The idea of teaching in international schools had not even entered my head, until, at the second school and in the fifth year of my teaching career, a colleague got involved in an exchange scheme that saw her swap places for a year with an Australian teacher, something that struck me as quite appealing. In conversation around that time someone suggested I might consider teaching abroad, something that had not occurred to me before. He pointed out that there were actually a lot of British and international schools around the world and had I thought about that. From that point the ball was rolling.
The reactions of friends and family were mixed for some it clearly appeared to be a monumental step. My parents, having worked abroad themselves at one time understood the appeal, whilst my wife’s were rather alarmed; a close teacher friend chided me for following up two Hampshire village comprehensive jobs with one in an overseas private school (‘you can’t keep taking these cushy jobs,’ he said). A TV producer friend’s reaction was also interesting – she sent a team round for an interview. As it turned out, I never saw the final piece, but I heard about it and from the tenor of the questions I had answered could see how careful cutting had distorted my words to present the image the TV station wanted to project, matching a contemporary stereotype: unhappy, underpaid teacher fleeing the ill-disciplined state system in a failing country. Not one element of that was true, but the media view served to reinforce the idea that in yourself you need to have the right reasons for moving.
Don’t move because you have the idea that living and teaching abroad is simply better, that your home country is no good. You are not going on an extended holiday – just as at home, you will be working, shopping, cleaning, paying taxes, catching colds, whatever. Local conditions vary, but it remains real life. If you like travel, or the prospect of it and if you like the idea of being in a place with a different culture and environment, that’s great, because it will become the new context within which your career will develop.
Make sure your domestic circumstances allow you to move, for example, will your partner be able to get work or will you be able to get by on one wage? If wider family issues are important, how cheaply and quickly can you return for a visit?
>Make sure you research where you are heading. I have seen a number of people become quickly disappointed when they discover a place not to be what they hoped or expected. In an extreme case, a young teacher was dismayed upon arrival to find that Porto is not on the Med or anywhere near Majorca! Fortunately, far more people have researched and consequently enjoy what they find. Sometimes, especially in Europe, the better positions, pay and conditions, are not in the ‘glamorous’ locations – the ‘holiday’ resort areas, if you like – but can be found in some of the supposedly lesser lights, which can also be more rewarding culturally.
Don’t be put off by the prospect of unfamiliar curriculums or courses. You will learn and adapt very quickly, especially if the school supports you with good training opportunities. Prior knowledge of, say, the IB, is less important than the subject knowledge and teaching skills with which to deliver it.
Finally, and of great importance in living overseas, get involved with things going on around you. Don’t necessarily expect to blend seamlessly into local culture, however, and don’t be overly suspicious of ex-pat life(it’s not actually re-packaged colonialism as some people fear), but can give some great opportunities in itself, usually helping you to get the most out of your new environment.