Considering Move

[OnMyWay]

20 hours ago, gery0x said:

Be Careful!! Not every school that puts "Montessori" in it's name is really an accredited Montessori school!

Same goes for "K-to-12" schools, I had many disappointments with them as well, some simply want to make money out of the name itself.

 

There are others besides Montessori de Manila for sure, but none of them really gained my trust while investigating for my kid's future school.

 

Yes, we have one in Subic Freeport that has Montessori in the name.  I have never heard anything good about it and don't know any expats that sent their kids there.  Most kids seem to walk over from Olongapo.

[OnMyWay]

On 1/4/2020 at 9:52 AM, KMS said:

Considering the Philippines as a move from Ireland. Qualified Montessori teacher. Anyone here with best advise for work options?

Only the top private International schools hire foreign teachers and pay internationally competitive salaries, I believe.  We have a Brent Int'l school here in Subic Freeport.  I have met a few of the teachers and I think they normally have 2 year contracts.

For Montessori, I really have no idea.  If you have the money, you might be successful in starting a Montessori school is a place like Subic Freeport, if you had the deep pockets to get it started.  The Freeport has many expats with kids and the government has incentives to open businesses in the Freeport.

[graham59]

... It's ADVICE, incidentally, O.P.  

[hk blues]

13 hours ago, KMS said:

Hi . Okay, al that is good to know. I presumed there was a high demand for English speaking teachers. I'm specifically looking for a Montessori teaching job, as it's my passion. I do wonder what qualifications they require for online teaching though. Im presuming a degree in English and no lower?

Many thanks 

There is a high demand for English speaking teachers but they speak English here in the Philippines so the demand for Native English speakers is much lower than in other Asian countries - similarly the salary on offer is less than in some other Asian countries.  That said, most student I teach say how much they prefer Native tutors but try convincing the locals here of that!

Online English teaching pays more but the hours are longer and less convenient i.e. evenings and weekends if you want to earn  reasonable money.  No degree required, no qualifications needed - just stable internet, a TIN (tax number) and competent language skills.  In reality, many companies here do not follow tax regulations but I'd avoid such companies - stick with the reputable ones would be my recommendation.  It's not English teaching, it's English language teaching hence the low bar being set. If you need a rough guide as to income levels - totally dependant on hours but something between 20k and 30K per month is achievable, but not much more unless you are willing to work 12+ hours per day 7 days a week.  

Regarding Montessori - my understanding is that this is a method rather than a company.  So, you will find Montessori schools everywhere - we have them in my medium-sized city here.  As far as i know there is nothing to stop any school calling itself Montessori as it's not a trade mark so there are many more here than previously mentioned - don't be misled by the marketing claims of some companies here who claim they are the real deal!     

[Dave Hounddriver]

One thing that has not yet been mentioned.  Many schools here do not have air conditioning.  We retirees are used to the heat but do you really want to work in it?  That said, some do have air conditioning so if a comfortable work environment is important to you then ask in advance.

[gery0x]

13 hours ago, KMS said:

Yes, i would love a contact with the school your daughter attends. It sounds wonderful. Have they got a website?? Have a look at my little school.  LINK REMOVED PER RULES.,,,,, jOLLYGOODFELLOY

Their website is https://www.montessoridemanila.edu.ph/ - as soon as school starts again (it's semester break right now) I can send you personal contact information via PN if you like.

Did some Google research and I think I've found your school, called "KMS" I assume...

 

32 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Regarding Montessori - my understanding is that this is a method rather than a company.  So, you will find Montessori schools everywhere - we have them in my medium-sized city here.  As far as i know there is nothing to stop any school calling itself Montessori as it's not a trade mark so there are many more here than previously mentioned

Correct - Montessori is a method rather than a company. Same as K-to-12 is a curriculum and not a company.

The problem here is this (I'll just draw a loose analogy here):

I know how to program in Microsoft programming languages, so nothing can stop me from teaching people C#, .NET, and so on - BUT I am not Microsoft-Certified - so what I teach can be top notch knowledge or utter bu*****t.

This might not be so big of a problem for grown ups since they can decide for themselves whether they pay or not, but when we are dealing with children and their education, small wrongdoings can have an exponentially big negative effect on their wellbeing!

This is why accreditation systems exist (AMI, AMS, in this case) which make sure that "what you buy is what you get" and that a particular school really follows the Montessori principles 100% - *imho* that is of utmost importance when it comes to education, which is why I spent a long time investigating and visiting several schools before choosing one.

 

As you said, there are definitely many more schools that call themselves whatnot, but do they really do what they promise? For me (for my children, id est) it is too much of a risk to simply trust a nice logo or fancy slogans without making sure who I am dealing with here.

[hk blues]

8 minutes ago, gery0x said:

Their website is https://www.montessoridemanila.edu.ph/ - as soon as school starts again (it's semester break right now) I can send you personal contact information via PN if you like.

Did some Google research and I think I've found your school, called "KMS" I assume...

 

Correct - Montessori is a method rather than a company. Same as K-to-12 is a curriculum and not a company.

The problem here is this (I'll just draw a loose analogy here):

I know how to program in Microsoft programming languages, so nothing can stop me from teaching people C#, .NET, and so on - BUT I am not Microsoft-Certified - so what I teach can be top notch knowledge or utter bu*****t.

This might not be so big of a problem for grown ups since they can decide for themselves whether they pay or not, but when we are dealing with children and their education, small wrongdoings can have an exponentially big negative effect on their wellbeing!

This is why accreditation systems exist (AMI, AMS, in this case) which make sure that "what you buy is what you get" and that a particular school really follows the Montessori principles 100% - *imho* that is of utmost importance when it comes to education, which is why I spent a long time investigating and visiting several schools before choosing one.

 

As you said, there are definitely many more schools that call themselves whatnot, but do they really do what they promise? For me (for my children, id est) it is too much of a risk to simply trust a nice logo or fancy slogans without making sure who I am dealing with here.

Unfortunately, here in the Philippines the concept that you get what you pay for doesn't always work - you get what you are able to fight for!  So, a high fee doesn't guarantee a high quality - this may be true everywhere but even more so here. 

[gery0x]

1 minute ago, hk blues said:

Unfortunately, here in the Philippines the concept that you get what you pay for doesn't always work - you get what you are able to fight for!  So, a high fee doesn't guarantee a high quality - this may be true everywhere but even more so here. 

That is absolutely the point, which is why we must be extra-careful here in this country especially when it comes to education!

Sad but true.

[KMS]

1 hour ago, hk blues said:

Unfortunately, here in the Philippines the concept that you get what you pay for doesn't always work - you get what you are able to fight for!  So, a high fee doesn't guarantee a high quality - this may be true everywhere but even more so here. 

Hi, thank you for the prompt reply.  Yes, that's my little school.  Mgt pride and joy.  Unfortunately due to government it subsidy and ever hiring insurance costs,I feel it's not going to be sustainable for much longer. I'm hoping a year or two.  Government are offering all these free schemes to parents, which don't get me wrong are fantastic for families, but not for proprietors.  For preschool say we're used to charge up to€90 for 3 hours a day 5 days a week. Now government will only pay us €64.50. Big drop down per child, plus insurance companies have hiked our insurance up by in some case 4000 for 6 months. So that's why I'm looking at relocating be it my own school or a private state school  . Weighing up my options. Big move. Montessori Manila looks wonderful. Yes, I worked in a Montessori school in our capital Dublin. The fees were€1400a month, I thought I was on to a good thing, but no I had to leave due to next or no care for the children . Really sad

[gery0x]

Not being an expert on school business models, but €1400 a month is more than I pay per year per kid in the Philippines!

90€ for 3 hrs a day, which makes an hourly rate of 30€?! Those are numbers you can only dream about in the Phils!

Even the richest out of the rich won't be ready to pay that -  and the (accredited) Montessori-"market" here is very sparse.

Sorry for possibly taking the wind out of your sails here, but the Philippines are a completely different world (business-wise) than Europe!

 

Maybe China could be a better start for you, there the schools are MUCH MUCH more expensive than here (1400€ a month are cheap there)!