I love teaching, I love reading about it, I love doing it, I love thinking about it, I love the hours, I love the kids, I love the teaching community, I love the problems in the educational system because it makes you want to fight for change, I love it all. I want to teach new teachers what I've learned I want to help shape them into teachers of tomorrow and encourage the same passion I have for it in them, and if they don't have it I have no problem telling them to find another job because I only want students to have teachers who want to be there, who love to be there.
I have researched every possible avenue I can imagine to try and find acceptance as a teacher in France, I have considered getting a few extra English credits so I can teach English instead of art, I have considered getting my PhD in France so I can teach university, I have considered going back to school for art therapy in France, I have considered international schools, public schools and I have found that no matter how I approach it, the answer is always the same, you can't teach in France if you're not French. The only teaching post I could find was an assistantship teaching position that makes me sad for me, it allows you to be an English teaching assistant in wherever the government decides they want you, and you get paid just a bit less than what it would cost for you to live without eating or going to a movie for the 7 months of your contract. On the bright side, I am a shoe in for this position, my life for the last 9 years basically ticks all the necessary requirement boxes twice- experience living abroad, check, experience traveling abroad, check, French language proficiency, check, teaching experience, check. So, sure, I can be some French woman who barely speaks English helper.
In trying to find answers to my query I found this blog by an Australian woman who did a PhD in France and has similar issues when she wanted to stay on and teach at the University level, I'll put it in the links section. In one of her blogs she wrote a joke she had heard and I lifted it to put here. Having also lived in England and traveled to Germany and Italy it rings true.
Which reminds me of the old joke about Europe.
Q: What is European heaven?
A: The Germans look after administration, the English are the policemen, the French do the cooking and the Italians are the lovers.
Q: And what is European hell?
A: The English do the cooking, the Germans are the lovers, the Italians are the policemen and... the French look after administration.
Q: What is European heaven?
A: The Germans look after administration, the English are the policemen, the French do the cooking and the Italians are the lovers.
Q: And what is European hell?
A: The English do the cooking, the Germans are the lovers, the Italians are the policemen and... the French look after administration.
3 comments:
Hi Cora,
Recently came across your blog because we're moving to Valpo in a few months!
Anyway, about France... I feel for you - been there, done, that. I worked as an assistant on the scheme I think you're referring to, for two years, once during and once after my degree. It was really fun, the hours are great (12 per week) but yes, you can get posted anywhere and the pay is rubbish (although I did get housing benefit, which made it a whole lot more liveable). The first time I did it, I ended up in the middle of nowhere. Literally. Excellent for my French, though. The second year was in a larger city but in a teacher training college, so I got to learn about the cruelties of the CAPES system. Barely 20% of my students were accepted to become teachers after their year preparing for the exam.
I have a feeling that when I applied for the assistantships, you couldn't do it if you were already a qualified teacher (which I wasn't at the time).
A friend of ours who stayed on after my second year found a job as a lecteur in a university, teaching English as a foreign language again, but but better paid. He did that for two years before he went back to South Africa. So you might want to look into that by getting in touch with universities directly?
I think the French gov't is protecting their skilled work force. While visiting Paris last time I found out that somehow the waiter's job can be a career because employees are allowed a long lunch hour, encouraged to eat lunch out and the gov't has a tax reimbusement of some sort.
Career women can stay home for the first five years of the a child's life and the woman is paid, thus encouraging birthrate and educated women to go back to their careers.
In the meantime, in U.S. this past week AMAT announced they are moving 1,500 job out of manufactoring in TX. to China. HP is buying 3M more Asian jobs that were done in U.S.
It is refreshing to hear of a gov't that protects it citizens and their careers.
I know it is hard on lovers but the French are doing it correctly in the big picture.
France is a nightmare but Switzerland is pretty easy for finding extremely lucrative teaching jobs if you're a qualified teacher (at least it is for English qualified teachers). There are quite a few international schools there (look up the one the Strokes members went to...). It's not France, but it close...
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