For some, international school teaching is a wonderful 2-3 year adventure away from home. Others make a career out of teaching abroad, spending the bulk of their years overseas. How much time do you envision teaching overseas?
I am currently in my first overseas teaching posting (have never taught at home), and I will likely teach abroad for the rest of my life. A few of my reasons are...
(1) Thrill and adventure of living in a different culture. Feeling more 'alive' when living abroad than I do in my home country.
(2) Amazing travel oppurtunities. The ability to travel internationally several times a year is amazing.
(3) More dynamic teaching environment. I feel that there is more motivation to continuously improve as a teacher when abroad, as there is always a "better" school to aspire to.
(4) Oppurtunity to make approximately the same teaching salary while living in a country with 1/2 the cost of living.
(5) Lack of teaching jobs in my home country (Canada).
How long will you teach abroad?
-
rumour5182
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2012 6:08 pm
- Location: U.S.
I'm at the end of the first year of my two-year contract in SE Asia. When we first decided to move abroad to work (myself and a non-teaching spouse), we thought we'd do this for the rest of our working lives (or at least a good portion of it). But, despite all the wonderful benefits (travel opportunities, lower cost of living/higher savings potential, working with smart and informed people from all around the world), we've now decided to set a somewhat definitive end date. The plan is to finish out the two-year contract, add on a third year, and then attempt a two- or three-year post at another school in Western or Eastern Europe, or possibly Morocco, Egypt or Jordan, then go back to the U.S. IF that doesn't work out, then we'll return home instead. It's too hard to think about starting a family this far from home and raising third-culture kids, plus doing it away from the grandparents, and I've both had an unexpected death in my family which has left us thinking this is unmanageable for the long-term.
(Of course, plans change, so nothing is set in stone. :) )
(Of course, plans change, so nothing is set in stone. :) )
-
Teachermom
- Posts: 59
- Joined: Wed Nov 28, 2012 7:14 am
- Location: Asia
Hi Rumor5182,
If this is your first year abroad, then give it some more time. Assuming you just got to your post last summer, then you might still be in the famed "dip" of culture shock. It gets better.
I'm a lifer, and I have young kids. We've been at our current post for 4 years, and if we move again we'll be looking for another long stint....so we're not in that group that moves on so often.
I love the expat family life. Plus suburban America bores me to tears!
If this is your first year abroad, then give it some more time. Assuming you just got to your post last summer, then you might still be in the famed "dip" of culture shock. It gets better.
I'm a lifer, and I have young kids. We've been at our current post for 4 years, and if we move again we'll be looking for another long stint....so we're not in that group that moves on so often.
I love the expat family life. Plus suburban America bores me to tears!
We're in our second year abroad and we're in our 40s. Looking at moving to another overseas location next year or the year after. Hoping to stay there at least three years and then move on one final time to see us out to retirement. I can't see us going home, but you can't predict what will happen a few years down the line. We have two young kids, one of whom has never lived in our home country.
This is our fourth, nonconsecutive year overseas. (We did two years, then went home for a few years, and have been overseas these past two years.) We're moving on to a new school at the end of this year. If we love it, we hope to stay at least four years and then see what happens after that. Otherwise, we'll do our two years and then more than likely return home.
At first, we thought we'd stay overseas for our entire careers. There's a lot to recommend it, including better savings potential and incredible travel opportunities. But the pull of home is strong because that's where our family and truest friends are, and with a young child in the equation, we're just not sure if we want to stay away. Maybe. Maybe not.
But I can never really say I'll do *anything* for the rest of my life. So much can change in a year or so.
At first, we thought we'd stay overseas for our entire careers. There's a lot to recommend it, including better savings potential and incredible travel opportunities. But the pull of home is strong because that's where our family and truest friends are, and with a young child in the equation, we're just not sure if we want to stay away. Maybe. Maybe not.
But I can never really say I'll do *anything* for the rest of my life. So much can change in a year or so.
-
higgsboson
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2010 1:13 am
The question for me is, how long CAN I teach abroad?
I'm at an international school in the States right now and I hate it. I can't wait to leave. I consider this past year a wasted year. A huge mistake. I don't know what I was thinking. Teaching in America sucks.
If I can, I'll do this until the day I die and count myself blessed beyond compare. I love changing jobs every year or two, or sometimes twice within a year. Once I had THREE jobs in THREE different countries in one year. This is a great life.
I just wonder how old is too old for the schools not for me. In Thailand, I say some teachers in their late 60s but I don't think I've ever met a teacher overseas in their 70s. Unfortunately, I'll need to work till I drop.
That's the better question: How long CAN I teach overseas before schools start to say sorry, you are just too old.
I'm at an international school in the States right now and I hate it. I can't wait to leave. I consider this past year a wasted year. A huge mistake. I don't know what I was thinking. Teaching in America sucks.
If I can, I'll do this until the day I die and count myself blessed beyond compare. I love changing jobs every year or two, or sometimes twice within a year. Once I had THREE jobs in THREE different countries in one year. This is a great life.
I just wonder how old is too old for the schools not for me. In Thailand, I say some teachers in their late 60s but I don't think I've ever met a teacher overseas in their 70s. Unfortunately, I'll need to work till I drop.
That's the better question: How long CAN I teach overseas before schools start to say sorry, you are just too old.
-
panta_rhei
- Posts: 49
- Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 10:46 am
[quote="higgsboson"]
I just wonder how old is too old for the schools not for me. In Thailand, I say some teachers in their late 60s but I don't think I've ever met a teacher overseas in their 70s. Unfortunately, I'll need to work till I drop.
[/quote]
What do you mean you need to work until you drop??
I just wonder how old is too old for the schools not for me. In Thailand, I say some teachers in their late 60s but I don't think I've ever met a teacher overseas in their 70s. Unfortunately, I'll need to work till I drop.
[/quote]
What do you mean you need to work until you drop??
-
higgsboson
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2010 1:13 am
-
rumour5182
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2012 6:08 pm
- Location: U.S.
[quote="Teachermom"]Hi Rumor5182,
If this is your first year abroad, then give it some more time. Assuming you just got to your post last summer, then you might still be in the famed "dip" of culture shock. It gets better.
I'm a lifer, and I have young kids. We've been at our current post for 4 years, and if we move again we'll be looking for another long stint....so we're not in that group that moves on so often.
I love the expat family life. Plus suburban America bores me to tears![/quote]
Thanks for the response, Teachermom. For us personally, it's not about the culture shock -- we only came to this decision in the past month. When we first arrived -- and for the first six or eight months -- we were set on staying abroad for decades. Part of our decision is about the expat life. As much as I love the travel, I'm not a huge fan of the maid/nanny/driver lifestyle. It bothers me to see how much money my friends and colleagues waste in their daily lives, and how little time they actually spend with their children, and I just don't think I'll get accustomed to living around that for a lifetime.
Plus, unlike most people I've met overseas, we actually really like the U.S. Teaching in U.S. schools has its pitfalls (standardized tests, poorly determined tenure rules), but there are things I love (common standards that don't change at the whim of the teachers working there at the time, clear delineation between teacher responsibilities and administrator responsibilities). We also like living in the U.S. (big cities -- Chicago, Nashville, D.C. -- not the 'burbs) and travelling to places like Yellowstone and the Rocky Mountains.
I know that makes us the odd ones out in a sea of people who are charmed by expat life (very few of my friends here understand our reasoning), but for us, this is a wonderful experience that we are enjoying every second of, but which will have a definite conclusion when we return home.
If this is your first year abroad, then give it some more time. Assuming you just got to your post last summer, then you might still be in the famed "dip" of culture shock. It gets better.
I'm a lifer, and I have young kids. We've been at our current post for 4 years, and if we move again we'll be looking for another long stint....so we're not in that group that moves on so often.
I love the expat family life. Plus suburban America bores me to tears![/quote]
Thanks for the response, Teachermom. For us personally, it's not about the culture shock -- we only came to this decision in the past month. When we first arrived -- and for the first six or eight months -- we were set on staying abroad for decades. Part of our decision is about the expat life. As much as I love the travel, I'm not a huge fan of the maid/nanny/driver lifestyle. It bothers me to see how much money my friends and colleagues waste in their daily lives, and how little time they actually spend with their children, and I just don't think I'll get accustomed to living around that for a lifetime.
Plus, unlike most people I've met overseas, we actually really like the U.S. Teaching in U.S. schools has its pitfalls (standardized tests, poorly determined tenure rules), but there are things I love (common standards that don't change at the whim of the teachers working there at the time, clear delineation between teacher responsibilities and administrator responsibilities). We also like living in the U.S. (big cities -- Chicago, Nashville, D.C. -- not the 'burbs) and travelling to places like Yellowstone and the Rocky Mountains.
I know that makes us the odd ones out in a sea of people who are charmed by expat life (very few of my friends here understand our reasoning), but for us, this is a wonderful experience that we are enjoying every second of, but which will have a definite conclusion when we return home.
[quote]I'm not a huge fan of the maid/nanny/driver lifestyle[/quote]
I feel absolutely the same, which is why I have not enjoyed the past two years in Jakarta.
Not all countries are like this. Choose your location carefully and you can have as western (by that I mean doing things for yourself, cooking, cleaning, buying food) or as priviledged (the opposite of the above and more) lifestyle as you like.
I'll be having none of that when I start my at my new school in Bangkok this summer. I have been thinking about sending out my work shirts to be washed and pressed because it's cheap and easy to do but my conscience won't even allow me to do that. I have visions of friends back home mocking me for becoming a member of the petite bourgeoisie!
I feel absolutely the same, which is why I have not enjoyed the past two years in Jakarta.
Not all countries are like this. Choose your location carefully and you can have as western (by that I mean doing things for yourself, cooking, cleaning, buying food) or as priviledged (the opposite of the above and more) lifestyle as you like.
I'll be having none of that when I start my at my new school in Bangkok this summer. I have been thinking about sending out my work shirts to be washed and pressed because it's cheap and easy to do but my conscience won't even allow me to do that. I have visions of friends back home mocking me for becoming a member of the petite bourgeoisie!
We plan to stay abroad for life for a lot of reasons. However, I can completely understand people that don’t care for the lifestyle and would rather return to their home countries. The reasons we would like to stay abroad are:
1) It is just more fun living abroad. I was always so bored in the states. I feel like everyday just walking to the gym/market/friends house I see something interesting. In the states I just felt like I could survive quite well on autopilot. Like Danny said, I just feel more “aliveâ€
1) It is just more fun living abroad. I was always so bored in the states. I feel like everyday just walking to the gym/market/friends house I see something interesting. In the states I just felt like I could survive quite well on autopilot. Like Danny said, I just feel more “aliveâ€
-
panta_rhei
- Posts: 49
- Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 10:46 am
[quote="Mr.Cake"][quote]I'm not a huge fan of the maid/nanny/driver lifestyle[/quote]
I feel absolutely the same, which is why I have not enjoyed the past two years in Jakarta.
Not all countries are like this. Choose your location carefully and you can have as western (by that I mean doing things for yourself, cooking, cleaning, buying food) or as priviledged (the opposite of the above and more) lifestyle as you like.
I'll be having none of that when I start my at my new school in Bangkok this summer. I have been thinking about sending out my work shirts to be washed and pressed because it's cheap and easy to do but my conscience won't even allow me to do that. I have visions of friends back home mocking me for becoming a member of the petite bourgeoisie![/quote]
What do you think is wrong with it? Don't you think you should spend your time doing what you are best in, which is hopefully teaching and not washing shirts :)? Plus you're offering an opportunity to earn an income to somebody else.
I feel absolutely the same, which is why I have not enjoyed the past two years in Jakarta.
Not all countries are like this. Choose your location carefully and you can have as western (by that I mean doing things for yourself, cooking, cleaning, buying food) or as priviledged (the opposite of the above and more) lifestyle as you like.
I'll be having none of that when I start my at my new school in Bangkok this summer. I have been thinking about sending out my work shirts to be washed and pressed because it's cheap and easy to do but my conscience won't even allow me to do that. I have visions of friends back home mocking me for becoming a member of the petite bourgeoisie![/quote]
What do you think is wrong with it? Don't you think you should spend your time doing what you are best in, which is hopefully teaching and not washing shirts :)? Plus you're offering an opportunity to earn an income to somebody else.
-
panta_rhei
- Posts: 49
- Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 10:46 am
[quote="Danda"]
I do regret the fact that my son will never truly feel like he has a home [/quote]
Does "home" have to be restricted to a particular national identity or geographic region? Can't we be home on this planet? And isn't that very idea one of the missions of international education - to build international citizens?
I do regret the fact that my son will never truly feel like he has a home [/quote]
Does "home" have to be restricted to a particular national identity or geographic region? Can't we be home on this planet? And isn't that very idea one of the missions of international education - to build international citizens?
@panta_rhei
I hear exactly what you are saying, I wish I could let it go, life's too short I know! :(
Paying for skilled work is no problem, paying someone to do menial work that I just don't want to do myself, is my 'issue'. I put it down to my working-class upbringing, where hard work is seen as good for you!
Anyway getting back on topic, I too will be working overseas until I retire. I miss a few things about home as I'm sure we all do but the great lifestyle and saving capabilities that teaching in schools allows is ample compensation :)
I hear exactly what you are saying, I wish I could let it go, life's too short I know! :(
Paying for skilled work is no problem, paying someone to do menial work that I just don't want to do myself, is my 'issue'. I put it down to my working-class upbringing, where hard work is seen as good for you!
Anyway getting back on topic, I too will be working overseas until I retire. I miss a few things about home as I'm sure we all do but the great lifestyle and saving capabilities that teaching in schools allows is ample compensation :)