Meet The Teachanywhere Team

In our Continuing "Meet the Teachananywhere Team" series, may I introduce Amanda Gillam, Account Manager for Middle East Schools.   Amanda has been with Teachanywhere for 4 glorious years.  Find out what she has to say about Teaching Abroad......

1.        What made you want to work as an International teaching Recruitment Consultant?  –

It was a great opportunity to join a small developing company which provides teachers with the opportunity to relocate overseas.

2.        Have you taught overseas or travelled yourself?

I am not a teacher but I have travelled extensively.  I lived in Nigeria as a child and spent the last 5 years in the Middle East living in Sharjah (UAE) and Bahrain. I have also travelled extensively for holidays and work including exploring the UAE – Abu Dhabi, Fujairah and RAK and AL Ain other locations visited include Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Oman, Egypt and China and the Seychelles.

3.       What do you love about your job?

Working with both local Arabic and Western educators, the diversity and understanding of the different cultures makes everyday interesting. There is such a wide range of schools to suit everyone’s expectation from the basic local government funded school to a 5 star international schools.

4.       In your experience, what are the attributes which best befit the most successful international teacher?

Flexibility, Adaptability, Patience, Open minded Teachers.

5.       What are some of the repeat difficulties you come across when recruiting teachers for International schools?

Managing teacher’s expectations of both the school and accommodation

Some schools can be very basic and local culture dictates there can be different values when it comes to education. The majority are privately owned so costs can be kept to a minimum as a result teachers are expected to be very resourceful and creative in their teaching techniques.

Accommodation can be a very sensitive issue and from personal experience I know it can sometimes be difficult to find or settle in accommodation you wouldn’t personally choose, having said that, hard and soft furnishings are cheap and readily available so a home is what you make of it.

6.       What location that might not spring to mind for teachers would you recommend and why?

Definitely Fujairah, it is a very relaxed environment, with a cheap cost of living and offers a low key social life for expats. It is perfect for teachers who want to focus on school life during term time and enjoy the costal location with snorkelling and diving opportunities but also being so close to Dubai ( 2hours drive) enables you to visit for weekends or public holidays to enjoy the cosmopolitan city life.

7.       What 3 top tips would you give to teachers seeking international teaching roles?

Understand the diversity in school type and research which would suit you best.

What are your motivating factors?  - What do you want from your experience?

Make sure your CV sells you! – It is a competitive environment, you have to stand out!

8.       Why should a teacher sign up with Teachanywhere?

We offer a personalised, tailored approach to both our schools and teachers to ensure we understand both parties’ expectations which enables us to make the best fit when matching teacher and employer together.

We provide comprehensive reports from firsthand experience from our team visiting schools and teacher feedback.

We follow up post contract to ensure documentation is complete and travel arrangements are organised and once at school we keep in touch to see how teachers are settling in.