Is a Two Year Degree Good Enough to Land a Good English Teaching Job?

A reader asked:

I was wondering about the Associates Degree. I have one that I received last year and to be honest I have no specific special area for work history.

I’ve become a more “Jack of All Trades” sort of guy, though my main hobby is computers and IT.

I’m only 25 and wondering where I can teach English? What countries accept just an AA and where is the best place to look for a job for those places?

Employers generally require what their country’s labor/immigration ministry requires.

With the exception of Japan, there doesn’t seem to be a surplus of teachers anywhere, thus employers tend to ask for the minimum requirement allowed to obtain legal working papers for their foreign teachers.

Will an AA Substitute?

Labor departments tend to require a bachelor’s degree or not.   It’s not usually negotiable.

I am not aware of any country that would accept a two-year AA/AS degree as being comparable, so your best bet might be China, Cambodia and/or Indonesia.  Indonesia seems to be moving toward requiring a degree though.

China these days is probably the world’s largest employer of EFL teachers, so there is plenty of opportunity.  In the super mega-cities like Guangzhou, Shanghai or Beijing, employers tend to want a degree, but once you head out to the real China like Hangzhou, Nanjing and many other truly huge cities – there is plenty of opportunity.

Get a TEFL Certification

China requires a TEFL certification.  They don’t really care what kind, how many hours, online or in classroom – they just want to know you made some effort to learn some basics.

For Cambodia, get a TEFL certification to strengthen your hand.   Many of Thailand’s non-degreed teachers, when Thailand started requiring a bachelor’s degree, headed over to Cambodia and almost all of the them will have had a TEFL training course as it was required in Thailand.  You’ll need to compete with them for the better jobs.

Lots of Opportunity

You can see there is a lot of opportunity out there.  All you have to do is go and get it.

Just as an aside, if IT is your thing,  you might want to read a blog post at our sister site TEFL Newbie where we have a post called: IT People Make Great EFL Teachers.  And it is true!

TED’s Tips™ #1:   No degree, no TEFL cert – to many employers – sometimes means just another backpacker passing through who will have no commitment to their students.

Get some training to separate yourself from the crowd.

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Is a Weekend TEFL Course Okay?

Another great question from one of our readers.

 I have just booked a weekend course at a TEFL training centre in the UK which awards a “TEFL” certificate on completion.

I am worried that it will not be of much use in finding a job or delivering quality lessons.  Do you have any experience or comments on this kind of centre?

I don’t know the specific school or program you are asking about, but my guess is that the program is probably fine.

A weekend course is not really enough, but it is a start and it is more than most people who head out teaching abroad have in terms of training.

Such a course is better than no training though probably not the best you can get.  In many countries ANY kind of TEFL certificate is fine.  Even just a weekend or even a 20-30 hour online course are acceptable.  For example, in China, the world’s largest employer of EFL teachers, most schools would certainly accept that certificate.

Will such a certificate help you land a job?

Probably.  In most countries no training at all is required and if you have demonstrated an interest in developing your teaching skills by taking a course and getting a certificate, you move near the top of the list. China requires training, but doesn’t really care how much or what kind.  They just want to know you have tried to get some basics.

MOST countries or schools that set a requirement for a certificate (note that most don’t) will ask for a minimum of 100 hours of training.  Most will accept online courses – only a few will require in-classroom and even fewer will want some observed teaching practice of six to eight hours.

The reader also wrote:

Until finding your site I was of the impression that a “TEFL” certificate was a recognised qualification, now I feel that maybe these centres are running a quite elaborate con.

TEFL certificates are fine.  I am not sure what on my website might have suggested otherwise.  I would appreciate it if you would tell me as I would like to review it and make sure it says I what I think it should say (I perhaps don’t always communicate as clearly as I should!).

The whole of idea of scams and cons are way overdone in the teaching abroad industry – probably because almost all of us work abroad and the people back home don’t really know (often don’t really even WANT to know) exactly what things are like and how they work on the other side of the world.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   Just for reference have a read of these posts: Scams to Watch for in TEFL   and The Most Common TEFL Scam and even more on the periphery of that topic – scams from the other side . . . : Apostille: What it is and why you might need one.

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When Changing your Career to TEFL: Think ESP

People who have lost their jobs often wonder if a change to TEFL might solve their problems and offer some optimism and opportunity to what is a difficult time.

They ask if teaching English abroad might help meet some lifelong goals of seeing and experiencing the greater world (goals that were seeming quite impossible recently)?

It might well do that.  The demand for EFL teachers has never been greater.

Steps in Transitioning to Working Abroad

1. Get some training

There is increasing competition out there, but still not nearly enough teachers.  Getting a bit of training says you care enough to at least begin to learn the skills for the job you are seeking.

Many people are seeking teaching jobs and the only thing they have to offer is being a “native speaker”.  If you have more than that to offer, you are already in front of 25-30% of your competition.

2.  Don’t forget the value of the skills you already have

This is where English for Specific (or Special) Purposes – or ESP - comes in.   If you have as little as 3-4 years in the workforce,  you probably already have some special skills that will be sought somewhere.  You just have to find out where!

Around the world there are vocation high schools, two-year community and vocational colleges, academic colleges and universities and even specialized private vocational schools that teach the skills of almost every occupation in the world.

In most occupations abroad, at one time or another, workers will need a few English skills.  If that occupational area is where you have been employed, that employer of teachers would usually prefer to hire you before they hire me.

What this means is don’t head across the world after twenty years in finance and take the first kindergarten teacher job you can find.   Ten years as a lawyer (you’d be surprised how many lawyers are teaching English!) should land you nice job a college somewhere, teaching Business English, Contract English and possibly even International Commerce – in English.

A few years as a public school teacher can help you land either the same type of position at an international school abroad (very competitive market) or teaching English to future teachers at colleges and universities.  Three years at Walmart?  Walmart probably offers English classes to their managers in Korea and China.   And the list goes on.

A few more examples?  A friend once taught Airline English to Korean ladies at an airline stewardess training school.  My previous work experience has had me teaching accounting and management (in English) at an international hotel management school in Thailand, Business English to business teachers in Saudi Arabia, Email English to employees at Roche Pharmaceuticals in Taiwan, Business English to international executives in Korea, Telephone English to staff at a MasterCard call center and even more stuff I wouldn’t want to bore you with.  But none if it was boring to me! 

But . . . can you see that I never taught kindergarten?  I started in TEFL at about age 40 – twenty years ago.

3. Get your Foot in the Door

Okay, you are right – sometimes you just have to get your first job and get your foot in the door.  Do whatever is needed to land that first job. (TEFL training will help!).   Always keep your eyes open for opportunities to teach ESP in areas in which you have skills that other teachers probably don’t.  It is the best way to compete, to increase your income and job satisfaction and a great way to meet people with similar interests.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   Try to not start your TEFL journey on the bottom rung of the career ladder.  If you must do that, keep your eyes open for opportunity to jump a few rungs ahead of everyone else.  Those opportunities are there.  You will need to look for them and they often are not heavily advertised as employers believe that it is difficult to find you.  Help them find you!  Colleges, universities and vocational programs are where these jobs are hiding.  Go get them.

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Trained Teachers Maximize Student Talking Time

Teacher Talk Time vs Student Talk Time:  Teacher vs Student Centered Time in the Classroom

Trained teachers realize that the classroom is often the ONLY place their EFL students have an opportunity to speak in English and thus make provision for as much student talk time as possible.

Untrained teachers still often believe they are the center for the classroom and should bring photos of their family and home town and talk about that.  They assume that students will find them fascinating as the center of conversation.

Students will be polite and listen, but they aren’t learning much and they aren’t getting much speaking practice.

I read a LOT of lesson plans and one of the first mistakes newbie and untrained teachers make is believing that each student must talk directly with the teacher.   But in a sixty-minute class with twenty students that means, at a maximum, each student will be able to converse for only three minutes.

If you put them in pairs the maximum jumps to the full sixty minutes.  Both examples are extremes, but if we accept that they don’t get much opportunity to practice speaking and listening, we can see that pair work offers a huge advantage.

Of course students need to hear your natural speech, but that can happen in the presentation/engagement portion of the lesson, during the warm-up, wrap up and also incidentally at other times.

Try to organize your lessons to maximize the amount of actual speaking practice for your students.  Keep your lesson targeted on the students and what they need to learn.  A student centered classroom is a much more effective learning environment.  And take those pictures of your family back to your apartment!  Unless, of course, you are talking about families and the students will soon be talking about theirs.

TED’s Tips™ #1:    Keep your class focused on the target language and get your students talking.  Learning speaking skills is a lot like riding a bicycle.  You have to actually do it to get good at it.  The best way to maximize student talk time is with pair work – early and often in the lesson.

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Using L2 Outside the Classroom

Have a Relaxed Chat Outside the Classroom

A lot has been written about using a students’ first language (L1) in the EFL (L2) classroom, but almost nothing has been reviewed about using English (L2 – the second language) OUTSIDE the L2 classroom.

I really don’t know why.

We have written previously here about using L1 in the L2 classroom and I tend to use the L1 almost not at all and I have tried to make a strong case for that approach.

Across four countries in 15 years, I’ve somehow been able to conduct my classes from start to finish with rarely a use of the L1.

Many teachers though are worried about excluding the L1 and also want to use it to warm up to the students.  Okay.  That might make them feel better, but I am not sure how much benefit is there for the student.

OUTSIDE the Classroom

So I see the L1 trying to sneak its way in the L2 classroom, what about sneaking the L2 into the student’s L1 environment outside the classroom?

I’ve always felt that if a school hired me as a native speaker EFL teacher that they should get what they are paying for from the time I step on campus until I go home.   When I meet my students in the hallway or in my office – I use English.   If I meet my students in town or other places it doesn’t hurt to get a bit of relaxed L2 practice going with the students.

I could be selfish and practice the local language with my students or I can help them learn what a relaxed and casual conversation might really be like.  Without much correction.  Let’s just chat.

Let’s have a Chat

Just how often have they had that opportunity?  To just chat?  No examination, no review of how you have done, no grades, no nothing – just pure and simple and enjoyable (!) communication.  In English.  Maybe never?!  Probably never!

Isn’t or wasn’t that the real goal anyway?  Why are we teaching them English if not to learn how to communicate in English in natural situations?  Well . . . here is one now – don’t pass it up – talk to your students in English!

It seems some teachers almost want to apologize for “forcing” English on their students.  Take the pressure off the whole thing and just have a nice casual conversation – in English.  Doing so is a very good way to know if you are succeeding in the classroom or what might be missing from what you are teaching that you should add.

Really, if you meet your students on the street and they can’t have a simple little Hi, how ya doing?  Where ya going?  See ya later? kind of conversation – have you been doing your job?  Why not find out?

TED’s Tips™ #1:  Be a real English teacher and help your students get a handle on English every opportunity you have.  Outside the classroom is a great place for them to get some relaxed, non-evaluated practice and maybe to get to know you as a human – in English!

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TEFL Training for a Career Change

A reader recently asked:

I would like to become a TEFL or ESL certified teacher. Is this certificate necessary to teach abroad for an educated American?

If so, where is the best place online to study and affordable?

I was laid off so I don’t have extra income, but this is my dream to stop working for corporations and do something I’ve always wanted to do.  I enjoy helping people.

A TEFL certification is not a requirement to teach English in many countries, but knowing HOW to teach well is a nice idea.   It is only fair to your students who are spending money to sit in a classrrom with you.

You asked about an online course and you’ll find that China, Korea and Japan – three of the world’s four largest EFL employers accept them – so you will be in good shape.   I am a fan of the TEFL Boot Camp course, but that’s my bias.  I wrote it.  Fair warning!

There is a good amount of free information about teaching and how to teach on that website.  Give it a read even if you don’t wish to sign up.

I quite understand that the price of in-classroom courses can be prohibitive when you are first starting out and some colleges and universities do offer such courses, but they are often as costly as the commercially priced TEFL training schools that can run about US$1500-2500.  Add in the cost of not working for four to six weeks and room and board and it can begin to get expensive.

That is not always true though – so keep your eyes open!

Taking a course just for the certificate is not a bad thing. It does helps fluff up the resume and says you are at least interested enough to learn more and spend a  bit of money to do so.

Why not consider teaching in Korea, where you can save some serious money or even China where you will work a bit less, can have a university position and see a bit more of  the world?

Saying that, I am assuming you have a BA/BS degree? Lots of options are out there for you, take a look at:  TEFL Jobs in Korea and: TEFL jobs in China.

If you want a certification with a guaranteed placement offer – try TEFL Internships for a placement in China.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   It can be a lot easier than you think to actually get started teaching English abroad.  The most difficult part is making the decision to do it.

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Teaching Functions Lessons in EFL

Our Monthly Featured Comment/Question – from a reader of our blog:

About a year ago, I took the highly-regarded [name deleted] TEFL training course which turned out as rewarding as it was cultivating.

However, I have come to realise that I am in desperate need of learning to plan functions lessons because what was offered on the course was minimal at best.

I can choose target language well and I can certainly clarify items, introduce topics, prolong a section, and conclude it smoothly.

My problem is in two areas:

1. How to clearly and quickly set up the functions task
and
2. How to manipulate students into producing the exact target language without resorting to audiolingual approach.

Please advise a plan sequence or recommend a book (or both) because my whole confidence is kind of hanging by a thread.

My response was as follows:

I am not sure that you are perhaps making it more difficult than it needs to be. But – my first question would be: for whom are you creating these lessons?

Your students will most likely determine how you would organize and create and structure your functions lessons.

Certainly if you are teaching Business English or Hospitality English (as examples) in work settings, the language is going to come right from their work place.

You can easily ask people what they are having trouble with or for what type of interactions do they use English – and build your lessons from there.

But even for kids, a functional lesson like – Asking and Answering Questions about your Favorite Video Game – would not be difficult to get going quickly, no?

Some good resources for getting a better handle on functions lessons?  Try these . . .

Check out the website at Business English Ebook.  There you will find quite a few functions lessons and in the ebook (found at TEFL eBooks).

The Hotel and Resort English eBook is also functions based.  Check out that website at:  Hotel-TEFL.com

Between those two websites you can get a good feel for what a tightly focused functions lesson is all about.  There are lots of examples right on the websites and many are organized such that it would be easy to transfer them right into the classroom, including activities and worksheets.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   You might also check out a previous post here called: Don’t Teach Grammar: Teach Functions

Teaching Private Classes: Making Money on the Side

Sooner or later.  Usually sooner.  Every teacher of English overseas is going to be offered the “private” job, the teaching job “on the side” that is separate from your main job.

Some teachers will have been looking for the offer, hoping to increase their income.  Others weren’t interested at all, but the offer came anyway.

Teaching Private Classes is Usually Illegal

In most countries teaching “on the side” is illegal unless expressly written into your working papers. Often it is also prohibited by your employment contract.

But the offers can be quite lucrative and, in some cases, you may even double your regular income – or more.  More than a few teachers use private teaching as a way to significantly increase their earnings.

Don’t do anything Illegal

We can’t recommend that you do anything illegal.  You will, however, find that the risk in some countries is almost non-existant, but in other countries employers and authorities are vigilant.  Vigilance is not usual though, thus teaching privately tends to be quite common in many countries.

How do These Jobs Come About?

Most often you will be approached directly by someone wanting a private teacher.  I even had, in at least two countries, my employer arrange them for me.  I didn’t ask for them, they asked me to take the classes and teach them!

If you are looking for this kind of work, be patient.  Schools and students tend to be a bit wary of newcomers and like to wait to see if you are a reliable and competent teacher.  Offers don’t typically come immediately, but they do come.

One Warning Though

If you intend to take private classes and are teaching illegally, it is best to keep quiet about your classes.   People who become a bit too boisterous and too obvious can find themselves in trouble.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   If you decide to take private classes, do so discretely and – in most countries – you’ll never have a problem.   Again, however, we recommend that you keep yourself 100% legal. 

Should you Get a TEFL, TESOL or TESL Certification? Which is Best?

This is almost an FAQ type question because people often ask as they are unsure about what each of the acronyms really mean.

Not just the words they represent, but what does each area actually deal with?

How might the teaching be different?

Let’s get these ideas sorted out today . . .

TEFL Certification vs. TESL Certification

Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) is probably the most accurate description of what teachers who teach English overseas actually do.

Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) is what teachers do when teaching English in their home country when teaching immigrants the language skills needed in their new land.

We’ll address TESOL later down the page.

Purpose Defines Function in TEFL and TESL

When teaching TEFL, your students are usually in their home country, may never even visit an English speaking country and they usually need to study English to progress in their education or for work/occupational reasons.

Some definitions of TEFL would include the idea that students will not often have opportunities to speak English outside the classroom.  These students will have distinctly different needs and motivations for their study than English as a Second Language students.

When teaching TESL, your students are typically living in an English speaking country and need to learn (quickly!) the language skills needed for their daily lives.

From grocery shopping to mailing a letter to finding a job or even renting an apartment.  Their needs are real and immediate when it comes to getting English skills.

You can see here that the motivation of ESL students will likely be much stronger that of EFL students.   They have immediate and real problems that need to be solved using English.  And the topics taught might be very different.

It would be unlikely that you would want or need to teach an EFL student the language needed to mail a letter in a post office where English is the language in use.

Yet, for an ESL student this will be an important skill, becoming less so in these days of the internet and iPhones though, but I think you get the idea.

For the ESL student, this particular need is greater than for the EFL student – who may never step foot in an English environment post office.

As there is such a huge amount of language that our students need, we obviously need to focus on the specific language most relevant for our students.  We don’t want to spend time teaching them language that they will likely never need and never use.

If you wanted a general observation, possibly you might think that EFL is typically more generic language and ESL might be more specific to a certain task – but that conclusion would not really be accurate.   A lot of EFL is specific occupational language or language needed to pass a certain test like TOEFL, IELTS or GMAT.

TESOL versus the others

Teaching English to Speakers of other languages ( TESOL) encompasses both TEFL and TESL, but the reality is that essentially the same methodology is used in all three of these variations.

So the way you learn to teach ESOL will be the same as you learn to teach EFL or ESL.

You’ll tend to find Americans using TEFL, Canadians using TESOL and Brits using all three acronymns.

Methodology and lesson planning are the core of most courses and once you get that down, you are good to go in any of the three areas – you need only to determine the specific needs of your students and get to work.

Language Teaching Methodologies used in TESOL – TEFL – TESL

The most common teaching methodologies – PPP and ESA – are really just good teaching strategies that you could – really – just as easily apply to a simple mathematics lesson.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   Simple enough.  Don’t make too much of the differences of a TESOL, TEFL or TESL course – or methodology.  There really isn’t much difference and the only real difference in these types of classes is in the specific language needs of your students.  A good needs analysis will tell you that and get you going.

Success in TEFL: How to Build your TEFL Career

Do you know the PPPs of TEFL Success?

If you have studied TEFL methodology at all, you are aware of the PPP method.  It’s probably the most commonly taught approach to teaching English as a foreign language.

But here we are going to talk about the method of making your TEFL experience a success.

The PPPs of Success in TEFL

Preparation

First step is Preparation.  Do your research and get a realistic idea if what is out here for you.  Or what exists in the next country to which you wish to go.

Gathering the data for a solid understanding of where you want to go and how to make it work is not always easy.  The internet if full of good information, but also full of BS.  And full of people who claim to know something but really don’t.  So pick and choose carefully and get a sense if the person you are listening to really knows what they are talking about.

One of the best ways to deal with the overload of information is to look through various sources and don’t rely on what just one person says.  I can tell you about teaching in Taiwan, for example, but I last taught there about 1995 . . . So while I might have first hand knowledge and can speak authoritatively, the jobs market there has likely changed significantly since I was there.

Do your research and get a good idea about where you are going and what to expect there.

Patience

Take your time.  Try not to rush to – or from – anything.  Let things unfold a bit.   If you are searching for a job, don’t grab the very first one.  Be patient in seeking your goal.  If something seems to not be working out correctly, find a way around it.

Be patient also about how you want your job abroad to evolve.  Maybe you can’t get exactly everything you want in a TEFL job.  Can you find everything you want in any job anywhere?  Abroad or in your home country?

Have realistic expectations and know that perhaps you can take a job slightly different from your ideal job and improve your circumstances when you are on the scene in your new country with your new job.

Perseverance

Continue working to create what you want.   Never let go of that.  Few things are as satisfying as reaching a hard-fought-for goal.  Be sure to do the things you need to do to make it happen.  Do you need to specialize more?  To get some training?  Schools are employers and most employers look favorably on their employees wanting to improve their skills and do a better job.

In spite of much advertising that TEFL is really only about traveling and partying around the world – it is best approached as work.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   Simple enough.  Prepare for your goal well, be patient in seeking it and when close to it, persevere in making it work the way you want it.

TED’s Tips™ #2:  This method is no different than the approach you should take to work and job searches in your home country.  Just because you are thinking of going abroad, does not mean you should abandon all reason – as way too many people do.  Use your good common sense and it will take you where you want to go.

It’s out there for you – go get it!

Want to be a GREAT EFL Teacher?

Here’s how . . .

Value Education

While many people from Western countries place more emphasis on “street skills” than formal education, most of the developing world knows that a good education is the way out of poverty.  As a result education is often much more valued than in Western countries.

A teacher who does not value education is biting the very hand that feeds them.  Why do you think students are filling classes wanting to learn English?!

Respect your Host Country’s Culture and Values

Students and host country teachers will often ask you what you think of their country and culture.   Say only positive things.  What would you think of a foreigner visiting your home country who ran off a long list of things they didn’t like?  Not much I am sure.

While we all know that our own country – which ever country that is – has flaws and problems, no one really likes to hear it from a foreigner.

Have a TRUE Interest in the Success of your Students

Students, employers and even other teachers just KNOW if you are interested in the success of your students.  There are people who are  just play acting being teachers and then there are people who are really teachers.   Real teachers want their students to succeed and do what is needed in the classroom to help them do so.

Students pretty much intuit your interest in their success and your desire for their growth is infectious.  From your energy, they get excited about what might be possible in their lives if they make a bit of effort in your class.

KNOW How to Teach and Follow the Method

There is a method to the madness that is EFL teaching and students progress at a much better rate and learn much more if that method (or a good variation of it) is followed.

There is a good reason why every TEFL training course spends so much time on teaching you methodology and lesson planning and that is because “flying by the seat of the pants” teaching just doesn’t work.  Just “chatting with the students” pretty much teaches them nothing.

If you don’t have some training before you head abroad, you are likely doing your students a great disservice.  Learn how to do what you need to do to help your students succeed.  It’s not rocket science.

TED’s Tips™ #1:   Being a great teacher requires only that you be sincere about your task and respectful of your students, their country and culture.   Do it right.

What Employers REALLY want from your TEFL Certification

There are TWO main reasons an employer requires a TEFL Certification.

First is usually that the law or regulations in a specific country require it in order to obtain legal working papers.  In that event, the employer has no choice – s/he must require it.

There will sometimes be requirements about the course itself (minimum number of hours, etc), but often as not – there are no requirements other than to just have one.

China is an example here, wanting a TEFL certification, but no set requirements about what should have been required to obtain it.

The second reason an employer seeks a TEFL certification is that they are looking for a specific skill set on your part and that is what I want to focus on here.

What is it that employers would like you to know how to do?

This can be fairly unique to specific employers but we can make some pretty good generalizations.

They want you to know how to walk into a class and do what is needed to make it work, without their supervision or intervention.

Teaching is a pretty independent occupation and most employers (schools) will want you to be able to work independently.  To be able to develop lessons, to be able to manage minor discipline and behavior problems and even to know how to deal politely with the occasional parent.

Though this is what the employer is often looking for – two of those three skills expected of you are not usually covered in a TEFL training course!    Some will cover a bit of behavior management, but almost none offer guidance on dealing with the parents of young students.

Fairly or unfairly, the typical school will want you to – on the first day if they have required training – to independently take over your new class and to move it along.

Don’t let this frighten you if you are total newbie or even just a wannabe.  Most schools offer some assistance to totally new teachers. In some countries you might even have a teacher’s aide in  your class.

If you are seriously thinking about teaching for a year or two, or even as an occupation, realize that it is a job that requires you to be independent in planning and in solving problems.   If a school has required a TEFL certification prior to hiring you, it may well mean that they expect you to hit the ground running.  This will certainly be true of most college and university level positions – probably less true of a school with very young students who often need a bit more mothering and nurturing than teaching.

TED’s Tips™ #1:    The independence that most schools offer you is actually a great benefit of the job.  You, once you have proven yourself a bit, can often create your won curriculum, build classes to solve specific problems that your students have and even plan for them long term.  What a blessing, few other jobs give you so much freedom.

Researching your Job Offer: Problems with Contacts with Teachers

A reader over at TEFL Newbie recently asked this:

I currently have an offer from a school in South Korea. I have spoken with one of the current teachers there via e-mail.

However, when I inquired to my recruiter for a couple more names/e-mails I was informed that it would be “difficult to ask for more e-mail references since the teachers are busy & hesitate to reply”. In your opinion, should I still consider the school’s job offer?

Following is my response – plus a bit added here and there . . .

I don’t know that hesitating to offer more than one contact should be the kiss of death for an employer.

Realize that of the people who are offered a position, perhaps only 50-60% accept the position and even fewer actually show up for the job.

Employers are essentially asking a favor of their employees – usually asking them to volunteer – to spend their time responding to (often quite vague and unfocused and even silly) questions from potential employees – many of whom will never actually arrive on the job, people they will likely never meet and who often even fail to send a thank you note after they have taken their time to craft a good response.

Some of the most common questions that are asked – for example – are similar to these: What is Korea like? What is teaching like?

Both of those questions would take a book to respond to and often the person who asked those questions never even bothers to reply to the teacher who wrote them a response. So . . . while only one contact might seem like not enough, do the best you can with that one and read between the lines a bit.

TED’s Tips™ #1:  Overall, realize that working and living abroad are highly personal things. What you like, I might hate and vice versa. I’ve had employers that I quite liked that other teachers hated.  You really need to read between the lines and ask very specific questions to be able to really get to the heart of the issue.   Ask few questions, but make them count.

Teaching EFL Students how to have a Conversation

A new EFL teacher recently wrote me and said:

I am having a blast and I like my kids. I am having a hard time being creative and getting them to talk to me!

Do you have any suggestions, games, approaches to teaching that I can do. I welcome all and any criticism and advice.

I want to help them and my goal is to get one student to have a full conversation with me without breaking down and giving up

My response was as follows:

Enjoying your students and teaching is about 85% of the battle, so you are on the right track.  Without that, you can’t expect much!

If you wish to have a complete conversation with a student, realize how daunting a task that is because you are calling upon a huge pool of vocabulary and concepts.  AND – if you want them to do that – teach them to do that – BIT BY BIT.

So . . . define what that conversation is, what you will talk about (questions and answers) and then teach your students the parts of that conversation.    You should not expect them to respond easily to just anything.  You are the teacher and you should not expect them to know anything you have not taught them – got it?

SO – teach them what you want them to do – to know.   It is not that complicated, but it does take time and planning.

Methodical planning is what your students have likely NOT experienced before – AND – as you are thinking about it – you are the person to do it!  Yes, that really is what your students really do need.  Go do it. Big task, but learning language is not easy – especially with the disorganized hodge podge that you already see is being pushed on your students.  That is a bit why students need consistency in teachers, not people who come for a while and move on, but ideally people who hang around for a few years and organize things well for them.

TED’s Tips™ #1:  You are the teacher.  If you want your students to know how to do something, teach them how to do it.  It really is that simple.

Making a Career of Teaching English Abroad

Without our readers’ questions and comments we would quickly run out of ideas.  But the universe of teachers and what they want to know is far bigger than any ideas I might have.  Following is a recent comment/question over at our sister site TEFLnewbie.com:

I am not new to teaching English.  My first experience being directly out of university. I am looking to go back and take a shot at making a career out of it. I am trying to get as much research under my belt before doing this. Can you give me advice?

By preference or even if just because the jobs market in developed countries is terrible these days, a career working abroad can be a super option.  What at one time might have seemed a dream or fantasy – the idea of working and living in an exotic foreign land – is sometimes these days, the only real option for people who want to move their lives forward, rather than stagnating at Walmart or Burger King.  This is especially valid for people with debts or student loans they need to pay.

If you intend to make teaching English abroad a career, RUN don’t Walk, to get a graduate degree in a relevant field.  MATESOL is probably the best option, but there are some good M.Ed.s out there, a graduate degree in Applied Linguistics is very relevant also.  Many people pursue a graduate degree while teaching abroad.

The UK and Australia, and increasingly the USA, offer quite a few good distance programs that allow you to work and study at the same time.  And, frankly, it is far easier to take such courses if you are already teaching.  Why?  You have a built in opportunity to do the research and to apply the ideas from your studies.

I did a PGCE by distance while I was teaching in Taiwan in ’94-96 and it was great.  Often I only had to send in lessons I was already doing (they fit what we were working on at the time) – or I built specific lessons around my studies and those helped me do my job better.   When you are studying something relevant to your daily work, it is more helpful than it is distraction!  You look at your work through fresh eyes and get better and better at what you are doing.

Why should you get a graduate degree?

Because a relevant graduate degree – and a bit of experience – will qualify you for college and university positions teaching English in most countries around the world.  If you wish to teach English abroad, the university career path is probably the best for you.

Why a university or college position?

Most language school jobs around the world tend to offer from about seven to ten days vacation per year and you are usually teaching about 25 hours or more.  In comparison, a decent university position will usually offer a similar wage, but ten to twelve teaching hours per week is more common, four to twelve to even twenty (yes!) PAID vacation weeks per year are common and along with that – you get all perks a language school would offer – or even better.  Four day teaching weeks are not uncommon.

The wages are often about the same between a language school and a university, but you can see that you have lots of additional free time to increase your income if you wish to do so.

Language schools tend to lead to burn out rather quickly, but a decent college/university position can keep you going for years and years – saving money AND seeing the world traveling on your long paid holidays.

TED’s Tips™ #1:  Okay, just my opinion, but the college/university job track seems much nicer over the long haul than the typical generic language school position.  Up to you!