Uncommon Knowledge

The subjective wellbeing of expatriate international school teachers in Hong Kong: An exploratory study into the influence of school-level factors

“…Our findings suggest that relationships are key to the wellbeing of expatriate international school teachers in the city. It is common, however, for international schools to focus on academic outcomes and other measures of performance, given their ‘discourses of exclusivity and privilege’ (Ingersoll, 2018: 271), despite stated aspirations of community and relationality. In an investigation into school slogans or mottos, for example, Holmes (2017) found that the word ‘community’ was used more frequently than any other word in a random sample of prospectuses from 50 international schools across the world.…”

“…The wellbeing of international school teachers, however, has received relatively little attention, although these teachers may work in challenging environments where turnover is higher than in national school systems. International schools are strongly shaped by the purpose of providing an elite education, and they have been described as ‘educational enclosures’ (Ingersoll, 2018: 259), providing social and educational capital for elite groups and acting as a gateway to enhanced higher educational opportunity. Teachers in these schools are, therefore, under great pressure to excel.…”

Education as an international export

“…The use of aggrandisements to varying degrees and on different topics demonstrates that founding and franchise schools are contextually situated. They adapt to convince prospective parents of the relative prestige of their educational offering and to frame an enclosure of privilege (Ingersoll, 2018) from which their students will benefit. However, whilst franchised expansion occurs primarily through the more traditional "international school" model, it is now increasingly occurring through a hybrid model catering to both local and foreign curricula, further complicating the way in which schools communicate an image of privilege.…”

“…In some franchise schools, especially those in China, the prestige of these qualifications was bolstered by explicit reference to English as the language of instruction. Franchise schools are perhaps keen to highlight the Englishness of both their qualifications and their instruction to differentiate themselves from local alternatives (Hayden & Thompson, 2008), and further draw a boundary between those inside and those outside of the school's enclosure of privilege (Ingersoll, 2018).…”

“…The status of anglophone higher education in general overseas is such that some franchise schools will share attendance at lower-tier institutions that founding schools would not publicise in the same way. Franchises sell both qualifications and a higher education pathway as an anglophone educational offering distinct to that available elsewhere and to that available to those outside of the school's enclosure (Ingersoll, 2018), for parents who might view them as superior to the local alternative (Hayden & Thompson, 2008) or to other international schools with less brand cachet (Bunnell et al, 2020). The prioritising of anglophone higher education above options with a better academic reputation suggests the impression of English language higher education remains a positive one.…”