A Quick and Dirty Guide To International Schools For Teachers Seeking Overseas Employment #1

Private International Schools

Private international schools are essentially businesses with directors who are focussed on making a profit. There is a considerable amount of money to be made in providing private education in areas where the supply is less than demanded. This is the Economic law of supply and demand. For teachers wanting to teach overseas, private international schools can be a mixed bag of good and bad features.

Many wealthy parents are demanding English language education for their children, and that has lead to the propagation of international schools. This is a particular feature of the Middle East and Asia, where new schools are starting up each year. The year I was looking for my current position teaching abroad there were a total of 5 new schools starting up in Dubai.

The good, the bad and the ugly of teaching overseas at private international schools…

The Good is that they are plentiful. There are a large number of private international schools for teachers to choose from.

The Bad is that while it is possible to balance good educational practice with the desire to make substantial profits, it is unlikely that in a knock down fight between the two that the goal of educating the students well will win. Teaching overseas should not involve you being required to ignore or go against your teaching philosophy.

The Ugly is that you know when a school’s continued survival, and consequently profit making potential, is dependent upon tuition money from students, how likely do you think it is that the school will expel students that are negatively affecting the learning of others?

Teaching Overseas