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Voyeur · Joined: 03 Jul 2012 Posts: 431

Further investigation reveals another factor I may have underestimated: workload. It seems like the workload at a good international school may be closer to that of a teacher 'back home' than I thought. Not that ESLers are lazy, but many come overseas because they want a more balanced life than the rat race back home.

I've heard 50+ hours for total weekly workload from quite a few IS teachers. I'm not sure that is accurate, but it sounds like a lot more than you work at a University.

DebMer · Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2013 11:28 pm Post subject:

Voyeur · Joined: 03 Jul 2012 Posts: 431

I wonder what the workload is for the EFL professor once he is experienced and established? I've heard they may be required to be on campus for long periods, but not 'working' all the time.

tttompatz · Posted: Sat Apr 20, 2013 2:33 am Post subject:

Voyeur · Joined: 03 Jul 2012 Posts: 431

Thanks ttom.

I certainly don't expect to get rich while doing no work. But I'm having trouble finding the right fit. International school teaching sounded about right--but I only really want to work a maximum of say 40 hours a week, all in, on a consistent basis. And of course I'd be happy with a salary that matched that effort--there are no free lunches.

As I said, I like teaching in general. So for me, "what I want" to do is mostly about finding the right balance of salary, workload, sustainability, educational requirements, etc. Your posts and those of the others really help clarify the different elements that need to be weighed, and help challenged faulty assumptions I may have made.

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

Voyeur · Joined: 03 Jul 2012 Posts: 431

Thanks Nomad. I probably should have said I am looking for the 'best fit', not the right one. As you indicate, things are what they are and the world won't magically adjust to meet my needs. I am therefore, of course, somewhat flexible.

But that is what this thread is about--discovering how things are. For example, I am definitely getting a better idea about the life of a qualified teacher working overseas. I had the assumption, based on what I had heard, that the workload was lighter than that of a teacher 'back home'. This still seems to be true, but the difference is not nearly as great as I thought.

Obviously, situations vary. There is no one answer, but I am still trying to get a better feeling for the weekly workload of an established IS teacher. Ttom mentioned (in another thread) that he works about 40 hours/week when school is in session. However, he is in admin and I don't know if the teachers at his school work longer, for example.

In any event, I assure I don't take any of this lightly. Nor am I necessarily against a longer work week if it is worth it. There are many factors at play, I'm just trying to shed a bit more light on as many of them as I can; and I bet other posters here would probably find this kind of information useful as well. Spurred by the responses here, I have also been doing research on other sites more dedicated to certified teaching at International Schools. While there have been some exceptions, on the whole it does seem like most IS teachers working at good schools spend more than 40/hrs a week working when in session. But they spend a little to significantly less time than teachers back home, have better holidays, and their students behave better. They save more each year, but have to invest that to compensate for the lack of the gold-plated pension.

It does seem that further elucidation of the workload of University EFLers is going to be much tougher. The jobs are much more diverse, and that aspect of the industry also seems to be in greater transition. But I have time. Thanks again for all the responses.