Job Discussion Forums

jerseyblue · Joined: 24 Jun 2011 Posts: 16

Anyone on here currently employed at an International School in HCMC? I'm a certified teacher, and am interested/considering employment there and just want to speak with someone.

Also, I've been told that there are some private schools (not language academies) that say they are an "international school" but don't teach IB or other international curricula. Any input on that?

esbam2002 · Joined: 26 May 2011 Posts: 54

Generally they are all crap from my experience. I have worked VA Schools, Dist 11, Little Stars School, Binh Tan, and at IPS, Dist 10, here in HCM. They focus on money and really nothing more. You are judged as a good teacher not on how well you teach, but rather your ability to be a circus clown and entertain your students. Parents really don't know what they want and have no responsibility on them, and students have no accountability put to them to study and learn. The schools don't take their English programs seriously, and really only have them to attract business. Rather as a native speaker you are not so much a teacher as you are a marketing tool, and scapegoat for Vietnamese failures, incompetence, and mistakes.

Andy123 · Joined: 24 Sep 2009 Posts: 206

I have to fully agree with esbam2002. Even schools like Kinderworld aka Singapore International school aka Saigon South are a nightmare.

There are a few schools that are okay but most are a joke and down right abusive. Not worth it in my opinion. If you have no problem wearing a clown suit and kissing butt daily th.en you will fit right in.

When you ask a Ss what they think of their "international school" they almost always say it is bad but there is little choice from which to choose. That is why most dream of going abroad for schooling but that rarely happens due to the cost.

esbam2002 · Joined: 26 May 2011 Posts: 54

I actually feel bad for my former students who are stuck in these "schools" and have no choice. I have heard it could be as much as your parents did something wrong during the war, so the kids get punished still, to something as small as you moved from Hanoi to HCMC and can't get into any other schools. At IPS I think 50% of my grade 5 students hated the school, and maybe 10% were not going to continue to AHS.

Really though as teachers you are right. Most times, or all the time, you have to be a circus clown, as at VA and LSS, kiss butt, as IPS wanted since if you didn't do exactly as the teacher manager wanted she would lied and make up reasons to have you looked at negatively, or they are racist in discriminating you as a non-Vietnamese, again like IPS in their rules for the elevator where all Vietnamese get priority over you as a foreigner and you wait from them, or VA where a Vietnamese is the problem, and has been proven, but they fire the foreigner getting harassed.

jerseyblue · Joined: 24 Jun 2011 Posts: 16

Thanks for the heads up. Which international schools DON'T want a clown? Where can I actually put my teaching cert. and advanced degree to good use?

haller_79 · Joined: 09 Mar 2007 Posts: 145

bentanddisfunctional · Joined: 19 Oct 2010 Posts: 85

spycatcher reincarnated · Joined: 19 May 2005 Posts: 236

There are a number of real international school in HCMC. Off the top of my head I would classify the following as "real":

The British International School (BIS)
The International School
Saigon South International School (SSIS)
Academic Colleges Group (ACG)
The Australian International School
The Canadian International School
Renaissance International School
Anglophone British Curriculum International School (ABC)

There may be others. Above Names may not be exactly correct and you should be careful as some have similar names.

CThomas · Joined: 21 Oct 2009 Posts: 380 Location: HCMC, Vietnam

If you're not in a hurry, go through ISS http://www.iss.edu/ , go the job fair, and nab one of the better jobs (with flights, accomodation, etc.). If you're hired in-country, you usually don't get the benefits afforded to out-of-country teachers. Some of the A-level schools hire ONLY out of country to ensure they're getting the latest, greatest techniques and stuff.

Going through ISS gets you 50k+, an apartment, flights, even a house or driver (or professional development [e.g. paid MA in Administration after 2 years] if you get into the right place.

If you like elementary (primary) teaching, are good at it, and are interested in a not-A-level, but certainly a small, good school academically and behavior-wise, ping me. Hurry, though.

CThomas · Joined: 21 Oct 2009 Posts: 380 Location: HCMC, Vietnam

jerseyblue · Joined: 24 Jun 2011 Posts: 16

Thanks a lot everyone. I had a lot of those on my list of "possibly legit and good int'l schools to work at".

As for teaching young kids, I have experience with teaching young ones (like 3 years in a public school) but my certification is for middle and high school.

I'm currently in HCMC, and yeah I couldn't make any of the international school hiring fairs. I almost made the one in Washington DC, but just missed it by a little bit.

I came here because I love the place, but yeah, I also expect to teach and I'm serious about my profession because to me it's a profession and a practice, something that I want to get better at, not just a paycheck to collect.

I want my overseas experience to help me become better at what I do so when I do eventually move back home, I can use what I've learned out here. At times, teaching public school in South Korea I picked up some useful things, but then some practices out there made me a bit slack.