Hong Kong Academy was founded in 2000. It provides education services for students from Pre-K through Grade 10 with plans to add two more grades in the next two years. It is an independent, non-profit, co-educational day school. HKA is accredited by WASC and has authorization for using the PYP from the IBO.

The school has a low student/teacher ratio and classes are kept to a maximum of 18 in the Primary School. Students are predominantly expatriates.

Mission
The mission of HKA is to provide an excellent international education by nurturing and developing students to think critically, be ethical and work to develop themselves as individuals as well as members of the global community.

Facilities
HKA is located on Hong Kong island on the campus of the former Lingnan College. The school has an indoor sports hall, an art room, a library, computer and science labs. HKA is in the process of finding a new location for a new purpose built school.

Extra Curricular Activities
The school has a wide variety of after school activities. Some of these activities include: arts and crafts, chess, choir, dance, soccer, tennis, cricket, golf and more.

Curriculum
HKA uses an international curriculum that draws from the best teaching practices around the world. Teachers use an inquiry based approach. The Middle/High School employs a traditional specialist based approach with block scheduling, electives, and a lap top program. The Primary School uses the PYP, and the Middle/High School has candidate status for the MYP and IB Diploma.

Technology
HKA is heavily invested in using technology and integrating it throughout the curriculum. It has a one-to-one laptop program for students from Grade 6 and up. All teachers who work with students from grades 6-9 also have Macbooks. Students from fifth grade through eighth grade have electronic portfolios and the school is developing digital portfolios for students in the lower grades as well. HKA has a large number of Mac laptops and has some wireless capabilities on the campus. Every classroom has ceiling mounted LCD projectors as well as desktop computers.

Professional Development
HKA is committed to professional development. It uses a variety of approaches to PD including inservice, professional conferences, and visiting consultants. In addition to school planned PD, teachers are given individual professional development allowances. The school closes early every Wednesday for PD sessions that include team planning. Additionally, HKA has a partnership with Lehigh University that provides onsite graduate courses for teachers. This is a school that obviously places a high value on professional development.

Employment
This is a school that is not afraid to be quite upfront about the pay scale, benefits, and expectations for teachers. HKA is looking for teachers that are certified in their home country, are committed to professional development, have at least two years of experience, and are innovative.

The school lists openings on its website. Applications are taken throughout the year. HKA attends the main recruitment fairs although the majority of its teachers are hired at fairs in Asia and North America.

Interested teachers can send a letter of interest, a resume, and supporting documentation such as a statement of philosophy and letters of recommendation along with a recent photo and send it to:
Dr. Andy Page-Smith, Director
by e-mail to recruitment@hkacademy.edu.hk or
fax to (852) 2891-4461

The school has a salary schedule online. Salaries run from a low of USD 32,000 for beginning teachers to a high of USD 62,000. Teachers have to pay taxes on their salaries; these can run from 9-12% of your income.

Benefits include: a housing allowance, economy airfare at beginning and end of contract, economy airfare to home of record for summer leave, matching 10% retirement contribution, 10 sick days per year, international medical and hospitalization insurance, workers compensation, free tuition for dependents, work and residency visas, relocation allowance of HK$ 6,000 per single and HK$ 10,000 per couple, annual professional development allowance of HK$ 8,500 that can be accumulated for up to three years, free Mandarin lessons, shipping allowance of HK$ 8,000, a maximum of five days of leave to attend recruiting fairs, bereavement leave, and personal leave.

Once I took a look at this school’s website and what they have to offer in terms of curriculum, salary, benefits and an environment that sounds welcoming to teachers, I wished that I was younger and still looking for employment.

Chengdu Meishi International School is a private, co-educational day school for students from Pre-K though Grade 12. The school has been in operation for eight years. CMIS is an IB World School with authorization to use the IB Diploma program. CMIS is accredited by the AdvancED Accreditation Commission.

The school has over 100 students that represent 14 countries. The teaching staff is predominately from the United States and China.

Mission
The school has no mission listed on their website, but it is obvious from reading all their documents that their mission is to prepare students for entrance into prestigious universities around the world, but more especially in the United States.

Facilities
The school has a 50 acre campus in a green area of the city. Facilities include: a library, a computer lab, sports fields, including a track, an art and music training center, a gym, a clinic, and modern classrooms.

Curriculum
The school has an American curriculum and is a college preparatory school that takes this mission quite seriously. The school begins getting students ready for entering the IB Diploma program and entrance to foreign universities from Kindergarten. The Elementary School uses the Basic California Standards, and the Middle School uses the Basic California and American College Board’s “Pre-AP” Standards. Senior students take the IB Diploma program.

Extra Curricular Activities
The school has basketball and soccer teams that occasionally compete with other schools.

Technology
The school has over 100 new, high speed networked computers with 19 inch monitors that are located in all classrooms as well as in the school computer lab.

Professional Development
No information is available.

Employment
The school has teaching positions available year round, although the website notes that the best time to apply is March. Teachers are given two year contracts. The pay scale varies based on experience and the specific position, but generally is quite low unless you are an administrator or head teacher. Benefits include: airfare, a furnished apartment, visa payment and procurement, and health insurance.

About Chengdu
Chengdu is located in the Sichuan province of southwest China. The population is over nine million. Chengdu is a major economic center and has a history of more than 4,000 years.

Chengdu has a humid subtropical climate with mild winters with occasional snow and a long summer that is not particularly hot. It rains throughout the year and is often overcast.

Chengdu has a lot of international investment so there is a significant expatriate presence. Major industries are food, medicine, machinery and IT.

Chengdu is known for a relaxed lifestyle with many teahouses and bars for those periods of relaxation. Food is generally spicy.

Areas of interest are the Chengdu Zoo, Tianfu Square, Sichuan Science and Technology Museum, the Sichuan Opera, Jinli Ancient Street, the Panda Research Base, and many temples.