Researching the International School Sector

The biggest stumbling block (for a very green international  job seeker) was trying to determine where to start. Searching online can be a most time consuming activity and depending where you’d like to further your leadership and experience (from Asia to the Middle East to the Americas) there are many different paths you can travel to get there. Like the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland says, “If you don’t know where you want to go, it doesn’t matter which path you take”, and if you are not careful, after many hours of internet surfing, you could find yourself in the same place where you started.

It is important you think about what you want to get out of teaching/leading and what kind of school will best suit your needs. Each school has its own ethos, culture and learning atmosphere which is shaped by the school leadership team and the vision of its community.

Once a type of school is decided upon the next step is to seek actual positions. In short, for me, I distilled my online searching to the following sites. Some require lengthy applications, others a simple CV. Some required an application fee while others were free. (For the record, in my experience, the free ones were most helpful).

However, it was International Teachers Plus that were most beneficial in supporting my application and securing my appointment in Dubai.

Then, when you have noticed a school with a vacancy it might be useful to research and find out about its student body, staff members, school reputation, how the community is involved, the educational goals and and vision of the school, an overview of recent and planned initiatives and the type of extracurricular activities they provide.

Finding a school to best fit your needs should be the priority. Happy hunting!

Author: Dr Jake Madden

Jake Madden (Dip Teach; B.Ed; Grad Dip: Leadership; M. Ed: Leadership; EdD; FACEL; MACE) Dr. Jake Madden is currently the Principal, St Edward’s Primary School, Tamworth. He has enjoyed a successful teaching and principal leadership career over the last thirty years building teacher capacity through the development of learning in the contemporary world, the promotion of flexible learning spaces to meet the needs of the 21st century learner and curriculum for global mindedness. Jake is a leader in the notion of teacher-as-researcher and is widely published in this area, authoring and co-authoring books and a number of journal articles showcasing his experiences and research into leading educational change.

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