Every year, thousands of teachers cross borders to teach foreign students. Some search for greener pastures while others do it for humanitarian purposes. Compared to travelling as a tourist where you are treated as a guest, it’s a more challenging task because you need to stay in a foreign country for a longer period and you are forced to adapt. Teachers can certainly experience culture shock in and out of the classroom. Here are 7 useful tips for a smoother transition into your new culture.

According to recent statistics, the number of expats in China is now over 240,000 and counting. HSBC’s Expat Explorer survey ranked China in the top 3 destinations for expats, based on quality of living standards. Moving to China might seem daunting at first, with factors such as pollution, language barrier and culture shock to take into account. However, it’s clear that China remains an attractive destination to live and work, with many teachers moving there to take up international teaching jobs.

In 2014 we launched our “Refer a friend” competition. Here was the deal: refer a friend to Teacher Horizons and get the chance to win two free flights to the destination of your choice. Over 100 teachers referred friends to us. Today we’re pleased to announce the first winners, Natacha and James.

It’s nearly a year since the marching parades on the streets of Bangkok which led to subsequent military coup taking power in May 2014.

At the time, I felt safe in my sleepy village but wondered what economic impact it would have on Thailand.

Iraq is a sometimes overlooked teaching destination which has seen more than its fair share of conflict for many years. This didn’t deter international teacher Chris Jamison, who decided to make Kurdistan his home. What is it like, and is it safe for expats? We asked Chris a few questions about his experience so far.

We strongly believe that ‘internationalising teaching’ isn’t about just working with privileged private international schools. Our vision has always been to work with a range of institutions that benefit from overseas teachers where teachers can learn and develop professionally in an international context. These organisations might be charity projects, local schools, social enterprises too – places where teachers can learn new transferable skills.

We support organisations like this in two ways. First, we offer free advertising on our website. Secondly we have committed to giving 10% of our profits to education charities in Cambodia – where our Asia office is based.

Azerbaijan might be a somewhat unconventional teaching location, but according to international teacher and seasoned expat Elaine Crawford, it’s a safe and comfortable place to work with plenty of advantages. We asked her a few questions to get the lowdown on teaching in Baku.

If you come from a grey, chilly country, then a warmer climate can be a major advantage of moving abroad. It’s great: no more de-icing the car or shivering at the bus stop in sub-zero temperatures. You only need to step outside to top up your vitamin D levels. But hot weather has its disadvantages too, of course. At the height of the hot season, the air is so hot it seems to burn your skin, and even sitting still feels like hard work. Moving from a chilly country to a hot one is liable to give you some degree of climate shock. Luckily there are a few things you can do to stay cool (apart from staying in an air-conditioned room constantly)

When looking for a new overseas teaching destination, many teachers dream of year-round sun, balmy tropical evenings, and free time spent relaxing at the nearest beach or pool. Not so for international teacher Chris Dwyer, who decided to move to the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar, where temperatures plummet to an unforgiving -30°C in winter. Teacher Horizons blog editor Sammy asked Chris a few questions about his experience so far.

When you refer a friend to Teacher Horizons, you have the chance to win two free international flights: one for yourself and one for your friend. With a maximum budget of $1000 per flight and no restrictions on the destination, you could soon be jetting off to somewhere amazing. In case you need any more reasons, here is our list of top 10 reasons to refer a friend today, and get a flying start to 2015.