Teaching
 

Hi, I'm a primary school teacher and am hoping to emigrate to New Zealand to start school term 2010.

I've been hearing that it is hard to get a job in New Zealand even though employers are actually advertising for teachers over here!

Also if any teachers could advise me - all the resource books you have in UK. Did you take them with you or start again when you got to NZ.

Thanks everyone...hope I'll be on here a lot.

Re: Teaching
 

dont hold your breath about getting work here unless you are going to Auckland or maybe wellington. I have been here for two years and still not got a job!!!!!keep getting told no new zealand experience but how do you get it if no one gives you a chance. Lots of relieving (supply) as they call it here. I brought my books as the curr is similair. Sorry to be negative but i am going home at xmas for good. hope to get work back in lancashire. More jiobs for secondary or early years teachers. Early years teachers work in kindergartens like uk nursery but you have to do a full years course to re train to do that.

Re: Teaching
 

Sorry to hear that sonandbill. Really starting to have doubts now about New Zealand. Went to an EXPO recently and came away feeling really positive. However, been reading people's real experiences on here and it's beginning to change my opinion.

Anyone else offer advice.

Re: Teaching
 

Hi Whitecloud, just been on a 2 week recce of schools in Cambridge, Waikato area, all Primary Principals (Headteachers) I met were very welcoming but said I should get on to the Relieving list then if I was any good I'd be taken from there for full time job. Doesn't help if, like me , you need a job offer for points. Rural areas may be a better bet, and a good distance from teacher training colleges. South Auckland is probably an area you'd get a job but then again you might not want to be there... I wouldn't. There's a reason they come here looking for teachers ;)
It has all looked very negative lately. I looked at doing the Early Years training here, but NZ will not recognise the qualification despite them being 'desperate' for early years teachers.
So really it depends on whether you can cope with just relieving jobs, whether you need the points or you can just go to NZ and see how it goes.
Good luck with it all :thumbup:

Re: Teaching
 

Well I work in what would be termed decile 1 over here so I suppose I could work in an area over there until something else comes up. However, just feel like I'm putting a lot into going over there and I'm not getting any younger - 40 soon:p so will it be worth it!

Yeh, also you're right do need the points as well other wise may not even get there. Think I may get my qualifications checked and teacher number and apply. Have really got cold feet though!
:confused:

Re: Teaching
 

ok which thread did i respond to earlier...i'm gonna hunt and find it...

Re: Teaching
 

Found it!

Copy and pasted cos I am a bit of a lazy bint:

My mother works for a school in porirua and they often have problems finding teachers who want to teach in the area or (flip side) want to teach in a poor (decile 1A) area but have no experience with challenging behaviours and the concerns faced by children in those areas.

They can and do hire overseas staff.

I suppose the benefit of teaching in Wellington is that you can find work in schools such as that but you aren't 'forced' to live in the area. By that i mean, you can still live in a nicer area or an area you like but do not need to face a one hour commute to school.
__________________

Re: Teaching
 

What are your qualifications then? PGCE or BEd? Don't go for the Pre assessment do the full one straight off, safer that way. Word to the wise, mine took 90 days to be assessed!!!!;)

Re: Teaching
 

Thanks for that everyone. j19fmm I'm PGCE 5 - 11 year olds trained. Specialism was Geogrphy but have done PE and now doing special needs. Am doing diploma in special needs this year so am just waiting to pass that (hopefully!) and then can get my quals assessed. Didn't know there was a pre assessment and an assessment.

Re: Teaching
 

Check out the NZQA site, they offer a pre assessment to see if you have enough points to put in your EOI, but there have been incidents of them changing their minds when it then comes to full asssessment, plus you end up paying more! Mine was a BEd Hons and was assessed at a Level 7.

Re: Teaching
 

Is level 7 the standard for teachers? Do you get paid more or get more points.
Thanks for this - think I need to do a lot more research:ohmy:

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Level 7 is what they give for a degree. Promise I'll tell you more tomorrow, but for now I need to go to sleep. Have the most hideous jetlag..STILL!! night night

Re: Teaching
 

Lol thanks...have a nice sleep..x

Re: Teaching
 

Just got my NZQA report back, and my PGCE was "assessed" :rofl: as a Graduate Diploma of Teaching (Secondary) at Level 7. Even my BA (Hons.) got downgraded to just a BA!!! :ohmy:

Then, I got my teacher registration back, and checked online I found out that I have been provisionally registered. :huh: To be able to move to full I need to be employed in a teaching position for a minimum of 12.5 hours per week for 2 years and successfully participated in a supervised advice and guidance programme. According to the Teacher Council website I am no better than someone who has no teaching experience to apply for provisional registration. :eek:

I am so glad that I am not staying :D as when I look at the salary scale I will earn little more than NZ$43000. I can earn more that as a cop with only a high school diploma!!! How messed up is that. (my words were stronger)

Well I am off to meet Jack and celebrate that I have made a good decision.

Re: Teaching
 

are you actually in nz? I was a teacher for 4 years prior to coming to nz and had 15 years as a nursery nurse exper i was given a level 7 same as you. having prov reg doesnt affect your salary i was put on step 11 when i actually had a job for a term and a half . The last two years have been spent doing supply i am going home had enough!

Re: Teaching
 

most uk teachers are assessed at level 7. You are paid according to years of service. I had 4 years service but got paid for 6 as in uk i had credit for previous work exper. Not being full reg doesnt affect you wage but lots of school prefer fully reg as they have to get some one for a full days pay if you are prov reg. You have a day off per week for preparation time. it like doing nqt again. to get you head around nz teaching. What a laugh!!!!!!!!! you still have to be in school just not actually teach your class.

Re: Teaching
 

Yes, just outside Auckland. I have 7 years total experience from both the US and the UK. I am in the process of getting my salary assessed, but have been told only 3 will count as they were regular teaching positions. I just used the website to do my own quick assessment.

Yes, I know the the provisional does not change salary. It is just the pain to do the NQT year over again, attending classes that I have already done, being constantly observed (nothing to hide, just time consuming) etc. Also, like you mentioned, have been turned down for positions that I am more than capable of doing based on my current registration.

I am leaving partly because my personal quality of living is not what I have become accustomed to in the US. However, another part was that teaching in New Zealand is just not worth it. I struggle each week to pay the bills and get by. Then when I get to work I have, in my limited experience, found the children very immature, unmotivated and there is a huge lack of accountability on their part. Overall I would not mind, but, when they do badly on tests a lot of responsibility is placed on the teacher for the lack of results and under performance.

Re: Teaching
 

Hi Guys,

Am sitting at home looking at all of this, and since arriving in Welly in August, have worked in various schools for about 80% of the time. Will be starting full time as Assistant HOD Geog and SS in Jan.

I have to say thatwhile I agree with the comments about registration and Quals assessment being a real pain in the a***, my experiences are somewhat different. I got Qual checks done from the UK, then registered with TC on arrival. I had a face-to-face meeting with the Head of Wellington College in the UK, contacted him on arrival and was working (relieving) within 3 days. I also signed up with Select Education and Educaton Personnel (both s***), but worked out that the best way to get things done was to speak direct to Principals. Check Ed Gazette (same as TES) for jobs and go straight for the top. I had 3 interviews, and was considered for all three, only Asst HOD is better for me.

Regarding salary, I am assessed at Level 7, as is everyone else, but had got my previous schools from the UK to send over Statements of Service, and this will get my salary back up to a more respectable level. It is very much like jumping through hoops, but the end result is definitely worth the effort.

We will probably come back to the UK one day, and having a Second in Dept on my CV will give me more chances back home than I had: I was not a genius at school and despite it being over 20 yrs ago, my poor A Level results have been holding me back. Here, I think they value the person more than the pieces of paper the person holds.

Good luck to all going home: have just spent sunday on the beach chilling out, not CHILLING all over as the folks back home!!

Merry Xmas,

Guy

Re: Teaching
 

Your experience/service in the UK would count towards your salary.

Being Provisionally registered just means that you will be observed a few times in the year - it doens't affect salaries. You could earn $60k and still be provisional.

Re: Teaching
 

Yes, as I said only three will count. The one year in the UK that I taught, and 2 years from the US. The reason only two count is that I spent the rest in an alternative educational setting.

I know the the provisional does not really have an affect on anything. However, I applied for positions with some of the "better" schools I was informed that parents want their children taught by someone with full registration.

However, now living in the UAE and have only worked part of a month and have earned more than three months in New Zealand. On top of that do not have to pay for accommodation, which killed us.

Re: Teaching
 

Hi sorry to appear thick, but I understand that you get paid for years service. What does the assessment level mean? Can you apply for more senior jobs?

Thanks

Re: Teaching
 

Hi am having another panic. I can't swim...will this be a problem in teaching the NZ primary age :confused:curriculum?

Thanks

Re: Teaching
 

I read on the website with the (horrendously difficult to understand) collective agreement information that teaching in an alternative setting and even time away from work to raise children could be counted towards service. Don't ask me for any more details on where to find this info as I don't know how I found it - and after hours trawling through I still can't find the actual table with salaries on it. Frustrating!!!

Does anyone have any clues on what I could expect with a 4 year Bach Arts/Bach Education (combined degree)? Not going to worry about the experience adding to the pay yet as I only have a couple of years and I may not be able to get a statement of service for the longest one.

Thanks!

Re: Teaching
 

Check this website

http://www.minedu.govt.nz/educationS...greements.aspx

This will give you salary agreements. Click for the level, and then look for "salary scales" Part 4 for secondary. As for what you will get it is anyone guess. Even when I got my assessment back I tried to put it on the scale and it came back a little lower.

As for the alternative settings and time to raise kids, I did not bother as the paperwork looked too complex. If I had tried to complete it I might think different. However, I was tried of all the forms and time it took to do even the most basic of things that I just gave up.

Hope that helps

Re: Teaching
 

Found the ones for secondary and starting to feel a bit thick - I'm still none the wiser! I have a 4 year teaching degree (a one off, no masters or PGCE) but can't find it.

I thought I'd worked it out at $43k but speaking to a friend from Auckland and she reckons a 4 year trained teacher with no experience would start on $58k. That seems insane compared to the 43k! She's in primary so I checked that and it appears there's a whole other agreement for primary teachers but I can't find the actual table with the dollar amounts...:o

Re: Teaching
 

A lot is going to depend on the NZQA assessment. Somewhere out there in Cyber space is a flow chart of how Kiwi's can go about getting a teaching certificate. They then follow this flow chart when "assessing" your qualification. They gave me a level 7 for my degree, which worked out to be a G3, and then I think they added something for a PGCE. So my assessment comes out around NZ$43,000. I think that you are correct in your assessment. The only way to earn NZ$50000 is with management points.

Re: Teaching
 

This from "Kiwicareers" - web site about jobs in NZ

"Secondary School Teacher - Pay and progression
Kaiako Kura Tuarua
Pay
Secondary school teachers with four years' tertiary study start on $43,897 a year, but can earn more depending on additional qualifications and experience.

Their pay increases incrementally each year for seven years according to a fixed scale, with the maximum pay $66,327 a year. However, secondary school teachers may earn more than this if they take on management roles such as those of dean or head of department.

Teachers of maths, te reo Māori, technology and physics get an additional $2,500 a year for their second, third and fourth year of teaching as an incentive.

Private and independent schools sometimes pay secondary school teachers an extra $2,000 to $3,000 a year.

Career Progression
Secondary school teachers may become senior teachers or heads of department. They may also move into management roles, such as assistant or deputy principal and principal.

Outside the school system, a teacher can teach trainee teachers in tertiary institutions, or move into research and policy roles in the education sector.

Teaching skills mean teachers can move into training roles within another industry.

Updated June 2008

Re: Teaching
 

Thanks for that! I thought $58000 sounded waaaaaaaay too good to be true!!!!