More and more opportunities are opening up for teachers overseas, especially in the USA, enticing Filipino educators to try their luck abroad.

The attractive compensation package and benefits is one of the major reasons. Another basis for migration is the fact that teachers here are overworked and underpaid. A public school teacher only gets Php 9,939 to Php 16,792 a month. This is very different from salary offers for Filipino teachers in Maryland, which is USD 3,623 or Php 169,447.

The gravity of the need for qualified instructors compelled Baltimore educators to employ teachers from other countries. Prince George’s County School System in Maryland started recruiting Filipino teachers in 2004 when they tried to recruit 30 teachers as an experiment to remedy the lack of competent teachers. In 2004, 30 Filipino teachers came to the US as temporary workers on H-1B visas. The visa has provision for employers to sponsor the application of hired teachers for a permanent residency status.

The experiment proved to be favorable because they continue to hire more workers. Robert Gaskin, Prince George County’s recruitment officer, said that 1,000 vacancies still has to be filled up. The recruitment officer said, “We're going to continue to look for teachers in innovative places." For the month of September, 100 Filipino teachers are expected to arrive in Maryland in time for the school opening.

Most hired teachers has long and extensive experience as teacher with 10, 15 and 20 years of experience. Other US states that are in need of teachers are Kansas, Alabama, Georgia, and Texas.

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