I have had two opportunities to teach abroad and they have fundamentally changed what I think about teaching and education in my own country. These experiences have helped me grow both personally and professionally. From 2010 to 2012, I taught for two years at the American School Foundation of Guadalajara in Mexico and in July of 2014, I was able to teach at the Colegio Jose Joaquin Castro Martinez in Bogota, Colombia. These two experiences have enriched my knowledge of teaching and understanding of education globally. Below you will find five organizations that help U.S. teachers access international opportunities and/or teach abroad.
International School Services (ISS) provides a service that connects U.S. educators to American or International Schools around the world. You put your resume and references on this website and throughout the year international schools can access your information. ISS also hosts job fairs in the U.S. in order to obtain an international teaching job. Most contracts are for two years. https://www.iss.edu
Teachers for Global Classrooms (TGC), a program run through IREX and the State Department provides extensive professional development for U.S. teachers to learn about global education and integrating global competencies into their classrooms. This fellowship includes an eight-week online class, a symposium in Washington D.C. and an international teaching experience. I had this fellowship in 2013-2014 and it was one of the best professional experiences I have had. http://www.irex.org/project/teachers-global-classrooms-program-tgc
The Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching (DA) Program provides funding for highly accomplished U.S. primary and secondary level educators to take part in an intensive professional development program for three to six months abroad. The Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairsand is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE). http://www.fulbrightteacherexchange.org/us-teachers
Search Associates is much like International School Services. They have online applications, resumes, and references for U.S. teachers to connect with teaching internationally. They also host a number of international teaching job fairs per year. http://www.searchassociates.com
Global Teacher Education ensures that U.S. teachers are properly trained to prepare our young people to cope and thrive in a globally-connected world. By partnering with colleges of education and professional bodies in the education and teacher preparation spaces, GTE will support the internationalization of teacher preparation programs by connecting professionals, as well as advancing and disseminating research and best practices. http://www.globalteachereducation.org