Best degree for teaching at an international school

[enthuesd]

Greetings all,

My goal is to teach at an international school in Asia. I want to teach social studies.

A Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree looks like an option that could position me well for my desired position. Can you help me in finding a way to reach my goal?

I have a political science BA. Currently I am in my 2nd year as an English teacher in Japan.

[TallyW]

I have a similar goal as well, I want to teach Psychology (or possibly primary school children) in Taiwan. Where exactly in Asia are you looking to teach?

 

I am still researching about how to obtain a teaching position at an international school but I can offer what I know. A MAT is definitely one option but there are a few others, depending on which school system you want and grade level. For example, I am very interested in the British International schools and I am looking into getting an MA in Education and then applying for Teach First in the UK to gain some experience. A couple of schools in Taiwan that I looked into specified if you did not complete a Bachelor of Education then having an MA in Education plus teaching experience would make you competitive. 

 

Another option is to get a teaching certification in Social Studies, either by getting a teaching certification in the States or a PGCE in the UK, again depending on what type of international school you want. 

Then there is the MAT like you said, which is good for those looking into teaching secondary school and allows for focusing on your subject area and then acquiring pedagogical skills in graduate studies. 

I think the fact that you have teaching experience in Asia will help you when applying to schools and teaching positions.

I hope this answered your question, good luck on your path to becoming an international teacher! 

[gena.barrons]

Hello, 

 

My parents (American and Canadian) have been teaching overseas for years, in both Europe and Asia. 

 

My father has a B.Ed in Science Education, an M.Sc. in Planning and an M.Sc. in Information Technology. My mother has a B.A. in Psychology, a teaching certificate, a Diploma as teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing, and a couple of reading certifications. 

 

Which is all to say, you can become an international teacher in Asia through multiple routes. Most of the younger teachers here have their undergrad, teaching certificate, and a related masters. The most important thing, however, is experience (you cannot get a job in China without a minimum of 5 years, as per Chinese law) and some sort of speciality. It is much easier for an IB Mathematics teacher to find a job than for a general elementary school teacher, simply by stint of numbers. 

 

Most of the jobs at major international schools (e.g., Brent in Manilla, ISB in Beijing, SAS in Singapore, SAS in Shanghai etc.) are got at job fairs held throughout the world in January and February (e.g., Search Associates etc.). Typically, schools require at least two years experience teaching in the US (or where ever you are from). 

 

Hope this provides some insight. This is just my families experience, but I think it is pretty typical. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions. 

[ctcpx084]

Which is all to say, you can become an international teacher in Asia through multiple routes. Most of the younger teachers here have their undergrad, teaching certificate, and a related masters. The most important thing, however, is experience (you cannot get a job in China without a minimum of 5 years, as per Chinese law) and some sort of speciality. It is much easier for an IB Mathematics teacher to find a job than for a general elementary school teacher, simply by stint of numbers. 

 

I'm not sure where you're drawing this five year figure from. I started teaching in China with three full years of teaching experience, and an additional year as a paraprofessional while I was applying for teaching jobs after a move from New Mexico to Pennsylvania. I know several teachers who have no real experience, yet they have been hired on here or at other places.

 

With regards to teaching overseas, I'll weigh in, at least enough to say these two things:

 

1. The school I work at now much prefers to hire teachers with actual teaching credentials from some reputable agency. My employer endlessly jerks around teachers they have who are lacking credentials, using this as an excuse to reassign them both within this division and throughout the school (I work at a school with both Chinese and international divisions). Whatever route you go, I wouldn't do it without a teaching license.

 

2. Schools here seem to look for native speakers of English (if it's an international school), then teachers with experience with the respective curriculum of the school. Experience is best, but if you're unable to get hooked in to a school, professional development could help your resume as well. For instance, if you're interested in an IB school, you can attend Category 1 workshops in your content area. It's not a year of teaching, but you'll at least be a little familiar with the IB way of doing things. Obviously, the same goes for schools using GCSE, AP, etc. I wish I had done this before heading abroad, as the process required more learning on the fly than it really had to.

 

An MAT is a good option if you want to teach. I did an M.Ed, which was great for education foundations, writing literature reviews, etc, but I didn't learn much at all about actual teaching. If I had to do things over again, I would certainly have preferred an MAT, whether I intended to stay in the US, go abroad, or whatever.