We’ve opened our Saudi Arabia Talent Pool, and this week we’ve put together a special feature on working in the country. “In some years we have one or two days when it may rain, but this is not certain,” explains Bruce Gamwell, Director of the British International School of Jeddah. Read on to learn more about the school from Bruce and other teachers, and find out about current Saudi vacancies.

“Make of it what you can and Jeddah will return your efforts and not disappoint you.

The sun always smiles in Jeddah.”                              

“Make sure you have plenty of fancy dress costumes!”

“You never have to iron again!”                     

“Make sure you are good at journey directions especially if your partner is not, alternatively buy a GPS on arrival!”

“Visiting old Jeddah is magical and an experience you should not miss and try to repeat.

Read more…

The children’s commissioner for England has said that more schools should involve pupils when it comes to recruiting new teachers.

A survey has revealed that 87% of children feel they know what makes a good teacher and two-thirds would like to be more involved in the recruiting process. Despite these figures, at the moment only 18% of pupils are reported to be involved when a new teacher is selected for their school.

Those in favour of pupils playing a more active role in teacher recruitment argue that young people are a school’s customers and see lots of different teaching styles over the course of their education. Taking this into consideration, it makes sense to make use of this experience when recruiting staff.  

However, groups who are opposed to putting pupils on the interview panel fear that this would undermine the authority of teachers and think it’s another example of how teachers are given fewer rights simply because they work with children.

If students did become part of the recruiting process, it has been assured that they will be given proper training and support and it would be less about putting them in charge and more about simply bringing a different and valuable point of view to the process.

Do you think that involving pupils in the process of recruiting teachers will help schools to find quality staff or will this move completely undermine the authority of teachers?

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Eteach had the pleasure of attending the 30th Annual COBIS conference from the 7th – 9th May 2011. ‘Stakeholders for Successful International Schools’ was held at the very impressive Royal Horseguards Hotel in Central London and we were very excited to be exhibiting in such beautiful Victorian surroundings.

The COBIS conference gave us the opportunity to talk to head teachers of British International schools about their current recruitment strategies and needs. Many of the schools that we spoke to were in agreement that their ideal International teacher would be one who has trained in the UK and has a minimum of 2 years classroom experience. A positive international attitude to life, a passion for travel and teachers who could offer more than just their subject to the school were also high up on the list.

International Account Manager at Eteach, Gerry Manolas, was extremely fortunate to be able to attend several of the keynote speeches and seminars whilst at the conference. She found all of the talks to be highly informative and gave head teachers the latest up to-date developments in the UK education system.

The main issue that dominated the conference was the discussion around school inspection and which teams have now been, or are in the process of being accredited by the government. Only schools that have passed a recognised inspection are allowed to be fully fledged members of COBIS, thus ensuring a quality mark that parents can trust when choosing a school abroad for their children.

This mark is also something that prospective teachers should look for when deciding where to teach as it gives them the confidence that the school they may eventually join follows strict COBIS guidelines for quality assurance.

Howard Kennedy, Non-Executive Director of the Foundation, Aided Schools and Academies National Association was the first speaker and he outlined the current government’s plans for raising standards in State schools and trying to close the gap between deprivation and attainment.

The talk focussed around the fact that, unfortunately, there is still a link between postcode and what a child’s educational outcome will be. The association wants to make a curriculum which is ‘Fit for Purpose’ where children can achieve regardless of their background and where only the best graduates are recruited to become teachers.

The hot topic was the developing idea of student teachers completing the majority of their degree courses in Teaching Schools. The teaching schools would be selected from those who have received outstanding results across the board in their Ofsted inspections. It is hoped that a network of these schools will be created which will provide professional development to teachers as well.

Do you as teachers and current student teachers agree with this or do you feel the courses you have experienced through university prepared you for life in the classroom?

This was all backed up by Nick Gibb, Minister for Education who in his session said that one of the greatest exports we have in the UK is the Independent Education System with £12 billion being brought into this country by overseas students studying here in the UK. Mr Gibb wants to give the state sector more independence to do what is best for their schools and children in order for them to raise standards and he also believes that the Academies and Free Schools programme is the way forward.

Are you teaching in one of these schools? Can you see a difference and do you feel it is the way forward for your pupil’s attainment?

Over the coming weeks we will be bringing you other highlights from the COBIS Conference including information about SEN and Gifted and Talented, Safeguarding Children, Developing Leadership Skills through Sport and Safe Student Broadcasting, which was a new initiative about making children aware of how to keep themselves safe when using Social networking sites.

What were Gerry’s personal highlights? Having the opportunity to have coffee with the England Rugby World Cup scrum half Andy Gomarsall and listen to his plans for life after his testimonial year and saying a brief hello to HRH Princess Alexandra KG GCVO as she left the reception.

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What’s making the headlines in the world of education? Here we take our monthly snoop around the papers to find out what’s got people talking. From exceedingly good cakes from Rudyard Kipling, to playground games getting the boot and bad pupil behaviour that’s blamed on the weather, join us and have your say.

Playground favourites expelled

A survey of school staff by the Association of Teachers & Lecturers (ATL) has found playground games such as British bulldog, conkers and leapfrog are increasingly facing the axe due to safety concerns and schools becoming more risk averse.

Research was published at the ATL teaching union’s annual conference in Liverpool. Of the 653 school staff they surveyed, more than a quarter said British bulldog has been banned, playing conkers has been banned for 14% and leapfrog for 9%.

Bad behaviour blamed on the weather

Governors say adverse weather conditions – wind and rain – are partly to blame for the aggressive behaviour of some pupils at a school in Lancashire.

Seventy of the 80 staff at Darwen Vale high school in Blackburn say students are out of control, pushing them, challenging them to fights and threatening to film their lessons and post them online. Staff have criticised school management, saying they feel unsupported by governors and the head teacher, leading them to stage a walk-out.

However, a senior governor has defended management, saying the violent and abusive behaviour of pupils is in some part due to the bad weather.

See also our earlier blog: Discipline: do teachers get enough support?

Parents don’t have money to feed children

In a separate survey by the ATL, teachers have revealed that pupils are turning up to school hungry and in worn out clothes because their parents do not have enough money to feed and clothe them. Four out of five teachers said poverty is affecting their students and many fear the situation will worsen.

Teachers ‘should have a good degree’

Most teachers believe students should be required to have a good level of degree to work in the classroom, according to research published in the Daily Telegraph.

Some 62% said trainees should have at least a 2:2 to work in secondary schools and 58% said students should have a decent degree to work in further education colleges. However, many insisted that degree classification alone was not enough to guarantee a good teacher.

Female stereotypes in schools

Ofsted has criticised mixed sex schools, saying they are not doing enough to promote girls’ confidence and ambitions. A survey from the School’s Inspector has found work placements for female students are almost all in ‘stereotypically female’ occupations. Out of more than 1,700 examples of work placements, less than a tenth were ‘unconventional’, while the vast majority were in education, hair and beauty, offices and shops.

Girls in single sex schools exhibited the most positive attitudes, with pupils saying they would definitely consider doing jobs stereotypically done by men.

Exceedingly good cakes from Rudyard Kipling?

More than one in three children in the UK think Rudyard Kipling makes cakes, says an article in the Daily Mail.

The research was carried out to support an initiative to print extracts from children’s books and poems to breakfast cereal boxes.

And finally…

Time travel concerns for parents

Parents in China are worried that their children are seriously thinking about how to time travel, says an article on Chinese website Xin Hua News.

Parents’ concerns have grown since pupils started writing about time travel in school essays and exams. One teacher quoted puts the popularity of time travel fantasies down to pupils needing an escape from school pressures and as a response to a lack of available quality reading material.

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, China’s film and television watchdog, has reportedly issued a circular to discourage the broadcast of time travel related shows.

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It’s just got better for job seekers in education… There was a time when teachers had to wait for the weekly education supplement to land on the staffroom coffee table, then we spent Fridays fighting for a copy and browsing jobs “just to see what’s about”.

Those days have long gone, today teachers and support staff browse the internet 24/7, with unlimited access to a wider range of vacancies than ever before across a growing number of websites on a global scale. As a teacher and job hunter and more recently a recruiter I am constantly amazed at how the internet has enhanced the ability for people to manage their careers.

I hear about schools interviewing via YouTube, teachers promoting themselves on social networking sites, talking CVs, e-bulletins containing specific vacancies tailored to the reader, in one generation the whole process has changed for teachers and recruiters of teachers. Today there is no reason why a British school shouldn’t’t recruit a teacher directly from China as easily and cheaply as recruiting a British teacher and just as easily a Brit teacher can go online and find a job teaching anywhere in the world e.g. Singapore Key Stage One Teachers.

Eteach were the first jobsite for teaching jobs in the UK and we are about to launch our next generation website, which will provide teachers and support staff an even better job seeker experience with brand new features, even if you’ve already found a job its worth a look, you’ll find enhanced information hubs so you can keep in touch through the blogs, Facebook and Twitter.

What’s more we think we offer the widest range of jobs and consistently carry more overseas jobs than any other UK website or newspaper. Oh yes, it is always FREE to teachers and it definitely is worth a look http://www.eteach.com/

More next week on how we are helping you to find your perfect role