Why You Should Teach Internationally — Black Edition (2/9)
With the ease of travel, the benefits of experiencing different ways of living, and the richness it can add to a CV, international teaching is more accessible than ever. Lets walk through why teaching internationally may be something worth looking into.
Before we begin, if you are looking for a community of teachers in preparation for an international role, or are interested in connecting with those who are, please join our LinkedIn community to support teachers investigating their next opportunity: BAME International Teachers Support Network (Free Resources).
If you have the privilege of fluency in English and teaching qualifications that are accepted abroad, then the world is your oyster. Teaching is a career which has very few limitations concerning where you can exercise your skills if you can teach your subject in English. Now although the well-documented preference for White Male teachers remains a prevalent issue in international schools, there are several key reasons why now may be the best time to consider entering (or re-entering) the international scene.
When discussing the points below, it is not possible to apply this uniformly to all international schools. Just as stereotypes do not work for people, generalisations do not work for schools either. There are still very challenging schools where the following does not apply and we will discuss ways to avoid these schools in an upcoming article. For now, lets explore the reasons why you should start looking for your first (or next) international position.
Progressive Developments in Education and Pedagogy Need Greater Diversity
As international school classrooms become more diverse places, with English as the international language, there is an ever-increasing demand for diverse international teachers. With the increasing ubiquity of the IB programs alongside more progressive pedagogies, schools are aware of the value of diverse workforces and having a range of skills. Though initially this may have been simply having white teachers from the UK and from the US, the value of a diverse workforce in all senses is now being acknowledged and reflected in hiring practices.
Recruitment agencies such as Search Associates (who I had the pleasure of speaking with their CEO Jessica Magagna back in October 2021) and Teacher Horizons, are beginning to publicly acknowledge issues in recruitment. Though the changes range from public-facing statements such as Teacher Horizons, through to evidenced and tracked changes of Search Associate, the fact is that times are changing. Agencies are supporting changes which remove some of the barriers to entry faced by BAME teachers while providing opportunities for schools that recognise the value of diverse teachers to more easily connect with them.
In the modern-day, international schools understand that they need to prep students to be flexible and able to access a variety of future opportunities. This education is best supported by exposure to a rich range of people and perspectives to foster critical thinking. Good international schools require teachers with diverse life experiences to confidently and appropriately teach diverse student bodies and they are looking for them now — could you be that person? Now might be your best opportunity to support the changes that you want to see in private and international schools around the world.
The Easiest and Safest Way to Start an International Adventure
Looking at the future, it is clear that our relationships with differences are critically important. Travelling for the sake of some pictures and visiting some sites is somewhat past, we now want life experiences. There is no better way to achieve that than to live in a country and experience it through the seasons and mundanity while building friendships. Doing this with assured work can be even better!
For many BAME people, the idea of international travel can be marred by the challenges of racism around the world. Racism may take more challenging or, at the very least, less familiar forms in other countries. But, it may also give you a glimpse into places where perhaps the experience of someone like you is subjectively better than where you currently are. These experiences are invaluable and might be a strong influence within your decision making. Many of the articles in this series will focus on specific elements of these challenges and how to address them, but the following ideas will hopefully have you thinking of the benefits of travel.
When teaching internationally, it is not uncommon (though most notable outside of Europe and the US) that your school will help you to get set up in the country. The initial move, associated paperwork, and planning are often the most challenging parts of moving internationally in the short term. Support from schools can be as simple as covering costs up to a specified value (typically including your flights, baggage, haulage, etc), or as thorough as assigning you a liaison who will handle the paperwork and your initial set-up to the point of signing rental contracts and internet service set up. More comprehensive services are typically offered in countries or cities where this may be more challenging for an immigrant due to language barriers.
With such assigned services, paid for by the school and where you are immediately honoured as an employee and client, can temper some of the prejudice you may encounter when approaching these forms of services as an individual. It also helps to reduce some of the initial headaches whether in bills or the multitude of people you have to deal with which can make you vulnerable to unpleasant interactions.
The support from your chosen school may provide the opportunity for the safest and potentially easiest transition to life in another country. Whether picking a country as a base to explore a continent or choosing a country you are considering settling down in, where would you be interested in travelling to?
The Richer your Experiences, the Greater your Growth as a Person and as a Teacher
Thinking about your teaching career, there is a wealth of growth that is borne from working in a variety of schools with different curriculums and in different locations. Early in my career, I met two teachers at either end of the international travel spectrum. The first teacher was one who worked his whole career at the same school and spoke confidently of the benefits of that. He urged me to take the time to develop rich relationships and explore the benefits of familiarity over time. The second teacher advised me that at the start of your career, you should try to change schools every two years at least to gain experience and truly learn what you are looking for in a school and what you can offer students.
Both sets of advice resonated with me but resolutely left me with a desire to gain broad experiences. I took on their advice, which I now pass to you, to learn what type of learning environment is best for me through varied experiences. But also, to discover what I can bring to a school in order to establish strong, meaningful, and beneficial relationships with all the schools and students I worked with.
If you have never worked in the private or international sector before, I would encourage you to. It presents a critical experience that can broaden your perspectives on what is possible and how strategies can be applied in different settings.
Are you used to teaching a specific demographic of young people? Switch it up and learn through diversity in the same way we hope that our students benefit from a diverse faculty. The more diverse your experience, the more opportunities there are to grow as a teacher as you are familiar with more approaches to teaching inclusively, while also learning what you want and the environment in which you flourish.
New Schools, New Curriculums, and New Reasons for a Raise
With the growing popularity of the Cambridge international and IB programmes, your international experience will likely expose you to completely new curriculums whether national or international. This not only makes you more employable, but you may find a curriculum that suits your teaching style best or stimulates the best growth in you as a teacher.
The difference between a training course on a different teaching style and working at a school or in a country which embodies that approach is the difference between a one-week holiday in Spain and living there for two years.
I recommend that every teacher teaches at a variety of schools in the first 10 years of their career and strongly push for at least one of those experiences to be in a different country. For those past the 10 year mark, take your experience and start a new challenge, it is time to scratch that itch!
The stimulus for growth international work provides in every facet of life is immense. I firmly believe that it is the person that you are outside of the classroom which enables you to be successful in the classroom — make sure that that person has seen diverse perspectives and approaches to life in a rich and meaningful way and your ability to connect with your diverse classrooms will grow in step.
Where are you thinking of going? What concerns do you have? What experiences are you most excited about? Feel free to share your stories with me here or via Twitter @dsinclair17
Check out the articles below to find out more about how to get the best from your international teaching experience!
· Abstract
1. Introduction: My Perspective on Teaching Internationally — Black Edition
2. Introduction: Why You Should Teach Internationally — Black Edition
3. How to Secure an International Teaching Job — Black Edition
4. Safety Checks: How to Research the Locale of your International Teaching Opportunity — Black Edition
5. Three Reasons Why International Teachers Quit and How to Buck the Trend — Black Edition
6. Navigating the Expat Community as an International Teacher — Black Edition
7. How I Used Dating Apps to Find Companionship as an International Teacher — Black Edition
8. For the Money or for the Experience? The Moral Dilemma of International Teaching — Black Edition
9. International Teaching; It’s Okay to Say No — Black Edition
