Job Discussion Forums

[Burichan]

Hi there,

My fiance and I are thinking about moving to the Middle East within the next year. We just spotted the post from Zayed University in Abu Dhabi for primary school teaching positions. Does anyone know anything about this university or what kind of positions these are? The post hinted at team-teaching, which after four years of doing exactly that in Japan, tends to make us wince a little bit.

Further, does anyone know what time of year most education/ESL jobs in the UAE are available?

And... we have heard that Abu Dhabi is more conservative than Dubai... true?

Thanks in advance
Buri in Japan

[veiledsentiments]

Burichan,

ZU is certainly one of the better employers in the Emirates - good pay, good benefits. This is quite a new program, so I don't know if there will be anyone coming on here who has actually taught in it. As I understand it, it is a program to upgrade English teaching in the national schools. So, I expect that it is a team teaching concept...

The Middle East schools and universities follow a similar schedule to the US... start in late August/early September... end in late May/June - with summer leave in July/August.

Abu Dhabi is more conservative than Dubai, but very many of us consider that a good thing. But... it is NOTHING like Saudi Arabia. Most find it a pleasant place to live and work.

VS

[younggeorge]

Note to moderators: If you consider this deletable as blatant free advertising, you're probably right! But they did ask, so I hope you'll leave it here for a little while at least

The primary school positions are for English classes at Grade 1 and Grade 4 in 4 "model schools" in Abu Dhabi. The idea is to provide a model of good practice from the beginning and to develop an improved curriculum over the course of the project. The project is currently scheduled for only one year, but there is a proposal on the table for it to be continued and expanded: obviously, the implementation of this proposal will depend on the success of the project in its first few months.

Team-teaching in the sense of having teachers share classes is not likely to be a part of the project, but we hope that the teachers will form a cohesive team in the sense of sharing ideas and materials, working together to develop the curriculum and presenting a positive image to the local teachers in the schools.

The teachers will be employed by Zayed University and report to ZU rather than the principal of the school - clearly a certain amount of diplomatic skill could be required for this to work effectively. Conditions will be greatly superior to those on offer to the local teachers, again requiring some sensitivity of approach.

Although, as VS explained, the normal academic year begins in August, this programme is to begin in January and there are still a number of positions available so, if you have primary school experience, I strongly suggest you should apply. For these positions, primary school training and experience are a higher priority than EFL, though obviously we would prefer candidates with both.

Please PM me if you'd like more information. The online application form is at

http://www.zu.ac.ae/online_app/Open_position_details.aspx?id=319[/b]

[veiledsentiments]

Thanks Younggeorge... since ZU has an ad for these positions on Dave's job section and this just expands the information, I don't think the moderators will mind.

It does sound like a great opportunity for experienced k-12 teachers to come to the Gulf with fewer of the problems that often come up with teaching at this level.

VS

[menace2society32]

the pay. Can anyone give me an approximate figure as to the monthly pay for these primary positions at Zayed University? Also VS, you eluded to the typical problems that teachers have at the primary level in the Emirates (or maybe you were referring to the entire ME). Could you give me some detail, and why do you think a primary teacher with Zayed University won't have these same problems. Thanks again.

[menace2society32]

Can anyone tell me what is the interview process like for a primary school position with Zayed Univ.? Is there only one or more than one person that interviewees speak with? One more thing... This is kind of unrelated, but can anyone tell me what is meant by the term "model school"? I have seen the phrase many times but am unclear as to what the term implies. What are the characteristics of a model school? Thanks for your feedback. Feel free to PM me.

[younggeorge]

The interview is normally with 2 members of the ZU English Language Centre, one of whom would usually be the Director but he may not always be available, plus one person from ZU Human Resources Dept. For candidates not in the UAE, the interview is conducted over a video link if possible, otherwise by telephone.

The 'model schools' are government schools which have been given special attention. They are somewhat better resourced than most government schools. But, frankly, that's not saying much.

I hope this helps. PM me if you have more personal enquiries, or reply here for something which could be of interest to others.

[menace2society32]

I notice that on every thread pertaining to Zayed University, no one mentions even an approximate amount of pay. Please. Can I have the seem forbidden info? Just an approximation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[veiledsentiments]

The problem is that it is likely that none of us know what the pay will be in this new program. The salary scale for teachers in the EFL programs has been discussed here before numerous times. It is in the 10-12,000+ DH range depending on MA and experience. (right younggeorge?)

To generalize about the average Gulf k-12, I would just say that the children tend to be spoiled and the level to which they are allowed to run the show depends on the management. I expect that since this is to be a 'model' school, that it will be quite acceptable... and probably very professionally interesting for the teachers. (and also demanding with lots of meetings...)

If I were an experienced k-12 teacher, I would take this job in a minute.

VS

[younggeorge]

[menace2society32]

Just a quick thanks for all the feedback on this thread. It has been beneficial.

[younggeorge]

[grand fromage]

For what it's worth, the people working for ZU that I know (the university-not the elementary school project) are generally very happy there. Since this new program is under the management of the university, a similarly professional environment can be expected . Too bad this gig wasn't available when I needed one last March