Find the latest Gulf & Middle East teaching jobs and other education career vacancies.

Teaching music and art to young people can be a particular rewarding career. Allowing youngsters expression through art and music disciplines can result in the foundation of not just a balance of formal versus artistic education, but also create the base for the musicians and artists of the future paving the way for future generations of culture.

But are these disciplines as respected within the education and governmental funding sphere as they should be?

Certainly not in the UK, it would seem. Not forgetting the countries status as Olympic hosts in 2012, it seems sporting activities come before the arts when it comes to funding and support. Despite the honour of the Olympics to be held in London, this is a country where the physical has always taken precedence over the artistic (the over glamourisation of football, not un entirely to blame) Read more…

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Teaching English abroad has always been a successful way to earn your travelling stripes, garner work experience and pay your way around the world. Despite the surgence in Spanish, Chinese and Arabic languages spoken globally, English is still the global language of choice.

As technology creates more channels of communication than ever, the global demand for English teachers is on the rise. Communication tools are open to all corners of the world however remote, and a communal language is sought, and that’s where the English shines.. Read more…

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First of all we would like to apologize for not updating in the past month. That’s like a crime in the blogosphere. Nevertheless, we’ve found a couple of things interesting to share.

Unless you’ve lived under a rock for the past six months, you must have at least HEARD of the new online community networking site that is Twitter, right?

So, most people have heard of it, but then most people either say ‘yeah, what IS that?’ or – ‘logged on, registered, don’t know what to do next!’

Well, the thing to remember about twitter is the beauty in its simplicity. It’s a great source of ‘immediate’ news. It’s a great source for reading other peoples views and you can find like minded people within the same professions or with similar interests – that’s the social part. Read more…

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If you are an education professional, the internet was built for you! In a job where armfuls of ideas, resources, plans and creativity are necessary (and changeable) by the hour, the opportunity to browse, trade and learn is invaluable. If you have specific subject or query in mind, then Google really is the teachers pet. Here is a collection of some of my favourites, and what you can find when you log on:

Teacher Planet - A bang up to date resource featuring Spring & Summer Season lessons, plans, worksheets, tools, certificates and more.

UsingEnglish.Com - Free English teacher resources for of all levels including hundreds of printable handouts, PDF lesson plans, online quizzes, jobs, articles, teacher discussion forum and more… Read more…

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Sometimes teachers get overwhelmed with how students innovate themselves through technology and how they cope with online trends. Aside from the amazement, I think it would be good to see and understand what tickles the interest of your students.

I’m not sure if this still holds true for this year, but last 2007, Anderson Analytics released a report based on a research constituting the top 10 most visited websites by college male and female students. You’ll see quite an interesting result on the research.

Image Source: PalatnikFactor.Com

If you’re finding ways to reach your students off campus, I guess this survey will give you the definite answer. Read more…

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Wikipedia as a Teaching Tool

Every once in a while, we here our students cite great facts or topics from relevant websites or blogs. I’m sure you’ve heard Wikipedia being mentioned every now and then.

For those of you who haven’t visited the site yet, Wikipedia is:

A free multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its name is a portmanteau of the words wiki (a technology for creating collaborative websites, from the Hawaiian word wiki, meaning ‘quick’) and encyclopedia. Wikipedia’s 12 million articles (2.8 million in the English Wikipedia) have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world, and almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone who can access the Wikipedia website. Launched in January 2001 by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger, it is currently the most popular general reference work on the Internet.

So instead of the traditional large volumes of books you previously had in your shelf, the creators of Wikipedia have developed a system where a community of trusted editors (volunteers) works on informative articles on any available subject.

You might be thinking of adding this website as a magic wand in your teaching career and helping you with certain topics that textbooks may not have yet covered. But you’re also probably thinking is it worth the try? Well, it certainly is.

I’m not suggesting you consider Wikipedia as your sole source of information but as a valuable supplement.

Here are top 5 reasons why you should have Wikipedia as a good teaching tool: Read more…

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Here’s this week’s round-up for you on the headlines for UAE and Middle East’s education industry.

Parents Satisfied with Quality of Education in Schools: Survey

“Most parents of students in Dubai schools feel that they are receiving high quality education according to a survey conducted by Dubai’s education governing authority.”

Sources:
http://tinyurl.com/qen278
http://tinyurl.com/rxums5

Abu Dhabi to Rebuild Old Schools

“Old, cramped and dilapidated state schools are to be torn down and 30 new ones will be built in a major upgrade of the system announced yesterday.

Schools lacking gymnasiums, shaded play areas, libraries, canteens or auditoriums will be the first to undergo improvements, the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) said.”

Sources:
http://tinyurl.com/pmk4gp
http://tinyurl.com/pwzcts Read more…

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I have a confession to make.

In my (misspent) youth, my school friends and I always found it incredibly sniggery and gossip worthy to discover the following information about our teachers.

1. Their first names. (I know, I know, it wore off by 4th Grade)
2. That they smoked!
3. Seeing them on a weekend in ‘civillian’ clothes and ‘heaven forbid’ with a husband/wife/partner.

You see, kids can be cruel, but you don’t need me to tell you that. The idea that a teacher is a human being too is completely alien when you’re a pupil at a regular educational establishment. Couple this with a daily analysis of your sartorial choices, teaching methods and hormonal cycles, a teaching job is, in my opinion; the occupation of a saint. Read more…

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They say there are three good things about being a teacher. June, July and August!

(Cymbal crash)

But seriously, for a teacher, an in-depth knowledge of your subject is a given (or should be). What about the rest? It’s practically a social work position as opposed to rote learning and writing on a blackboard. (Showing my age there, probably whiteboards now, or even laptops in the desks).

There was great advert on British TV a couple of years ago that had many celebrities and public figures very naturally quoting names. They had been spontaneously asked to name a good teacher from their schooldays. For many it was instantaneous and the tagline was of course, nobody forgets a good teacher. This was part of a Government’s education recruitment drive. In times gone by, teaching was never considered a glamorous role, and some particular subjects were struggling to attract talented candidates. Read more…

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There are very few people around who will not be fearful of their jobs in this present climate. Those who aren’t aren’t telling the truth. Whilst there are of course, businesses and organisations that will sail through the current crisis, we should all be taking the time to regroup and refocus our efforts into working through what is bound to become a whole new world (to quote Aladdin)

So… My brother works for a large supermarket chain (people will always need food) my father is a senior civil servant (society will always need prisons) and my sister in law, well, without realising it she maybe made the best career choice of all.

So whilst staking Cola and managing infidels might not carry the most job satisfaction, those jobs aren’t going anywhere at least. My Sis in law is an education professional, so whilst I’d pretty much say she has a job for life, I’m sure others would agree that it is a profession that carries with it a lot of pride. Read more…

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