Exciting Times for New Teachers

It’s an exciting time of year for new international school teachers! You got the job 6 even maybe 10 months ago and all the planning and preparation is coming to fruition. Soon you will board your plane to your new school, new country, new life. Having done that same journey and having supported hundreds of new families and young people here is what to expect:

It’s going to be exciting. You will look at your new place with (hopefully) the eyes of a kid at Christmas. This is the honeymoon period. Then doubts may start to set in – can you really manage living here? You may feel anxious about how to set up your new way of life and you may feel homesick. Everything was so easy in your home country – you didn’t have to decipher every food label, or figure out how to pay stuff. In my experience as an International school counsellor, this hits a lot of people hard around January. Its mid school year and you’re missing friends and family back home. But this is a NORMAL part of the transition process. Most people bounce back out the other side. They start to realise the small wins they have. They start to believe they can do this! They begin to accept their new country and start to enjoy living there.

So if are are a newbie this academic year – good luck! And remember wonderment, doubt, sadness and acceptance are all normal parts of the transition process.

If you do find yourself stuck and struggling though and would like some online counselling support, please get in touch.