School/Institution
American School Foundation of Chiapas A.C.
American School Foundation of Chiapas A.C.
Address:
Blvd. Belisario Domínguez No. 5580-F, A.P. #18 CP Terán,
29052 Tuxtla Gutiérrez Chiapas
MexicoEmail:
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Founded in 1991, the American School Foundation of Chiapas A.C. is a bilingual school which began as a preschool and eventually, due to demand, added an Elementary, Middle and High School.
Our educational program is structured upon the well established curriculum guidelines from the Mexican Ministry of Education along with curriculum guidelines from California. We have IB candidate status and are based in Tuxtla Gutiérrez.
Review by: Anonymous
Date Added: 23 Jun 2017
Is this review useful?
Have you taught or lived abroad before?:
Yes, I taught prior to taking the job at ASFC and spent an academic year in Tuxtla.
How supportive was your employer?:
I worked at the Kindergarten and my Principal was phenomenal, very relaxed, kind, and supportive. HR was a mess - barely responsive, and information was vague. Surprisingly during the recruitment process the communication from this department was superb, but as soon as I began my contract it worsened.
How did your employer manage the administration side?:
Communication with the HR manager was often confusing and frustrating. A great deal of my time and patience was spent dealing with avoidable errors. There was a lot of administration required for the IB program but this was manageable and the school facilitated regular communication. There were many meetings and not all of them were relevant but it meant being able to enjoy air-con for an hour or so (classrooms in the lower school do not have air-con!)
How well did your employer communicate?:
HR communication was terrible - vague, disorganised, and inconsistent. Communication within my department was excellent. Aswell as an internal email system, most staff had an 'open door' policy and queries were always welcome.
How were day to day lessons and your students?:
My teaching experience was fantastic, I learned so much in this role, and my students were superb. I taught according to the IB Primary Years Program so there was some structure to build on but also a lot of freedom within that to create my own lesson plans, probably not ideal for a teacher in their first year. The school is bilingual so for half a day I took half the kids while my partner teacher took the other half for lessons in Spanish. After lunch we swapped over, I mirrored the Spanish language curriculum and collaborated where possible with my partner teacher, who was an amazing inspiration and so supportive, as were all my colleagues. I can't speak highly enough of my wonderful colleagues at ASFC. The school create regular opportunities for parents and teachers to communicate, and also for parents to see what and how their children are learning so this helped to develop a strong bond with them. The support and feedback I received from parents was very encouraging. I worked hard for this school, the day begins at 7am and some days I would be on my feet right up to 3pm as all teachers share monitor duties throughout the day. There was one day a week when I had no break from the students between 8.30am and 2.30pm and this was exhausting. Some other days there was a 30 minute break for lunch and maybe 30-60 minutes at the end of most days, all these breaks were depending on duties. I had 90 minutes most mornings to plan and prep but in the searing heat of Tuxtla this was mostly spent in the teachers room trying to wake up. Although teaching here was fun, days were long and the climate in Tuxtla is overwhelming. Without air-con in my classroom it was pretty hard to deal with the heat.
Would you recommend this employer to someone else?:
Although my experience was positive overall, the issues with HR were a major reason for my departure from the school. It took up too much time to watch every detail as huge errors were constant (incorrect nationality on visa, massive contract blunder, constantly having to chase for payslips, inconsistent information regarding salary package and contract terms) so, because I didn't trust this department, the constant feeling of having to watch my back was a huge factor in my decision to leave. In the event that the HR personnel were to change, I would recommend this school to a teacher with some experience as long as you're looking for a challenge. As a first job it's a little full on without a set syllabus. Although there is support there, I think I would have struggled with the day to day planning without prior experience. But for an ESL teacher seeking a challenge I would say give it a go for a year and see for yourself. I worked a second job as I found it difficult to save for travelling. Mexico is an amazing country so you'll want to travel as much as possible and if you work at ASFC your downtime will be precious. So, with two jobs, the searing heat, and very busy city my year was frenetic. If you take a job with ASFC be prepared to work hard. With a positive attitude and hopefully a smooth HR experience ASFC should provide you with a strong addition to your CV, some great travel opportunities and some wonderful friends.
The careers page for The American School Foundation of Chiapas A.C. can be found here.
The email used for applying to jobs is: [email protected]
Most importantly, thanks for writing one! A well written review is often the best advice another teacher can have.