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Co-Edited TESOL International affiliated EFLIS Newsletter
Co-Edited TESOL International affiliated EFLIS Newsletter
The current issue of Global Neighbors, the English as a Foreign Language Interest Section (EFLIS) newsletter, is edited by our new editorial team, including Behzad Mansouri and Ellen Johnston.
Where Do International Educators Go When They Need a Break? (October 2019)
Where Do International Educators Go When They Need a Break? (October 2019)
“Taking a year on” is what principal Nichole Schmidt called the time away from her international school position in the article “Taking a Year.” Schmidt, with her husband and sons, packed up to travel around parts of Africa for a ten-month adventure. Isn’t it more inspiring “to take a year on” than needing to take a year off?
What about retirement? In “The Power of Time Off,” Stefan Sagmeister shares his scheduled year off every seven years to work on projects he is unable to pursue during his regular year. Sagmeister breaks down a worker’s lifetime into nearly 25 years of learning, 40 years of working, and for those lucky enough to live to the age of 65, 15 years of retirement. Why wait for retirement?
What follows are a few opportunities available to U.S. citizens to take a year on while staying abroad.
Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching: U.S. American primary and secondary teachers interested in making a move to overseas schools, but not ready to commit to an initial 2-year contract can apply for short term (2-6 weeks) or semester-length programs (3-6 months). As part of the program, teachers can pursue individual projects, conduct research, take courses for professional development and actively share their experiences with local teachers in schools, teacher training colleges, government ministries, and educational NGOs. To review eligibility criteria: https://exchanges.state.gov/us/program/fulbright-distinguished-awards-teaching-us-teachers.
Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms Program is a year-long professional development opportunity open to primary and secondary school teachers interested in developing skills to prepare students for a competitive global economy.
For those trained to teach English language learners, the U.S. Department of State sponsors the English Language Fellowship and Specialist Programs. This role advertises a new challenge or a life-changing career move for TESOL trained teachers to teach in new contexts and gain unique international experience. https://elprograms.org
Peace Corps Response positions are open to U.S. Citizens with significant professional experience, not just former Peace Corp Volunteers. Positions vary from 6 to12 months, may have a language requirement, and include position titles such as educational specialists, special education advisors, deaf education specialists, environmental education teacher trainer, health facilitator, literacy coordinator, e-learning specialist, math education or science instructor, primary education curriculum and design specialist, and more. Visit for more information: https://www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/response-openingshttps://www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/response-openings/.
I took a “year on “working as a TEFL Teacher with Fulbright Taiwan. To learn about this opportunity, visit here.
A few months into my year on, I have to say I do miss some things: the academic calendar, full salary, and benefits, connecting with fellow international educators, and the bonds that come from working with students in the classroom.
What I am gaining this year is an opportunity to provide teacher training to local teachers and frequent travel opportunities as I give workshops at various schools in Taiwan. While not working, I have had the chance to pursue other interests, such as writing more as I spend less time grading.
While the opportunities shared may be limited to U.S. Citizens, what opportunities are out there to other nationalities?
Articles Cited
Sagmeister, Stefan. “The Power of Time Off.” TED, www.ted.com/talks/stefan_sagmeister_the_power_of_time_off#t-206460.
“Taking a Year.” Taking a Year | The International Educator (TIE Online), www.tieonline.com/article/2375/taking-a-year.
This article was submitted by ISC member Ellen Johnston. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact here her. Check our her other submitted article on the ISC blog here – The Journey to School: Tarsus American College (Turkey).
January 30, 2019
The journey to work is indeed an important one. The journey though is not so clear for international school teachers when they are looking for jobs at schools in cities/countries at which they have never been. So let’s share what we know!
One of our members, who works at the Tarsus American College (Mersin, Turkey), described the way she gets to work as follows:
The road to Tarsus American College (Turkey)
The road to Tarsus American College (Turkey)
This Journey to School article was submitted to us by guest author, Ellen Johnston.
For writing this article, I received a year free of premium membership to the website for participating in this blog series – ‘The Journey to School’.
Tarsus is a city near the Mediterranean near the larger cities of Mersin and Adana. The school is located in the old part of the town means rich Roman and Biblical historical sites, that include an old Roman road, the Well of St. Paul, mosques, a bazaar, crumbling Roman Baths, Cleopatra’s Gate and a nearby waterfall.
I’m originally from a small town in the state of Iowa in the Midwest USA, so while Tarsus is not a major city, it is larger than where I grew up, but smaller than the capital cities I worked in before coming to Turkey.
My commute to work is a five-minute walk from my school furnished apartment located near campus. Most local teachers live off campus, in the nearby towns of Adana or Mersin and take school buses each morning and afternoon. Most international faculty live on or near campus.
Living on or near campus means teachers can use the school’s, fitness equipment or join others to play tennis on the outdoor courts while walkers and joggers can find flat paths or stroll through parks in the city.
Tarsus American College is a bilingual school that follows the Turkish Ministry of Education and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. International teachers work in English, Science, and Math Departments or International University Counseling and Administration.
The school is located near a number of shops and bakeries, so In the morning, I don’t have to walk far to find a warm simit at a nearby bakeries or bring in office treats such as a box of cezerye, a Turkish dessert made from caramelized carrots, shredded coconut, and roasted walnuts, hazelnuts or pistachios. Following are more photos of food that can be found near campus.
On the way home from school I usually pick up fresh produce oranges, lemons, mandarins and grapefruit. Pomegranate season means I eat delicious pomegranates every day.
A few new drinks I’ve grown to love while living in Tarsus.
Şalgam Suyu, is fermented turnip juice, it can be spicy and draink alone, or enjoyed with rakka on a night out.
Cinnamon topped salep is made from a flour of ground tubers of wild orchids, and is a warm alternative to coffee or tea.
Baklava is commonly known as the Turkish dessert, but there are many more treats to try. Turkish Künefe is served with the same sweet syrup, but has cheese inside a crispy shredded wheat type outer coating and covered in pistachios.
On the weekends, I can find a traditional Turkish breakfast served with tea and Turkish coffee, break, cheeses, olives, butter, honey, jam, and eggs.
Hummus is served hot and is a full meal, not just an appetizer when served with bread, tomatoes, and pickled vegetables. Most restaurants allow diners to choose from traditional covered in olive oil, or served with beef.
A common meal here is the Turkish kebab and the best kebab in my opinion comes with delicious salads.
Teacher Feature article published on the International School Services website
March 2018
Ellen Johnston is no stranger to international education. She's been preparing for a life teaching overseas since her undergraduate years, has now taught in Austria, Taiwan, Nigeria, Guinea, and this coming school year, will be headed to Turkey as an EAL Coordinator! In addition to the amazing places she's worked, we loved hearing about Ellen's attitude towards her itinerant career, which beautifully pushes against "the rituals of distrust." Hear her story, thoughts, and reflections below:
Hello Ellen! Introduce yourself and describe why you wanted to teach overseas. Was there a compelling call or interesting story behind it?
I began my overseas teaching fair early on by enrolling in the University of Northern Iowa, where I studied Social Studies and later received my MA in TESOL and Reading Endorsement. I conducted my student teaching in Vienna, Austria and after graduate school, I worked in Taiwan, Nigeria, and Guinea. I prepared for a life overseas by studying abroad and teaching abroad through summer programs.
My student teacher experience at Vienna International School cinched the experience for me. I showed myself I could live away from familiar, in a country where I didn't fully grasp the language and was able to build a community by developing social networks outside of the school community. Student teaching abroad also helped me to see that I could better market myself and better support students by having a background in Teaching English if I was going to be a content teacher in an international setting and serve a multilingual population.
Congratulations on your new position as an EAL Coordinator in Turkey! What excites you most about your new role and/or school?
I am excited to work with an experienced administrator who has worked in my roll in Student Support Services and Counseling. I'm eager to carry on the work of the previous staff who I'm in contact with and can continue to provide English Language support to students and professional development for international and local teachers.
What research did you do before accepting your job?
I connected with other experienced teachers through message boards online via Facebook and the International School Review Forum. I read up on current events in countries I was interested in working in, but I also I spoke to people in my current country about the life and education system in the next country I wanted to teach in.
What encouraged you to sign up with a service like ISS, and how has your experience been?
I wanted to have all my job materials in one place, on a single database, rather than uploading my resume and references to multiple sites. It still seems like many schools require their individual application process, but I hope schools will eventually migrate to a standard application process with some room for differentiation in the future.
What advice would you give to educators looking to recruit overseas for the first time?
A rule I acknowledge the "rituals of distrust" I hold about a particular region, country, or group of people when searching for the next school. This idea comes from a short story, Birdsong, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “That is how we relate to one another here, through rituals of distrust....We know the rules, and we follow them, and we never make room for things we might not have imagined. We close the door too soon.”
By going against the ritual, I hope to make room for unexpected places less traveled. I trust that there is more to the news story than what is reported in the news. I trust the admin who recruits to follow through on the guarantees discussed in the contract, I trust the community of parents and teachers who welcome me as a new faculty member, and I trust the students and parents want to engage in a dynamic community. Learning to go against the ritual has rewarded me with life changing opportunities in places that wouldn't have been at the top of my list of desirable countries. So far my ritual to go where I feel the best fit has worked for me.
Left: Ellen meeting with employees from the local education agency in Abuja, Nigeria.
Middle: Visiting a high school English class in Abuja.
Right: Joining a group of teachers to discuss professional development opportunities at the American Corner in Abuja.
Source: https://www.iss.edu/Career-Services/The-Global-Educator-Experience/News-Stories/Ellen-Johnston
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