you know if this overworked situation has to do with classroom preparation or is it more to do with meetings and extracurricular activities or something else? Again anything more you can tell me in this area would be helpful.
I am doing this research early for next year's recruitment sessions. I am at a school this year that ends up being so contrary to my personal beliefs about education that I am being really cautious about getting a new contract at another school. I really want to be treated professionally bottom line.
I am doing this research early for next year's recruitment sessions. I am at a school this year that ends up being so contrary to my personal beliefs about education that I am being really cautious about getting a new contract at another school. I really want to be treated professionally bottom line.
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Worked in Beijing
WAB
Fran,
The feedbackI got from WAB teachers re. workload was that:
1. They have a lot of meetings. Everything has to be discussed and debated. Not necessarily a bad thing. A friend of mine said he was attending 4 or 5 a week
2. The Head is very keen to involve the school in lots of 'whiz bang' ventures. Building relationships with local schools, developing networks with other international schools, running special days, weekend workshops, special 'events' such as Art exhibitions. Again, not at all bad things. The trouble is that they all add to the workload of the teachers.
As I said, I would not dismiss WAB from my future employment consideration, but I would like to talk to them more about their expectations of their teachers.
As for the previous posters recollection of meeting the WAB representative at the job fair, I am not the least bit surprised. My guess is that for all your experience, you are not IB trained. They no longer employ teachers without experience in the PYP, MYP or DP programmes. The other possibility is that you had dependents that they could not afford to subsidise (they have no extra room in their classes, as their waiting lists are massive). Again, it would have only taken 90 seconds to politely explain this to you. Their manner does concern me.
They don't have a British teacher bias - more a bias in favour of IB trained/experienced teachers.
The feedbackI got from WAB teachers re. workload was that:
1. They have a lot of meetings. Everything has to be discussed and debated. Not necessarily a bad thing. A friend of mine said he was attending 4 or 5 a week
2. The Head is very keen to involve the school in lots of 'whiz bang' ventures. Building relationships with local schools, developing networks with other international schools, running special days, weekend workshops, special 'events' such as Art exhibitions. Again, not at all bad things. The trouble is that they all add to the workload of the teachers.
As I said, I would not dismiss WAB from my future employment consideration, but I would like to talk to them more about their expectations of their teachers.
As for the previous posters recollection of meeting the WAB representative at the job fair, I am not the least bit surprised. My guess is that for all your experience, you are not IB trained. They no longer employ teachers without experience in the PYP, MYP or DP programmes. The other possibility is that you had dependents that they could not afford to subsidise (they have no extra room in their classes, as their waiting lists are massive). Again, it would have only taken 90 seconds to politely explain this to you. Their manner does concern me.
They don't have a British teacher bias - more a bias in favour of IB trained/experienced teachers.
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JimboBosso
rude englishwoman
There is something Americans do not understand about the English: "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me." The English will verbally insult each other and NEVER come to blows or think much of it. In fact, on occasion a good insult will earn their respect. If you want to have some enlightening amusement, watch their prime minister get batted around in parley-ment. This behavior is shocking to Americans but it is a testament to their democratic and civilized nature. However, they are insensitive to feelings. You are expected to be able to handle non-violent attack. But, look at that Simon person on American Idol, that is their mentality. The real problem is that they will take the same approach to youth. They have a Brit hurting the feelings of youth on a show now. It is awful to see. I have had very good experience with the ones I meet living here in Florida. Unfortunately, since they ran half the world at one time, some of that insensitivity has been imbued into some of the Asian cultures. You also have to remember that ex-pats are often not the best of a country, as you will find out if you are ever stationed near an American military base.
Moral: Never take offense from the words of a Brit. He's not mad at you unless he hits you. They might like you if you have a good verbal comeback like, "I guess charm is no longer taught in England." Don't expect them to back down or acknowledge it, but they will remember you with some respect. If you do this, you are a better man than I.
Moral: Never take offense from the words of a Brit. He's not mad at you unless he hits you. They might like you if you have a good verbal comeback like, "I guess charm is no longer taught in England." Don't expect them to back down or acknowledge it, but they will remember you with some respect. If you do this, you are a better man than I.
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lagringa
WAB
I haven't worked at WAB, but have worked in Beijing. As mentioned, WAB has an excellent reputation in town and the waiting lists are long. The facilities are impressive and the package is quite good. I got the impression that there were quite a few more Brits/Aussies/Kiwis there than you might normally find, but I don't know if that's the result of a bias or just how the makeup happened to be. I suppose the WAB staff may be stressed, but it was generally acknowledged that they were not as overworked as the folks at ISB, though they are also not paid as much as ISBers. All the WAB teachers I encountered seemed very happy with their jobs.
Beijing was a great place to live. Yes, the air pollution is horrendous and probably the major reason most people leave. However, the food and shopping are amazing, everyone has a maid, travel throughout Asia is easy and affordable, housing is excellent, massages are cheap, and there is a ton to do. You can live like a king and it makes up for a lot of the bad air, spitting, etc. And of course, the Olympics - enough said.
If I were you, I'd jump at the chance to work at WAB.
Beijing was a great place to live. Yes, the air pollution is horrendous and probably the major reason most people leave. However, the food and shopping are amazing, everyone has a maid, travel throughout Asia is easy and affordable, housing is excellent, massages are cheap, and there is a ton to do. You can live like a king and it makes up for a lot of the bad air, spitting, etc. And of course, the Olympics - enough said.
If I were you, I'd jump at the chance to work at WAB.
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Lao Beijing ren
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been there
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Mon Nov 27, 2006 12:36 am
WAB
I would concur with the person who was treated so rudely by the person who was at sign up for WAB. When I talked to the job fair people about the way this school treats prospective teachers, he said he had heard this complaint many times before about WAB. So beware. They need to have their ego deflated a little.