If you’re a qualified teacher in the UK with experience and proven results then your skills can very easily become your passport to teaching in all corners of the globe. Armed with your PGCE and QTS you have a prime opportunity to travel the world by teaching in the British International School market.
These schools offer huge scope for adventure. Although you will have to teach, imagine the prospect of weekending on turquoise tropical beaches or cycling through the mountains of South Korea meeting new people and immersing yourself in different cultures.
The possibilities for exploration are limitless. And the best news is that your experience of the British school system means you will be highly desired and sought after.
What Are British International Schools?
The Independent Schools Council who carry out leading research in the International school market identify and define a British International School as a privately operated school that delivers a curriculum wholly or partly in English to children between the age of 3 and 18 in a country where English is not an official language.
Alternatively, they may also be classed as a school in an English-speaking country that offers a curriculum other than the host country’s national curriculum.
You’ll Be Entering A Rapidly Expanding Market
British education and the heritage that accompanies some of the big names in the English Independent System mean that the British Curriculum is held in high regard by parents the world over. This coupled with a rising middle class in emerging economies particularly those in Asia is driving a rapid expansion in these institutions. The British Government has a ambitious strategy to export British Education globally targeting a 4% year on year increase. Today the British International Schools system is worth £63.7 Billion This explosive growth is borne out in the figures. In the last 10 years the number of schools have increased by 45%; from 10,225 to 14,833. Today 7.4 million students attend; a 49% increase on pupil numbers from 2015. All of this growth is stimulating a demand for high quality staff who can deliver a world beating curriculum. As a result demand for staff has soared with the number of teachers employed in these schools increasing by 73%. There is a projected extra 230,000 teachers needed to fuel the continued expansion of these schools by 2030 with International Schools responding by investing in Initial Teacher Training to UK standards. This has the potential to make teaching a truly mobile profession.
What Would You Be Teaching?
On the whole British International schools teach the UK national curriculum, often in combination with the local curriculum or other international curricula. Generally they tend to follow the International Primary Curriculum (IPC) or the International Baccalaureate (IB) however many will also teach a primary curriculum that adheres to the UK national curriculum tests and offer GCSE, IGCSEs and A Levels at secondary level.
You’ll Work In Culturally Rich Classrooms & Diverse School Communities
Generally you will be teaching the children of parents who are globally mobile and need the consistency of an English system or children whose parents have a strong desire to get their offspring into English Speaking Universities, in particular Russell Group or heritage institutions in the UK. In some cases you maybe teaching the children of high net worth individuals or those who are in the forces. But what is certain is that you’ll have the chance to motivate and engage diverse communities of children from different cultures making for an enriching form of cultural exchange.
There Are Economic Opportunities For You
The packages offered by international schools vary considerably and so it is always best practice to investigate and find out from the schools themselves before you make a commitment. For example some institutions may offer to pay or subsidise your accommodation and provide the costs of flights back home which may become critical if you are planning to teach in long haul destinations. In countries that have inadequate healthcare it is also likely that free health care is provided. There is also the possibility to teach in low tax regimes or even tax havens especially in the Emirates which can offer you the chance to save considerable sums of money.
You Gain Professional Growth Through International Experience
There is an increasingly young workforce which can make the prospect of accelerated career progression. The higher churn rate and greater movement of people can mean that positions of responsibility open up more regularly than schools at home. So in theory you could be coupling travel and exploration with an increased chance of securing a higher salary when and if you return to the UK.
Whilst pressures in international schools do obviously exist if you’re ambitious, crave exploration and cultural exchange then teaching internationally could be a hugely rewarding experience.
