Taipei American School is an independent, co-educational, college preparatory school for students from Kindergarten through Grade 12. The school was founded in 1949. It is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

TAS has over 2,100 students; the majority are citizens of the United States. Of the 250 faculty members, about 160 are American citizens.

Mission
The mission of TAS is to engage and inspire students to become confident, successful, creative global citizens who value learning, service and a balanced life.

Facilities
TAS has a 6.5-hectare campus. Some of the facilities that the school currently has are: 180 classrooms, 14 science labs and classrooms, a 25 meter indoor pool, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, two softball diamonds, a 400 meter track, a dance studio, two gyms, a weight room, a cafeteria, a clinic, computer labs, a 4-story IT/library media complex and 2 theaters.

Curriculum
The curriculum at TAS is modeled on the best American practices and curricula; it is what I call an American fusion curriculum, as it is based on U.S. standards and benchmarks and modified for use in an international school. Teachers use a variety of teaching strategies that are based on current research on student learning styles. The structure of TAS is similar to what you find in US schools and in most international schools. TAS has an ESL program to support students who need to work on their English language skills. High School students can take AP courses and/or IB courses

Extra-curricular Activities
TAS has an extensive and comprehensive activities program including arts, academics, and sports. Some opportunities include: Model United Nations, drama, dance, debate, soccer, volleyball, rugby and much more.

Technology
TAS is at the forefront of the technology use. It has had students beginning in 4th grade using laptops. It has a 1:1 laptop program for students in grades 6, 9 and 10. Classrooms have ceiling-mounted LCD projectors. The whole campus is wireless. TAS has moved from looking at computers as a subject to having them be an integral part of the curriculum.

Professional Development
TAS is committed to professional development so as to improve the curriculum and the success of each student. Some of the professional development opportunities are: Individual and team learning activities like coursework, leadership, teaming and collaboration, on-site learning activities led by teachers and consultants, annual education conferences and EARCOS attendance.

Employment
The requirements for teaching candidates are: a Bachelor’s degree in the general or specific subject, two-year successful full-time experience at an accredited school, is able to demonstrates superior knowledge of subject area, is able to demonstrates high expectations for the achievement of students, is able to motivate students to attain high achievement, is able to demonstrate an understanding of and ability to work with ESL students and communicates effectively with parents and staff.

A recruiting handbook is available for downloading. There is an online application form. If you are interested in being a candidate for TAS, you can contact the HR office (hr@tas.edu.tw). You will need three letters of recommendation, college transcripts and copies of certificates, and a recent photograph, in addition to completing the online application. TAS attends the ISS and Search fairs. Interviews are required and are usually conducted at hiring fairs and in the United States.

The school uses a 12-step salary schedule based on years of teaching experience and degrees/educational credits. The maximum entry level is Step 6. The salary schedule is not available on the school website. Benefits include: medical insurance, retirement plan, livelihood supplement, settling-in supplement, shipping allowance, tax-free salary, transportation to and from Taiwan.

About Taipei
Taipei is the capital of the Republic of China, which is better known just as Taiwan. It is located on the Dansui River. The city has a population of 2.6 million, while the metropolitan area has a population over 10 million. Taipei has a humid subtropical climate; the summers are hot and humid, and the winters are cool and damp.

Taipei has a number of museums, art galleries and temples to visit. The National Theater and Concert Hall is home to events by performers from around the world. Taipei has traditional markets like the Shilin Night Market as well as many malls and hypermarkets. You can buy just about anything that you will need in Taipei.

Taipei is an airline hub so it is easy to get to anywhere in the world from Taipei. If you happen to be from the States, you can take Eva Air or China Air to fly home. Both airlines are relatively inexpensive. I’ve used both to go back to LA and San Francisco.