Job Discussion Forums

[Bklyngrl]

My husband and I are interviewing for jobs with Hisar Schools (HEV). Does anyone know anything about the school? What are the typical benefits offered and salary scale?

What are the administration and students like? I read a few posts in 2006 that seemed favorable, but recent posts about students in Turkey have me a bit worried.

The website says that the school is bi-lingual and they are accredited by the NEACS (I think that's the acronym) which is an American institution. Are there many international students there? Do the children of faculty also attend the school?

Any insight would be most appreciated!

[Dedicated]

The campus of Hisar School (that I know about )is about 12 years old and situated in Kemerburgaz, which is quite a way out of Istanbul city, on the European side, on autoroute D010, going through the Belgrade woods towards the Black Sea.

Kemerburgaz used to be where all the Istanbul landfills were situated, but has now been transformed with golf courses, villas, riding stables, and is a popular weekend escape for Istanbulites, as it is quiet.(Well, it was 2 years ago!)

I think the school calling itself an international/bilingual school is rather misleading. Yes, they are accredited by ECIS and NEASC, but the pupils are all Turkish, and they follow the Turkish curriculum. Virtually all the admin staff are Turkish, and less than half of the English Dept are native English speakers. It's a big school, over 1,000 students, and in English they emphasise the use of literature. The only English teacher I knew left after one term because of discipline problems in class - she said the kids were very spoilt, and some were badly behaved.

I'll try to find out more recent info about salaries etc.

[Bklyngrl]

Thanks for your info. Anything else you can tell me would be great. Do most faculty members live near the school? Would I need to get a car or is the school accessible by public transport?

[keitepai]

I can only comment on the public transport - there are regular public bus services almost everywhere here. Either the small buses called 'dolmus' or the bigger more comfortable buses. With children I would reccomend that you buy or long term hire a car - buses are often crowded and there seems to be no limit on the amount of people that you can sqeeze in! Unfortunately we couldn't scrape enough together to buy a car so we are regulars on the bus.

I teach at an international school and have heard bad stories of Turkish children's behaviour from other teachers that used to teach in Turkish schools. My school provides accomodation, transport to and from school and my children also attend at no cost. Surely this would be similar at the school you are looking at?

Are you teaching a specific subject or English only?

Good luck with your application.