How To Be A Good Esl Teacher

During our own school days we probably all encountered more than one teacher who didn’t appear to be in the right job. Some might have been keen to dish out heavy punishments for minor offenses, some were probably extremely dull and uninteresting, while others simply failed to listen to the feedback of their students. Despite these negative influences, most of us will also have better memories of teachers who actually had a positive impact on our learning. So what actually made these teachers stand out? We think there are several skills and traits that can be combined to ensure a teacher is remembered for positive and not negative reasons. If you can manage to develop most if not all of these yourself, you should find your future students will remember you as a great ESL teacher....  [Read more]

It is important to remember when looking at the raw figures presented here for TESOL teacher pay that the figures are all relative to the cost of living in the country or region in question. A salary of US$2,000 a month in rural Cambodia is certainly not the equivalent of the same salary in Tokyo, Japan. Additionally, the raw salary does not indicate other financial and non-financial benefits, such as who pays for your permits and licenses, who pays for your accommodation, do you get holiday pay or free flights, etc? So do not just take the figures at face value. Do some of your own research on the general living costs in the country you are interested in and scan the job adverts for additional benefits. Five main factors related to TESOL teacher pay: Taking each of these in turn;...  [Read more]

If we look back on our own school days, most of us will remember some of our teachers more than others. In some cases this will be because they were terrible at their job and didn’t provide the environment we needed to reach our full potential. The worst traits are often things such as failing to listen to students, lacking enthusiasm, and being overly strict. However, most of us will also have good memories of one or more teachers who actually had a positive impact on our school experience. There are a wide variety of reasons why these particular teachers stand out. If you are already teaching or plan to teach in the future, there are several things you can focus on that when added together make up a memorable teacher. If you can manage to add all of these to your everyday...  [Read more]

In many areas jobs are available throughout the year due to the high demand for foreign teachers. However, in some regions and individual countries there are specific hiring seasons when the bulk of the jobs are filled. If you are set on teaching in a particular country it is vital that you know the best time to start the job hunting process. In general, private language centers across much of Asia will hire teachers at anytime of the year. This applies to all of the most popular destinations in the region such as China, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan and Taiwan. The situation in public schools is often a different story. In South Korea, the EPIK Program recruits thousands of native-English speakers each year to work in state run schools. The interview process for this scheme...  [Read more]

Some of the biggest markets for foreign ESL teachers are restricted to native English speakers only, including Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. However, if your first language is not English there are still many exciting destinations all over the world where there are no such restrictions. It is worth noting that the term 'native English speaker' typically refers to teachers from the USA, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. As the demand for foreign ESL teachers is very high in most parts of Asia, there are a wide range of options for non-native English speakers. Thailand is a particularly popular choice due to its widely popular culture and cuisine, and the beautiful beaches and vibrant nightlife. In order to get a work permit you need...  [Read more]

You may or may not be aware that TESOL courses are often assigned to a certain level that reflects their position in the global scheme of ESL teacher training. Thanks to this classification it is much easier for teachers to compare all the options available to them and hopefully pick the best one to suit their personal situation. However, it is also necessary to know that there is not one set of TESOL course levels to be aware of as many countries and teaching organizations use their own system when setting course levels. While this might seem a little confusing, the good news is that they are all generally designed using the same criteria and are usually very similar. The main areas that are used to decide the level of a course include the type of study involved, the number of study...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified in Canada? Are you interested in teaching English in Quebec City, Canada? Check out our opportunities in Quebec City, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English in your community or abroad! Teflonline.net offers a wide variety of Online TESOL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. Here Below you can check out the feedback (for one of our units) of one of the 16.000 students that last year took an online course with ITTT! This unit is about the common problems an ESL teacher may encounter and how to troubleshoot them. I really like the first lessons section, as the first lesson often sets the standard for how...  [Read more]

Across the world there are millions of people working as teachers in a wide variety of environments, all of which require certain knowledge, skills, and personal qualities to be successful. This is certainly the case when it comes to teaching English to non-native speakers. Many teachers fail to provide the high level of instruction that their students deserve for a wide range of different reasons, such as not listening to feedback, being overly strict, or simply not having the enthusiasm required. But what are the qualities that are most important for an ESL teacher if we want to produce the best results for all our students? Communication is certainly key in any teaching environment, but when teaching a foreign language it is even more crucial as the teacher often doesn’t speak...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified in China? Are you interested in teaching English in Liaocheng, China? Check out our opportunities in Liaocheng, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English in your community or abroad! Teflonline.net offers a wide variety of Online TESOL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. Here Below you can check out the feedback (for one of our units) of one of the 16.000 students that last year took an online course with ITTT! Another insightful lesson. Before reading Unit 2, I had been ignorant to the fact that translations between different language was not simply translating words from one language to another. The...  [Read more]

We have all spent a lot of time in classrooms during our lives and we have probably all experienced what it is like to be taught by a good teacher and varying degrees of less than good ones. The good ones seem to make it all look very easy as everyone in the class is interested, engaged, and keen to learn, but how do they do it? In most cases experience is the main reason why they make it look so straightforward, as doing something over and over again allows a good teacher to develop their skills and the best methods for getting the best results. However, there are a few common skills that are generally present in good teachers no matter how long they have been in the job. It probably goes without saying that a good teacher needs to have exceptional communication skills. Successful...  [Read more]

Although some people grow to love the lifestyle of an ESL teacher so much that they never return to work in their home country, the majority will head home at some stage. In many cases this can be an unsettling experience as you are no longer the same person that left home in the first place. So many things can feel strange, from the everyday language and time zone, to the climate and cuisine. One way to tackle this reverse culture shock is to find a job that allows you to use the new skills and knowledge that teaching English abroad has given you. The obvious answer might be to simply carry on working as an ESL teacher. Most cities will have language schools and community colleges that provide English lessons to a range of clients, whether it is foreign students, immigrants, or...  [Read more]

With its unique position overlapping Europe and Asia, Turkey has been popular with international travelers for many years. The country is also rapidly becoming popular with ESL teachers as demand for the English language continues to grow at a fast rate in many areas. Big cities such as Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir are home to the majority of teaching jobs, but smaller numbers can be found elsewhere. In theory, a degree is required for all teaching jobs in Turkey, however, a shortage of teachers means that a TESOL certificate is often enough to secure many jobs. As Turkey is a big country with different levels of economy in different regions, the average monthly salary ranges from $800 to $1,800, depending on the individual employer, your qualifications, and level of experience. Most...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified in India? Are you interested in teaching English in Dabgram, India? Check out our opportunities in Dabgram, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English in your community or abroad! Teflonline.net offers a wide variety of Online TESOL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. Here Below you can check out the feedback (for one of our units) of one of the 16.000 students that last year took an online course with ITTT! The content of this first unit has very valuable information for all the students who desire to become an ESL teacher. Being aware of the assets a good teacher must possess will help us decide if we...  [Read more]

If you are TESOL certified and have worked as an English language teacher for sometime, you might be thinking about branching out into another area of the ESL teaching profession. One possible option is to become a TESOL trainer who is responsible for guiding the next generation of teachers through their certification courses. This can be a very rewarding job that is often well paid, and it can even be a route into higher management positions or even a step on the way to setting up your own language school. First and foremost you will need to have completed a TESOL certification course as this will give you an insight into what the job involves. You will also need all the skills and knowledge that the course covers in order to pass that on to your future trainees. While successful...  [Read more]

ITTT is dedicated to assisting you throughout your TESOL training and to providing you with a means of support during your ensuing teaching career. If you have any questions regarding our courses, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section below. Our TESOL FAQs should be able to answer most of your questions, but if you have any other queries do not hesitate to contact us by submitting them using the form at the bottom of this page. What does TESOL mean?   The acronym TESOL stands for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. The term is commonly used when referring to certification courses that provide the skills necessary to teach the English language to non-native speakers in your own country or abroad. Read more What is the difference between TESOL...  [Read more]

  Globalization and the increasing demand for English speaking professionals all over the world, especially in emerging regions, has brought about a new, steadily growing sector: English as a Second Language (ESL). An ESL teacher is, therefore, an educator who works with English Language Learners (ELLs) whose native language is not English. The goal of the ESL teacher is to help the students reach a certain level of fluency in English, on both a spoken and written level. ESL educators are not to be confused with foreign language teachers. ESL teachers do not share the same native language and are specifically trained to offer explanations and directed teaching methods to non-English speakers. This teaching style is mainly focused on repetition, drills, demonstrations, and...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified in Uzbekistan? Are you interested in teaching English in Samarkand, Uzbekistan? Check out our opportunities in Samarkand, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English in your community or abroad! Teflonline.net offers a wide variety of Online TESOL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. Here Below you can check out the feedback (for one of our units) of one of the 16.000 students that last year took an online course with ITTT! Teaching English as a foreign language is a challenging, yet rewarding career choice. As an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher, we must learn to constantly adapt to our students'...  [Read more]

  We can see that this particular usage of the unfinished past can be used for both the present perfect and the present perfect continuous. Where we've got action verbs, we usually prefer to use the present perfect continuous. However, there are state verbs which don't usually go into the continuous form, such as 'know'. We would say 'I have known her for 10 years,' not 'I have been knowing her for 10 years.' So when we have these state verbs, such as 'know', 'be', 'seem' and 'appear', we would usually put these in the present perfect but with the action verbs, such as 'play', 'cook', 'work', we will use these in the present perfect continuous. Normally, we also use the present perfect continuous fairly frequently with words, such as just or recently to express a recently completed...  [Read more]

  The bottom line is that the worldwide market for TESOL qualified teachers is huge, which means there are always plenty of opportunities out there for everyone, regardless of their nationality or native language. In some areas the number of vacant jobs is so high that you even get to choose from a number of different options. With all this in mind, it should come as no surprise that non-native English speakers with a TESOL qualification generally have little trouble finding a suitable job in many countries. It is also worth noting that we traditionally have more non-native English speakers than native speakers enrolling on our courses. As long as you have a good standard of English and a high-quality TESOL certificate, there is nothing stopping you from becoming a successful ESL...  [Read more]

For many teachers teaching English online is an appealing career path due to the convenience of working from home or while on the move. It is your responsibility as an online ESL teacher to teach students whose first language is not English. The four skills of listening, reading, writing, and speaking in English are all part of the job. Teaching English in person is very different from teaching ESL online from home. Forget about using heavy textbooks and photocopying tedious worksheets! Teaching English online is awesome because there are so many cool resources available, such as YouTube videos, blogs, and online ESL language apps and games. However, you may encounter some difficulties when attempting to teach English online. For instance, when you teach a student in person you can...  [Read more]