American School of Guayaquil

At the suggestion of a few of my friends, I am going to start posting some reviews of international schools around the globe. I’ll start with the school where I currently teach.

Colegio Americano de Guayaquil


This picture is some international teachers at Colegio Americano, circa 2008

General Description:

The American School of Guayaquil is a K-12, bilingual IB school with 1500 students. It is located in the city of Guayaquil (Pacific Ocean port), Ecuador. It follows the IBO World School program. The campus itself is a lush spread of acreage, widely shaded by trees, and populated by several dozen large, fierce looking iguanas (don’t worry, they are vegetarians)! It is run by its own school board, and actually has numerous activities. It has a separately operated Pre-K facility, Primary School, Secondary School, and it’s own Blue Hill College, essentially a small, private business college that holds night classes on campus and that works in concert with several international universities.

The facilities are a bit of a dichotomy. The primary school, Pre-K to 6th Course (the equivalent of 6th Grade in the US) is housed in modern buildings with excellent facilities (the picture above was taken in the Primary School area). The secondary school, Courses 1st-6th (equivalent of 7th-12th Grade US) are in much older buildings. Classrooms are fairly spare. While there are five large computer labs and a well-stocked library, there are no computers in classrooms. There is free WiFi that covers most of the campus and there are three computers in the teacher’s lounge for use, so technologically Colegio Americano lags many upper international schools in this regard.

Academics:

Academics are in Spanish and English, depending on the program the students are in and the nationality/ability of the teacher. The school follows a broad IBO International Baccalaureate degree program for all secondary students, with international degrees available for English Literature, Social Studies, History, Accounting, Economics, Business Studies, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Geography and others. Classes generally range in size from 25-35 students.

There are lots of extracurricular events, and teachers are expected to work several evening and Saturday functions without extra pay.

Students:

Students are generally from upper middle-class to upper class families. Most (about 97% are Ecuadorian with a few from other countries (Canada, South Korea and China, mostly).

Teachers:

Salaries for international hire teachers start at $16,000-$20,000/year depending on area of expertise and experience. The highest salaries tend to go to English Literature teachers. The salary is very high compared to what locals make, but it depends on how you live. Imported products are extremely high, but if you live mainly on local economy it is very cheap. Teachers can save about $700/month of their salary quite easily, $1000 or more if they are at the upper end of the pay scale or are a teaching couple.

Benefits include most of the standard items you expect for international schools including annual flights to home of record, 400$/Month housing allowance, assistance in finding housing, international health insurance (Clements), annual round-trip transportation, $450 excess baggage allowance, international courier service for letters, Spanish lessons (40 hours, basic Spanish), 3 staff polo shirts (optional).
Qualifications: Bachelor's, teaching certificate, appropriate experience and bi-cultural adaptability. Colegio Americano is not accredited under any international, US, UK or Canadian organizations, so they do sometimes consider uncertified teachers who have some teaching experience. You don’t need any Spanish, but a little helps. Being fairly competent in conversational Spanish is a huge help.

Guayaquil:

Guayaquil tends to be a love it/hate it type of place. It is Ecuador’s major port city, so it is heavily business oriented. At around 2 million people, it is also much larger than many think when they sign on. There are numerous Western-style Malls and a plethora of chain stores and restaurants like Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Burger King, Victoria’s Secret and many others. Right next to them might be a little hole-in-the-wall café that serves almuerzo (lunch) of soup, meat, vegetable, rice and a fruit juice for around $1.50 a person or less.

Gualaquil by itself has limited attractions. The shore-side Malecon 2000 is the main feature of the city, having 2.6 kilometers along the main estuary of shops, gardens, museums and Imax theaters. There are a wide range of concerts and special events that follow a typical latino taste. However one of the best parts of Guayaquil is its location. It is a short bus ride to the Pacific beaches of Las Playas, Salinas, and Ecuador’s famed Ruta del Sol. It is the main departure point to fly to the Galapagos Islands and it is conveniently placed to use as a springboard for trips to the Amazon Rain forest (Oriente) or the old Spanish Colonial cities of the Andes, Cuenca and Riobamba.

Like much of South America the police are largely corrupt and ineffective, and like most large cities there are a fairly large amount of property crimes against tourists and foreigners. However, if you are security conscious and aware you should have little problem. As an example, I have been in Ecuador three years and have never been the victim of a crime. Of course, I am a very big guy who keeps an eye on things. My wife, who is not nearly as aware as I am, has been pick pocketed three times during the same time.

Overall, Colegio Americano is a good place to cut your teeth in international teaching, or to use as a springboard to travel throughout South America.