I smell fear...

[stateside]

I?d like to thank ISR for creating this forum. As I struggle to put my professional career back together following 3 separate international teaching experiences, I feel as though I?m able to unload a giant burden which has weighed greatly on my psyche. After taking much time to navigate the web site, read school and headmaster reviews and peruse this forum, I no longer feel alone with regards to my international teaching experiences. Had this site existed years ago, and had I known of Dr. Spilchuk, I may have had the courage to stand up for my rights and to be a stronger advocate for teachers without a voice. Perhaps my self esteem wouldn?t have taken such a beating in the process.

That being said, I must also add that this entire site smells of fear. How sad that international teachers must live with a fear that if they express personal and professional opinions concerning work conditions, their jobs and careers could be on the line. And as much as some outspoken administrators (who frequently write for the TIE) would want all of us to believe that bullying, black balling and terror tactics are all in the minds of a few disgruntled people, this site is proving them wrong.

My husband and I lived and worked abroad for 10 years before calling it quits and relocating back to our home state in the USA. In our years abroad we worked long and hard at our jobs, worked at being team players, expressed respect for our profession by never bad mouthing stateside education, consistently completed long distance professional development courses, and had fun traveling and experiencing many cultures. Our goals never included hoarding wads of money nor retiring at 45. We yearned to embrace international education at its best, yet in our 3 separate posts abroad we worked under a very unethical superintendent, were presented with false information about our professional responsibilities and benefits package upon arrival to one post, and were ?let go? without warning 6 weeks before school was out at our last post by the new superintendent. His decision to let us go, as well as other teaching couples, was based on information collected through private informational meetings with colleagues and anonymous and secret polls and emails from colleagues. Even without the support of an outraged parent community as well as a confused school board, this headmaster got his way. The people who replaced those of us who were let go were friends of his from previous schools he governed (which we knew about from a job fair months earlier when their credentials were similar to ours). All in all, very unprofessional conduct occurred in 3 separate international schools with excellent reputations and well known administrators.

I agree with Mark Hansen's post that throwing names around isn?t necessarily going to help solve the problems associated with an educational system that has a hard time holding administrators accountable. It encourages slander and gossip. At the same time, however, I have struggled with my own anger toward administrators who have acted unprofessionally yet continue to work and live abroad -- moving from school to school. I have lived with the fear that comes from not being able to trust colleagues or being able to voice opinions which would be contrary to the administration. International administrators attend conferences, discuss the pool of applicants and receive inside information from their cohorts on a continuous basis. International teachers, who are essentially free agents, need a similar route before choosing a job that could have great impact on a personal level and professional career.

Contrary to popular belief, a career in international education has not helped us in any way within the public school system back in our home state. My husband and I rarely mention our time abroad now as it has caused us more harm than good. It was nearly impossible for an international teacher such as myself to step inside a public school system that is standards based and just come through 10 years of state reform. No one wants to hear about traveling, cultural fairs, wealthy students or free housing. Add to that the 'No Child Left Behind' legislation and you've really got your work cut out for you. And how do you sit in a job interview with generic references from an international administrator who tried to protect his job by siding with the superintendent who failed to mention nothing of the years of service, endless hours of committee work, late afternoons of after school activities and weekend volunteer work for special events that you accomplished during your tenure? Or a reference which includes statements about your professional wardrobe and good looks? What do you say to a personnel manager in a school district who conducts searches through the FBI asking why you don?t have a reference from your most recent supervisor? How would you feel upon learning that a ?trusted? administrator abroad wrote a slanderous reference for your admissions criteria into a university doctorate program? This is the curse of international education that we have struggled to overcome as we rebuild our lives and careers stateside. My husband and I both learned it would be in our best interest to enter university in order obtain credentials needed in catching up with state reform and establish a professional network imperative to starting over (based on the collection, or lack thereof, of references described above).

Thank you, again, ISR, for creating a place where those of us who need to voice our concerns can do so. Who knows if we?ll be heard. Who knows if the unprofessional conduct of overseas administration will continue. What I do know is that a site such as this is an excellent research tool for international educators. It?s a piece, or more, of a puzzle that so many seem to want to solve.

[Guest]

So sorry to hear about your negative international experiences. I'd love to hear more because it's a good way to make sense of issues we deal with everyday. It does sound like you're trying to make the best of it by 'starting over' in the USA as you've written. I applaud you for that. I've known many international teachers who've done the same -- some want to take a break, some want to advance to leadership roles and find their opportunities expand greatly if they go back to school in the states and obtain a new network of professional support. Some international educators I've worked with (I've been overseas more than 15 years) just go from school to school digging themselves deeper and deeper into career depression. You know the type.

As you know, international teaching is a tricky beast. There aren't the same kinds of checks and balances in place as there are in schools in the states which hold people accountable for their actions at all levels. I have friends teaching in the states and it is quite different. International administrators oftentimes aren't highly educated or haven't earned their credentials from reputable university programs. Some aren't prepared to run schools. Teachers are on their own to navigate the system and those teachers who want good leadership to help them in their jobs and career advancement are oftentimes disappointed and discouraged by the international system.

I also agree with you about Dr. Spilchuk and her expertise. Her columns are excellent in teaching educators to navigate through a system that can bring unwanted pain and suffering to people who may be naive or, like you, haven't been able to safely share their pain. The research she cites is fantastic and should be a 'must read' at the international job fairs.

All the best.

[Arabia finesse]

Dear Stateside,

Fight fire with fire. Contact Dr. Spilchuck, I think that would be a good place to start if you are thinking about returning to International Teaching.(You are looking here) For an off the wall suggestion, I gave as one of my references,I had to give 3, was the CIA, It was really good, when I called and asked how it went, I had asked my friend in advance and so , he/she played with them for a bit... It is 85 degrees today, I am in Venezuela as I write, I have escaped the trenches of the USA, The best to you, Jan

[stateside]

Thank you for the comments.

Words of experience for anyone who leaves a school without good references, or none at all...

When we were asked to leave our last post 6 weeks before school was out, my husband got 3 good references from his admin and colleagues at his school. The principal I worked with at my school refused to give me one at 'such short notice'. I even offered to write the reference myself and have him sign it but he still refused. The superintendent supported him. So I rounded up references from 1) the school board president -- who also happened to be CEO of a major corporation and had a child in my classroom, 2) a navy fighter pilot who volunteered in my classroom extensively and also taught at university level, 3) three colleagues, and 4) the pastor from our church where I taught Sunday school. I asked them all to give me 3 originally signed references made out to 'to whom it may concern' on letterhead from their perspective fields.

Looking back, my principal probably spent 2 minutes per school year in my classroom anyway. He had no idea what kind of teacher I was nor what I did in my classroom. The people I did ask to support me knew me well and provided me with golden references. Once in the states, when confronted by personnel managers or college admittance officers who gave me checklists and questionnaires for my references, I attached all of the above mentioned with a note that I was not able to locate my former administrator. This also came up in the sit down interviews.

The reason that references from supervisors is so important in our state is that principals actually do spend quite a bit of time in classrooms evaluating teachers based on state standards. This is part of The NCLB Act and standards based education.

On a side note, school districts (and some international schools) will also ask you for documentation from the personnel manager with proof of your years of service -- so that you can be properly placed on a salary schedule. Even if you don't plan on returning to the states in the near future, get signed and stamped documentation from your school proving your years of service and keep it in a safe place. This can make a big difference on a salary scale.

[Caution to the newbees]

Bravo
Thank you for sharing
I completely agree with the fear factor
I am hoping to get myself and family out at the end of the school year but until then it's safer to stay close lipped

[womanofmeans]

I made the decision to leave my first international post at the end of this year as this new school's owner/director micromanaged it. As I look at the reviews and read the postings, is there a set of questions or screening that I can do to avoid some of the common pitfalls or not so common ones? It is hard to know the reality of schools and their politics whether stateside or international. Any tips?