Do You Have The ‘Right Stuff’ For International Education?
When I left small-town Minnesota in 1985 to start my first overseas job as a PE/Social Studies teacher in Barranquilla, Colombia, I had no idea that international education would become my career path. Clearly, after 27 years at 7 schools in different regions of the world, working in international school settings has been a richly rewarding personal and professional experience for my family (teacher spouse and daughter) and I. Our daughter attended schools on three continents and has friends from around the world.
What about you? Far more than education degrees and teaching/admin experience, these personality traits and understandings will determine if you have the ‘right stuff’ for a successful career in international education.
Flexibility and Adaptability
Without question, these are THE most important traits. As a recruiter, I ask directly and will follow-up with teacher candidate supervisors about these attributes and seek concrete examples. While living in Arusha, Tanzania, we often experienced power cuts, sometimes lasting more than 24 hours. And those teaching materials you ordered and needed for the start of the school year? Good news is the materials are scheduled to arrive. The bad news is the arrival date is after the December holiday break. Can you adapt and stay positive when your glass is less than half full?
Global Mindedness
As the saying goes, “You aren’t in Kansas anymore.” Do you have a second language? What other international (not Mexican beach holidays) travel have you experienced? How have you brought the world into your current classroom? Don’t rule out certain locations, just because of news reports. See the Homework section. Your closest professional colleague may be a Brit, Aussie, Kiwi, Irish, Canadian, or host country national. And, most often, your students will come from all over the world. What a great way to learn about the world through relationships with real people.
Risk Taking
Although we lived and thrived through the Persian Gulf War (Saudi Arabia) and the Iraq War (Qatar), taking risks has nothing to do with your physical safety. My former school in Shanghai and current school actively seek teachers who have demonstrated the ability to incorporate 21st-century teaching and learning strategies into the classroom. Risk taking in the classroom requires a change in your pedagogical practice and curriculum innovation. If the textbook is your best friend, you prefer to work alone, and the lesson plans you have used for the past 5,10 years still work fine, then you are fast running out of international school options.
Living A Double Life
As exciting and stimulating your international experience is to you, be prepared to get less interest from most family and friends back home. The best they may be able to offer is giving “likes” to your social media posts. Having said that, we connect often with Facebook, Skype and staying in touch is no longer a logistical problem. From my perspective, the only significant drawback to living and working overseas is being far away when family and close friends need you.
Do The Homework
I have met a few educators along the way that just jumped in and took a job without much thought. This usually does not work out well for the teacher or the school, often times both. There is a lot to learn about international school life and NOT ALL SCHOOLS ARE CREATED EQUAL. Be equipped with the right information so you can ask the right questions. I recommend you start the research with The International Educator. There is a reasonable fee to gain complete access. Spending time on the website will give you a solid understanding of international school life.
Long ago, while traveling in Luxor, Egypt, I met an international school Social Studies teacher (originally from Minnesota, no less) who vehemently claimed the ancient temples and ruins of Egypt were a recent fabrication to lure tourists to the country. If this sounds like you, please stay home.