In this collection of stories, international educators share their unique experiences, insights, and perspectives. These accounts include how some began their international school career, things to consider if you’re curious about the international teaching landscape, what they’ve learned along the way, and the unparalleled journeys on this career path.
Join us as we delve into the stories of these inspiring educators and gain a deeper understanding of the transformative power of education across borders.
TRANSCRIPT
Hi, my name is Seamus Doran and I've been teaching internationally for 13 years. My journey has taken me through Hanoi, Vietnam, Bogota, Colombia, and I currently teach in Budapest in Hungary. Each time I moved was during a different stage of life. When I moved to Hanoi, Vietnam, it was just me. But then when I moved to Colombia, I met my wife, and we had our son there. So, when I moved to Budapest it was the three of us and now, we're after we are considering moving on again and we have a fourth member to our family. So, it's been different things to consider at each stage of our life journey.
How did you get into international teaching?
I originally got into international teaching because I just finished my qualification teaching in Dublin in Ireland, and I met someone at a party and he was teaching internationally in a school in Hanoi and he mentioned this to me and this was a huge moment for me. What you can teach in another country? You can teach abroad? I love traveling; I love learning about cultures; I love being in places and experiencing different people and he recommended that I applied to the school, and I did. And within six months I was in Vietnam. Everything happened so quickly, and nothing could have prepared me for all the things that I really learned along the way but the biggest thing that I might take away after doing this for a while and going to different places- people ask me why do you teach overseas and my answer really is, you get to live the culture. So, you don't just witness the things about you. You really engage with the people. You engage with the smells and the sounds, and you gain a deeper understanding and of course empathy, and you gain- And this is the kind of life that I want for my kids, to see the world, to see different perspectives, and yeah, I haven't looked back since.
What is your message to teacher who have not taught internationally?
I would probably say that consider what's pulling you, to consider your polls. Someone said that to me once and I thought it was an excellent way of putting it. It helps me also decide will I teach in, how much longer am I going to be teaching in the country I'm currently teaching in. What's pulling you to, tethering you to that country? What's holding you there? And think about what's also pulling you away. And if those outweigh each other, then you might, I'd say, discuss it with other people, discuss it with those other people in your life who are important to you, discuss it with your friends, discuss it with anyone. And think about, okay, is this a leap I'm bringing prepared to take?
It also completely depends on your situation, your family situation, your immediate family, your extended family. Are those people close to you? How are they doing in their life? How might they, that- your move affect them? I was very, I had very supportive family. That's great. And now, because it's a fact of life, my parents are getting older, I want to move back closer to be closer to them as well. And I hear that again and again in the international teaching community. Some people get really sparked up early on to explore the world and go for adventure. And then later on, the call comes back home, and it feels natural. So, listen to your gut because that's huge. If you feel like there's a draw pulling you away, don't ignore that. But then do an analysis of okay, what's pulling me away and what's keeping me here.
What is the biggest challenge of teaching internationally?
The biggest challenge and I like the way to put it as a challenge. It's not a negative at all. It's confronting discomfort. It's like are you- The kind of- How does discomfort sit with you right now in your life, your mental state? When you're going to be challenged, especially when you moved to a new country early on, you're gonna be challenged constantly with language, with culture, with people, new relationships that are forming quickly, the relationships that you had to leave behind that of course you keep in touch with them, but they're not immediately there when you need them. How are you going to deal with these discomforts? Is that something that excites you? Is that something that you go, wow, yeah, I'm looking for that sense of adventure? Or are you thinking maybe not right now in my life? Maybe this isn't the right jump for me to take right now. Maybe I want to give it another year or two. But if you really want to consider teaching overseas, it's such an amazing opportunity and the discomfort while there is discomfort at times when you overcome that and when you when you really experience that…getting over that discomfort and reaching a higher level of understanding and empathy it's- the reward is 10, 20 fold, and you really feel a great sense of achievement in yourself as well. You're doing this. You're doing this yourself.
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Seamus Doran is the Head of Science and a middle school science teacher at the American International School of Budapest, Hungary.
