Primary teaching in NZ?
#16
Just Joined
Joined: Feb 2008
Location: Southampton
Posts: 3
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hi. I , too, am a primary school teacher with a Msc and 19 years experience. It was really interesting reading the thread. Having spent several weekends puttiing together the qualifications for NZQA to assess and last night starting the EOI (2 hours my foot!) I am now worried is this a waste of time. I mainly want to work in the north island. Is the situation for applicants the same there as it is in Christchurch?
Plaese advise.
Paul
Plaese advise.
Paul
#17
Just Joined
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 16
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
From what we are told there is work available in Auckland, but much less easy to get work elsewhere. There are some recruitment agenices around who make very bullish claims about finding work for teachers in Auckland.
My wifes NZQA report came back this week confirming her qualifications (PGCE) is equivilent to a NZ Primary Graduate Diploma which was great news for us. This application was originally sent in back in September 07 - so be warned if that is a typical timescale. We are going to do the teacher registration thing next...
We are coming to NZ at the end of March for 3 weeks - starting in Auckland and working our way South.
If you see grumpy tired Dad in a Crystal Palace football shirt - say 'hello'!!
My wifes NZQA report came back this week confirming her qualifications (PGCE) is equivilent to a NZ Primary Graduate Diploma which was great news for us. This application was originally sent in back in September 07 - so be warned if that is a typical timescale. We are going to do the teacher registration thing next...
We are coming to NZ at the end of March for 3 weeks - starting in Auckland and working our way South.
If you see grumpy tired Dad in a Crystal Palace football shirt - say 'hello'!!
#18
Just Joined
Joined: Feb 2008
Location: Southampton
Posts: 3
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Thanks for that. We are aiming to go at Xmas 2008 so hopefully we have still got plenty of time!. Its just giving up a perfectly good teaching job here in southampton, selling the house, pulling the kids out of school and for what?
Difficult choice.
Difficult choice.
#20
Just Joined
Joined: Feb 2008
Location: Southampton
Posts: 3
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Thanks. Interesting though the paper says Currently 1011 vacancies listed online
#22
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hi. I , too, am a primary school teacher with a Msc and 19 years experience. It was really interesting reading the thread. Having spent several weekends puttiing together the qualifications for NZQA to assess and last night starting the EOI (2 hours my foot!) I am now worried is this a waste of time. I mainly want to work in the north island. Is the situation for applicants the same there as it is in Christchurch?
Plaese advise.
Paul
Plaese advise.
Paul
I certainly don't think that putting together your NZQA assessment evidence is a bad idea, and neither is the EOI preparation.
My wife has now found a 6 month primary teaching contact <phew!> but that is after 12 months of effort and is still not a permanent position.
To get an idea of the situation in any particular area I would suggest that you try to locate the Supply Agencies in the area you are thinking of moving to and call them to ask what their thoughts are. If you don't know or can't find out who they are, then call a school in that area (google is your friend here) and ask who they use for supply teachers, and for their number - then go from their. Overall the teaching community is really helpful along these lines.
A ray of sunshine is that a news report a week or two ago was commenting on the dire shortage of primary teachers across NZ so as long as your heart is not set on ChCh I am sure you'll be pretty employable.
Good luck with getting all your paperwork done.
#23
Just Joined
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 8
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hi there Karno, and welcome to the forum. As Am Loolah mentions, my wife Toni is a primary school teacher with a BaHons teaching degree and 4 years UK experience.
We were originally going to emigrate to NZ by applying for permanent residency on the back of her getting a permanent teaching job.
However - there is one massive snag here in ChCh. Despite the NZ government advertising to recruit primary teachers, and there being a reported lack of primary teachers in NZ - ChCh is NOT one of those places.
We came here expecting T to get work in ChCh very quickly and easily. It could not have been further from the truth. T has applied for over 50 full time teaching positions, and been interviewed for one - which she did not get.
From anecdotal evidence it seems that the teacher shortage is in South Auckland and out in what the Kiwi's here call 'The wop wops' i.e. 100's of km's away from anywhere. Desirable places for immigrants such as ChCh have 100's of primary teachers looking for work. In fact, the problem here is so bad that some jobs T has applied for have had over 100 applicants.
There are many other issues at play here as well, such as the 'Beginning Teacher' issue which all 'new to NZ' teachers are labelled as regardless of how much UK experience you have - see the attached file clipped from the local paper recently.
Sorry to be so negative, but I do want to give those thinking of teaching in ChCh a bit of reality. If you are happy with South Auckers, or in a small village in the middle of no where, then I'm sure you'll find something OK.
If you still have the urge to come over on the basis of Primary Teaching, then I'll pick the brains of the missus to let you know how we did things.
Good luck with it, and if we can help don't hesitate to post up here.
We were originally going to emigrate to NZ by applying for permanent residency on the back of her getting a permanent teaching job.
However - there is one massive snag here in ChCh. Despite the NZ government advertising to recruit primary teachers, and there being a reported lack of primary teachers in NZ - ChCh is NOT one of those places.
We came here expecting T to get work in ChCh very quickly and easily. It could not have been further from the truth. T has applied for over 50 full time teaching positions, and been interviewed for one - which she did not get.
From anecdotal evidence it seems that the teacher shortage is in South Auckland and out in what the Kiwi's here call 'The wop wops' i.e. 100's of km's away from anywhere. Desirable places for immigrants such as ChCh have 100's of primary teachers looking for work. In fact, the problem here is so bad that some jobs T has applied for have had over 100 applicants.
There are many other issues at play here as well, such as the 'Beginning Teacher' issue which all 'new to NZ' teachers are labelled as regardless of how much UK experience you have - see the attached file clipped from the local paper recently.
Sorry to be so negative, but I do want to give those thinking of teaching in ChCh a bit of reality. If you are happy with South Auckers, or in a small village in the middle of no where, then I'm sure you'll find something OK.
If you still have the urge to come over on the basis of Primary Teaching, then I'll pick the brains of the missus to let you know how we did things.
Good luck with it, and if we can help don't hesitate to post up here.
Thanks for the news. Is Auckland all the adverts are suggesting it is?
We know the majority of work is in Auckland and are prepared for this. However, it sounds like a potential minefiled. What is your view?
Have you any other contacts that we could email in Auckland?
Regards,
Gaynor.
#24
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Amen to that, guess at some point we just have to jump?! Scary tho , good luck
#25
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hi Guys,
Thanks for the news. Is Auckland all the adverts are suggesting it is?
We know the majority of work is in Auckland and are prepared for this. However, it sounds like a potential minefiled. What is your view?
Have you any other contacts that we could email in Auckland?
Regards,
Gaynor.
Thanks for the news. Is Auckland all the adverts are suggesting it is?
We know the majority of work is in Auckland and are prepared for this. However, it sounds like a potential minefiled. What is your view?
Have you any other contacts that we could email in Auckland?
Regards,
Gaynor.
Christchurch has certainly been a minefield - but as for Auckland we just don't know. We don't know anyone there who teaches so I'm afraid we're of zero use in that respect - soz.
Still, if you do call a few Auckland schools and ask the office staff about the school, how they recruit and what they look for then that will certainly broaden your horizons pretty much straight off with regards to the opportunities there.
Fingers crossed for you
#26
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2008
Location: Mt Wellington, Auckland
Posts: 29
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
I just wanted to thank everybody who has posted a comment about the teaching situation in NZ. I am a primary teacher with 4 years experience planning to move to the Hawkes Bay area in Sept - Dec 2009....we've left it that long to get the paperwork sorted! The problem we found when we started looking for vacancies and the job situation was that the permanent visa we would be applying for would not give you as many points if you were moving to Auckland but they would give you more points if you moved to areas away from major cities...hence us looking at Hawkes Bay and Hastings. Now I am a little worried over the job situation throughout NZ because we dont want to be miles away from a major town but also dont want to be in the centre of a city. Catch 22...again, I want to thank everyone because its given me some serious thinking to do
#27
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 2
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hi, Just wondered if anyone knew whether you could get residency working part time or do you have to work full time? Thanks
#28
Re: Primary teaching in NZ?
Hope this helps a bit.