I am a U.S. citizen living in Luzern with a C Visa. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree and my major was Communications with almost a completed minor in Social Work. I want to get a job in teaching in an international school in Switzerland. I have my TEFL certificate and I have worked as a teacher teaching English as a second language. I am not sure what my next step should be to become a teacher at an International School?
I could get my Masters of Arts in Education (Applied Linguistics) or Masters of Education with Open University's (UK based program) online program. I am interested in this institution because there are no programs like this in Switzerland that is taught in English. I was also accepted to the University of Zurich where I could get my Masters of Arts in English Language and Linguistics, which is also taught in English.
I am not sure if either of these degrees will help catapult me into the teaching world in an international school. Do I need to get a masters degree in order to teach in an international school? Is there an easier path to take to reach my objective. Can I volunteer as a student teacher with your academic institution while I am getting my masters or shortly after to gain experience? Should I try to get my PCGE Certificate online instead and while I am doing this volunteer as a student teacher?
Can I get my masters as mentioned above and still qualify as a teacher once I gain teaching experience. What path would make me the most qualified applicant.
I am having difficulty clarifying what Switzerland's International Schools requirements are.
Can you give me any information to help me be less confused of what my options are?
I hate to mention this, but my impression is that your chances are less as an American citizen since you are non-EU, even with a C permit. I think that Swiss nationals and EU citizens with the same level of qualifications as you will be given priority in hiring decisions. If this is not the situation, I hope someone will clue me in!
I agree with SwissPea that Swiss international schools won't necessarily have the same requirements since they are almost all run independently and make their own hiring decisions.
English is likely to be a field where you will compete with lots of qualified teachers - many from the UK. Again, I second SwissPea's advice about talking to some of the schools you hope to work for.
The main issue is actually that your university subjects are only indirectly related to school subjects. Teachers usually have studies the exact subjects they teach. It makes you a "second choice" candidate.
The second related issue is your lack of experience. Depending on how popular the school is among teacher candidates, the chance of being hired as a beginner can be more or less reduced to zero.
The good news: if they need somebody urgently at the exact moment you apply, they take you without thinking too much. A good way to enter the profession in private schools are maternity leaves. Good luck.
For a myriad of reasons the majority of 'international schools' in CH tend to employ folk with a UK/EU passport and teaching qualification (B.Ed, PGCE and so on). That is for a myriad of reasons (not least cost of relocation, applying for visas and other paperwork as needed, specific teaching qualifications that have been studied for at a tertiary level etc...). That said, I know of colleagues/friends who have secured work in CH who are from Australia, NZ, the USA, Canada....but most have spring boarded in having worked in the UK first for a few years and have a specific teaching degree from their home country. Either way - the best of luck with it
Yes, Wile7. Or, work in special edu, have some speciality training, or are fluent local language, on top of a teaching license from abroad and a few years of teaching experience. OP, sign up for a local teaching degree while learning a local language. Then decide if you want to teach in a local school or still work in an international one. Getting trained at a local pedagogical institution will secure a couple classes to teach a week already, if your local language is at least B2.
I can assure you that even with a C1 certificate, a foreign non-German speaker must speak perfectly fluently to have a chance in the schools I know. Job interview will be the real language exam.
Well, after the completed local ped degree course, I wonder if OP can get close to a decent level, but it's rough,tbh. Even C permit will not be a real advantage.. Online courses, imho, give zero teaching practice and zero local language acquisition. Waste of time and resources. And, that's coming from somebody who worked for CDLs for ages.
His best shot is still an international school in need of a last minute cheap beginner to fill in time table holes.
If you want my honest opinion, I am afraid I am not able to express it in a diplomatic way that would make it acceptable here. OP is free to follow his dream, I won't stop anybody.
As an English language teacher? The OP has very little, if any, chance.
Typical response to an advert for an English language or literature specialist is at least a hundred applicants, of which perhaps 10% will be genuine specialists and candidates for the position.
No teaching experience and no degree in English or English Literature? It is just not going to happen.
I think OP is a she...but that makes no difference to the advice/opinions that have been given.
Personally, I wonder when, if ever, the UK will cease to be seen as the cradle of good teaching. At secondary level the truly inspiring ones I have met through my children's schooling get badmouthed by parents who criticise them for not "teaching all the material". As someone who felt I wouldn't teach well squeezed into a GCSE box, I found better satisfaction (and flexibilty) with uni-level tutorinng.
When people around the world stop associating Eton and Harrow with the UK.
Ask anybody in the world the name of a famous school and, the majority of time, they will come up with the above two. Ergo, as they exist in the UK, the rest of the teaching in the UK must be of a similar standard.
The truth of the matter is that teaching in the UK is not, generally, as good as it could be (is it anywhere in the world?) but it is certainly not as bad as the Daily Hate may report it is.
One also wonders how well the high scoring Asian countries would to if shadow education was removed.
There are pockets of excellence in teaching in the UK as there elsewhere in the world. Having worked in some of those 'bastions' of UK independent schools, and also for 7 years in an international school in France (as well as being brought up in an international school in Hong Kong) there are considerable variables that exist.
What the UK independent schools bring to the mix is that 'extra mile' mentality regarding curriculum delivery and extra curricular activity. Working in a boarding school your day starts at 8.00am and seldom finishes before 9.00pm (unless you are on boarding duty in which case that is 11.00pm). You coach a major team sport as well as get involved in outdoor education or CCF and then you have the pastoral side of things. You work Saturdays (morning lessons then team sport in the afternoon) and many work Sundays if it is a full on boarding school. You earn those holidays! It also brings, sadly in my opinion, the exam factory scenario.
The International system, in many cases, focus on creativity, problem solving and divergent thought processes that encourage students to apply their knowledge to solving problems/situations rather than simply being 'taught' or coached to pass a certain paper. That is not education BUT many parents do look at the collection of 'top grades' as a benchmark.
An amalgam of the UK independent system and the genuine international system is required. To do that, you need to staff it well. That costs and not many schools are able to offer the packages that a good UK independent, or a good international school, can offer (subsidised or free accommodation, subsidised or free education for your kids - if you have them - and so on simply because the basic salary is not always that good compared to other professions).
I think education is going through significant change; a perceived need to gather academic qualifications on the one hand as opposed to nurturing a genuinely open minded, enquiring and questioning mind on the other; where students think creatively and work with their hands, learn languages, have traditional classroom provision and develop a base of knowledge that they can apply across a range of situations.
It might help avoid a discussion based on incoherent generalisations if you specified how you define "an international school" or "the international system". To the best of my knowledge there is not one system, but there are schools located around the globe that describe themselves as international based on the diversity of their student body, but may offer a range of curricula/qualifications from the IB/MYP to SAT/AP or GCSE/A-levels (and follow either a standard British- or US-based curriculum). There are also "national" schools in international settings - eg French school in London or Swedish school in "X" to name random examples.
I do not think UK independent schools are unique in being seen as bastions of learning, demanding huge commitment from their staff for pastoral care, extracurriculars, weekend work, etc. The US has its own fair share of pricey educational country clubs. I do think with the rise of the international mobile workplace the demand for schools based on these models in places like Switzerland has increased, but that is less an indicator of the quality of the education, than a desire for families to remain mobile with minimal disturbance or need to adapt to another countries institutions.
I do not have the figures, and little spare time or interest to generate them, but in Zurich alone the number of so-called International schools has probably increased by an exponential factor of 4 in the last decade - but there are many question marks about the quality of education vs the familiarity expats are often looking for.
contact the international schools and ask, simple as that. a work permit and native skills in English are often enough to get you a foot in the door as a substitute, and from there you never know. there are just as many American / Canadian teachers at the schools in the Zürich / Zug area as UK.
People are just suckers for images of toddlers in ties, 7yr olds in top-hats and lads in gowns. They look smart, ergo they must discuss the sports results in Latin. Many of them never learn their Maths and go into Politics...
Back in the autumn I ran into a family I have known in Cambridge since 2004 - our paths intersecting by serendipity numerous times via our daughters. The 16yr old son had recently returned from 3 months at Eton where he was on full-scholarship, and was instead attending the highly acclaimed "local" state sixth form. He had little to say for the quality of teaching at Eton, but said they rarely went hungry after fixtures.
The administrators tried to give the parents a bad conscience for allowing him to miss out on what they considered an amazing opportunity. I respect them highly for listening to their son and not being blinded by the brand.
The minimum requirement for teaching at public schools here is C1 up to Sek I, after that, it's C2 / native level. I'd be seriously surprised if international schools hired anyone without a C2.
Probably so. It's B2 in local language if you teach foreign language as a subject, not as a maitre generalist (then you need to be fluent), at a public school. Check the EDK requirements (OP should, most of all). But people have usually higher command of local language.