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Teachers looking forward to go overseas with their teaching careers can choose from one of two options- start teaching at an International school or take up assignments at a private language school. For someone who has experienced both, he/she will always agree that being the teacher of an international school is a far better option after undergoing an International Teaching Diploma Course. Here are some of the reasons attributed to the same.
Considerable disposable income to work with
For someone teaching at a private language school, waxing their legs and buying paperbacks may be deemed a luxury. They will have to think about their expenditures at every step simply because their earnings won’t be enough to cover the need for non-essentials. That also includes going on vacations even when there is the time to do so.
However, things change on entering an international school where they get to spend their salary as they choose and still be left with enough at the end of the month. This money could be invested as a savings deposit in the bank or towards future options such as house deposits or pension schemes.
Regular Paid Vacations
EFL teachers usually sign a contract running for the duration of an academic year or a calendar year. Though these contracts contain the provision for few weeks of holiday the candidates are expected to work for a larger proportion of the contractual duration compared to when they teach at an international school.
International schools typically have 12 months long teaching contracts out of which actual teaching is expected to take place for 200 days. The school remains closed for the rest of the year and during that period the educators are free to go on tours, thus earning themselves some well-deserved paid vacations.
Normal Contact Hours for Teaching
The schedule at private language schools specializing in TEFL courses are typically very crammed up. Students attend their lessons around other job or school commitments, so teachers find themselves working crazy hours. Things can be really bad as not every school management will be considerate enough towards the plight of the facilitators.
As far as international schools are concerned, they have well defined and regular school hours. Those who make a start early in the morning can expect their working day to be over sometime towards early afternoon.
Inclusion of Planning Time
Employment for TEFL teachers goes by the contact hours- the time spent in front of the students. It is worth noting that lessons do not simply drop out of thin air and the teachers are required to do a lot of homework in terms of preparing their lessons and organizing resources. For beginners, the time they spend in preparing for a lesson could be as good as the amount of time they dedicate towards teaching the same in a class, if not more. While their contract says they need to put in 20-35 contact hours a week, teachers end up working over 50 hours but are not compensated justly for these extra hours. Though this can contribute towards better planning efficiency it is certainly not the most ideal practice.
For international schools, the idea of teaching a specific number of contact hours remains but they get paid for the time spent in planning a lesson. The non-contact time is usually more, so this proves to be a major gain for those who build a career in international schools after undergoing an International Teaching Diploma Course.
Opportunities for Professional Development
Teachers who wish to develop themselves from a professional point-of-view and are working as EFL instructors will find it difficult if they approach the institutions to cater to their development expenses. For international schools though, they set aside a certain amount of money which is used in the professional development of their teachers. This can be utilised the most of by those who wish to equip themselves with new techniques for further advancement of their teaching careers.
Those teaching in an international school after taking an International Teaching Diploma Course have revealed their happiness and joy of being involved in the profession. They consider themselves to be more valued members of the teaching staff which helps them give their best performance in the classroom, thus aiding in the overall growth and development of the students.
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