How Do I Become A Teacher

Most of Europe has a very strong demand for TEFL qualified teachers and there is usually a big queue of people hoping to take advantage of every vacant position. People from all parts of the world dream of living and working in the UK and many see teaching English as a way to achieve that dream. However, non-UK citizens need to consider a few things before booking a flight to London. There is plenty of demand for English language instruction across the UK as the country has relatively high levels of immigration and a significant refugee population. Government, private, and charity run organizations operate in many areas where they help newcomers and their families to improve their English skills so they can get by on a day to day basis. However, most of these positions will go to local...  [Read more]

The high demand for English language teachers worldwide offers English speakers from all walks of life exciting opportunities to live and travel abroad. In most cases, you do not need any prior teaching experience to teach English overseas. Moving to another country to live, work, and travel, on the other hand, will necessitate careful planning and foresight. Good research is also essential to ensuring that you do it correctly. Teaching English abroad, like any new endeavor, can present challenges, and you will most likely be nervous at first. However, your TEFL certification training will provide you with the skills necessary to lead your own classroom, where you will teach the fundamentals of grammar and conversation, as well as prepare lessons and manage a classroom. You must meet...  [Read more]

For the purpose of this article I assume that there is absolutely no difference between TEFL and TESOL, they are both a means of teaching English to people who do not have it as their first language. So why do people think to themselves sitting at home, maybe I will train to be a teacher, but not a regular teacher that we all grew up with at school. But someone who teaches the English language to non English speakers in foreign countries. Well the reasons are varied but almost everyone can identify themselves with at least one. Some realize that the jobs they work in are not quite what they thought they would do growing up. So in search of excitement and something more worthwhile they sign up to TEFL. Others like myself are really gypsies and have a great urge to...  [Read more]

As an ESL teacher one of the biggest challenges I have had to face is cultural sensitivity. Not only on my part as a teacher but on the part of my students as well. My first experience on this subject dealt with stereotypes. Not only those held by my students but those that I carried as well. The second issue was how to bridge the gaps between our two cultures. Therefore, the issue becomes how do we increase our level of cultural sensitivity. There have been many studies done on this issue. Most focus on the things the teacher should do to bridge the gap. I believe that it takes effort on the part of both the student and the teacher to resolve this issue. As ESL teachers most of us have left our countries and begun teaching in other countries. In his book The Developmental Model...  [Read more]

As an ESL teacher one of the biggest challenges I have had to face is cultural sensitivity. Not only on my part as a teacher but on the part of my students as well.My first experience on this subject dealt with stereotypes. Not only those held by my students but those that I carried as well. The second issue was how to bridge the gapsbetween our two cultures. Therefore, the issue becomes how do we increase our levelof cultural sensitivity. There have been many studies done on this issue. Most focus on the things the teachershould do to bridge the gap. I believe that it takes effort on the part of both the student and the teacher to resolve this issue. As ESL teachers most of us have left our countries and begun teaching in other countries. In his book The Developmental...  [Read more]

What makes a person intelligent' Is an intelligent person good at math or language' Howard Gardener theorized that there are many different ways people can be intelligent, this became known as multiple intelligence theory. In this paper I will briefly discuss who Howard Gardener is, what are the multiple intelligences and how can we use them in our TEFL classrooms.Howard Gardener was born in 1943 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He went to Harvard to study history and had Eric Erickson as a tutor. ' Howard Gardner's interest in Psychology and the social sciences grew... and he graduated summa cum laude in 1965"(Smith) . In 1966 he entered Harvard's doctoral program and became part of the Project Zero ( a research team on arts education). He completed his PhD in 1971 and...  [Read more]

Check out Tesolcourse.com about TEFL - Earn TEFL certificate Online and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: A.J. - South Korea said: I?ve gained so much knowledge during this course. Lesson planning, classroom management and basically to be a good teacher is what I will always remember about this course. I am happy that I made the right decision to do this course because it has helped me become a better teacher to my students. I learnt so much and enjoyed it. The information I learnt helps me everyday in class, especially with younger students. I plan to use the information I learnt in this...  [Read more]

  Then, we have a set of objectives and aims. Here, the learner objectives relate to what we're hoping the students are going to be able to do by the end of your lesson and quite often, that can be a useful way of writing out what the objectives are. So, we would start the sentence "By the end of the lesson, students should be able to?" and then a list of two, three or four items that we're expecting the students to be able to do by completing this lesson. The learner objectives are different to the teacher aims the teacher aims are what you are expecting from that lesson itself. Now, when you first start teaching, quite a normal aim might be to complete the lesson successfully, to get through the whole thing without having any problems. As time goes on and you become more...  [Read more]

One of the more noticeable differences between students on the TEFL course is the different uses of the English language. The main differences being between the British and American English. On area that I thought could have become confusing when teaching would be the pronunciation of different words by different English speakers. As a rule it is generally agreed amongst English teaching programs that neither type of pronunciation is the correct version however they do insist on consistence of usage. So when a person starts to teach in British English using relevant terms they should maintain that throughout. Grammatically both types of the language follow the same rules. However there are variations’ of form words that are used. For example the past participle for the...  [Read more]

Savvidou - Understanding Chinese Names: Cross-Cultural Awareness ...Diversity and cultural sensitivity are important considerations in an EFL classroom. English is an international language and the numbers of English speakers are growing rapidly. It's important to understand how English translates in each culture and language. There is a growing body of literature addressing cultural differences and the importance of awareness. Our challenge is to meet the demand of student in a manner that incorporates linguistic and cultural competence. Language is primarily a communication tool. As language teachers it is paramount to help students take 'ownership' of the new language they are learning. H. G. Widdowson,, suggests taking 'ownership' of English as a way of shifting attitudes....  [Read more]

Check out Tesolcourse.com about Cambridge TEFL Online Course and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: A.L. - Australia said: I have thoroughly enjoyed this TEFL course. As a native english speaker one assumes that teaching their own language may be much easier than it truly is. For me the revision of grammar especially practicing the tenses (past, present and future) was very useful. I think that when preparing to teach students a language you have to really remain encouraging so their experience is a positive one. You have to always be patient and anticipate problems that may arise with such...  [Read more]

When training to teach English as a foreign language, or any other subject for that matter, at some stage the need arises to examine what exactly it is that makes someone a good teacher. After all, if you do not know the qualities you should possess, how are you to become one? The TEFL International handbook provides a summary of teachers? own suggestions of the characteristics required, and lists personality traits such as patience and kindness, and skills such as the ability to motivate, understand and entertain (1). The handbook uses this list to surmise that a good teacher is one who ?cares about his/her teaching, but cares more about the learning of the students? (2). If the students? needs are therefore the number one priority, then self-analysis on the part of...  [Read more]

Many new teachers are intimidated by the prospect of having to teach grammar. There are several reasons for this. Many of us aren't that familiar with grammar rules to begin with, the many exceptions make English grammar a complex subject, and finally, grammar just isn't that exciting to most teachers or students. For these reasons, there can be a tendency to question whether teaching grammar is really that important in the first place.So, is teaching grammar important' I believe it is. Ed Swick says, 'The rules of Grammar for a language learner are like the rules of the road for a driver. In order to be able to drive properly and maneuver with other drivers, you have to know the rules that everybody goes by' This is true of language to. If you follow the rules of...  [Read more]

When training to teach English as a foreign language, or any other subject for that matter, at some stage the need arises to examine what exactly it is that makes someone a good teacher. After all, if you do not know the qualities you should possess, how are you to become one' The TEFL International handbook provides a summary of teachers' own suggestions of the characteristics required, and lists personality traits such as patience and kindness, and skills such as the ability to motivate, understand and entertain (1). The handbook uses this list to surmise that a good teacher is one who 'cares about his/her teaching, but cares more about the learning of the students' (2). If the students' needs are therefore the number one priority, then self-analysis on the part of the...  [Read more]

TEFL teachers often work in different countries and face different national students. Sometimes, the students keep silent or show no interest on the course content. How to motivate them in the classroom has become a leading concern for teachers. Through my personal experience and TEFL course study, I find some effective ways as below:1. The teacher need know about the students' culture background. We know, every nation has its distinctive clothes and food customs, religious belief, value points and so on. If the teacher gets some information and knowledge, he/she can talk about relative topics in the class, especially, in first class. The students are great likely to communicate on these topics. This is a good beginning for following lessons.2. The teacher must have some ideas...  [Read more]

IntroductionIn this article I will gather the most common problems/difficulties Thai learners have when learning English. I will spot the main difficulties you as the teacher will deal with and I will give my tips/solutions of how you can understand the problems and deal with them.The article is based on own experience and new information I have learned from this course.Some of the major differences between Thai learners and European learners are:Certain students can be reluctant to talk and produce English in class. It can be caused by natural shyness or just the fact that they cannot express themselves in English or it can have its roots in cultural issues.How do we deal with these issues and how do we know if certain behaviour is caused by student´s culture or by natural ...  [Read more]

Teaching is not merely sharing of information or knowledge, but also an expression of values and attitudes. What teachers usually get back from their students is what they themselves have brought to the teaching-learning process. The role of the teacher is multi-faceted and diverse. Just some of the roles that a teacher must take on are that of motivator, mentor, decision maker, coach, facilitator, psychologist, parent, speaker, actor/actress, assessor, organizer, model, observer and disciplinarian amongst others. Ultimately in the world of TEFL, the teacher teaches language, reading, writing, speaking and listening. To be able to do this, the teacher must take on many other roles which make it one of the most challenging professions. To put it mildly, teaching is not for...  [Read more]

One of the more noticeable differences between students on the TEFL course is the different uses of the English language. The main differences being between the British and American English. On area that I thought could have become confusing when teaching would be the pronunciation of different words by different English speakers. As a rule it is generally agreed amongst English teaching programs that neither type of pronunciation is the correct version however they do insist on consistence of usage. So when a person starts to teach in British English using relevant terms they should maintain that throughout. Grammatically both types of the language follow the same rules. However there are variations? of form words that are used. For example the past participle for...  [Read more]

A few weeks ago I went up to my Japanese friend and told her ?Good Afternoon? in Japanese. She smiled and told me that while correct, Japanese people don?t usually greet each other in that manner. I thought it was odd because that?s the way I learned it back in my university days. She equated it to saying, ?How many times do you greet your friends by saying, ?Good Afternoon? or ?Good Evening??? After thinking about it, I realized that I rarely use the standard ?Hello? or ?Hi? but rather ?Hey? or ?What?s up?? While completely acceptable and understandable for Native English speakers, I didn?t know that this simple greeting could cause a bit of confusion. When I taught English in an elementary school in Korea, I had a co-teacher whose English abilities were quite...  [Read more]

Being an EFL teacher can bring numerous rewards and happiness, but even the most experienced EFL teacher runs into challenges in the classroom from time to time, especially when teaching young learners. Challenges may range from wondering how to organize the seating of your students in the classroom to having a student that is disruptive. There are many challenges that TEFL teachers face, and unfortunately many are not given the resources/ideas or training that is beneficial and essential in maintaining a productive and homeostatic classroom. This is an essay about some of these challenges, and of course some ideas for classroom management.Classroom management can be challenging for anyone, but especially for the new teacher who has little experience in this area. It is not...  [Read more]

Check out Tesolcourse.com about TEFL - Cambridge Online Celta Courses and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: C.H. - China said: As time goes by, I have spent over five months on taking this course since December last year. Frankly speaking, I really appreciate the TEFL course which offers me lots of beneficial and practical teaching methodology, and this content plays a crucial role in my teaching career. Firstly, it gives me scientific guidance in terms of the teaching theory. To be specific, I become much clear about what roles a teacher needs to play at the different stages of a lesson...  [Read more]

After completing a TEFL certification course and working as an English language teacher, some people look to branch out into other avenues of the teaching profession in order to gain more experience or to earn a higher salary. One such route is to become a TEFL trainer. Teaching people to become classroom teachers can be a very rewarding and well paid job and a route into management positions or even setting up your own language school. The first and most obvious requirement is to successfully complete a TEFL course. This experience will give you the basic knowledge you need to teach English and also a valuable insight into what it takes to be a good teacher trainer. Crucially, it is not necessary to be at the top of the class when taking your course, as many of the best teacher trainers...  [Read more]

As a TEFL educator, I have been faced with various challenges in the classroom. Of those that I have encountered, fostering motivation and interest in my students has been the most demanding. As Melissa Kelly states in her recent article on motivating students, '['] motivation is probably the most significant factor educators can target in order to improve learning.' During the time I have spent teaching English, I have realized this. Without motivation, a classroom is dead.According to research findings, there are three significant factors that play into classrommAccording to research findings, there are three significant factors that play into classroom and student motivation: control, competence and connection (Kelly). Kelly refers to these as 'students' needs', and emphasizes...  [Read more]

Teaching English to Japanese students can be very difficult because of cultural and lingual differences. Japanese students are very different from American and European students. An advantage is their tendency to be more reserved and well behaved. However, they do not like to speak in class because they do not want to appear arrogant (Ikeda). This is a cultural custom and it will take extra encouragement to coax the students to talk. Also, students do not like to make eye contact and will become very embarrassed if they do not know an answer (Ikeda). Teachers must be sensitive to these manners in order to conduct a comfortable class for the students. A gradual progression toward a more English style class will be the most productive approach to classroom differences...  [Read more]

As a TEFL educator, I have been faced with various challenges in the classroom. Of those that I have encountered, fostering motivation and interest in my students has been the most demanding. As Melissa Kelly states in her recent article on motivating students, ?[?] motivation is probably the most significant factor educators can target in order to improve learning.? During the time I have spent teaching English, I have realized this. Without motivation, a classroom is dead. According to research findings, there are three significant factors that play into classromm According to research findings, there are three significant factors that play into classroom and student motivation: control, competence and connection (Kelly). Kelly refers to these as ?students? needs?, and ...  [Read more]

Being a teacher is one of the most rewarding and challenging positions in the work force. Teachers are given the difficult task of introducing new material to students, making sure they can grasp the knowledge, and present the new material in an interesting manner. This difficult task is only complicated further when something such as a language barrier is added to the formula. Being an EFL teacher is very rewarding but is not an easy task. Everyday EFL teachers are faced with both language and cultural differences. Many foreign school systems are just that to the Western culture;foreign. Many of the teachers in the foreign schools have a different view on their position in the classroom. The teachers are the largest presence in the classroom doing nearly all of the...  [Read more]

Being a teacher is one of the most rewarding and challenging positions in the work force. Teachers are given the difficult task of introducing new material to students, making sure they can grasp the knowledge, and present the new material in an interesting manner. This difficult task is only complicated further when something such as a language barrier is added to the formula. Being an EFL teacher is very rewarding but is not an easy task. Everyday EFL teachers are faced with both language and cultural differences. Many foreign school systems are just that to the Western culture;foreign. Many of the teachers in the foreign schools have a different view on their position in the classroom. The teachers are the largest presence in the classroom doing nearly all of the speaking to...  [Read more]

As computer technology overtakes the world and EFL resources develop to keep up with these changes, it is important to evaluate these resources that are being used in the classroom. Teachers need to decide whether these materials are necessary or helpful in the teaching process or are they being used simply because they are available and the teacher feels pressurised to use them by students and schools alike. In this short article, I will evaluate the resources I use in the classroom to support young EFL learners and discuss their use and value.Two of the commercial resources used by the school I work in are 'Shine' and 'Way Ahead'. Both of these CD-Roms have been produced to develop not only vocabulary teaching, but also grammatical structures of the English language. Both of...  [Read more]

Learning another language is a difficult process. The use of games in the classroom can make the process enjoyable and less difficult. Games motivate students to participate in classroom activities. Playing games is good practice of using the English language and should be done every so often. Students get a chance to relax from studying and figure out cooperatively how to win the game. They do not think that they are learning from the game but they are. At the same time the students are being challenged mentally. ?Games can lower anxiety, thus making the acquisition of input more likely?(Richard Amato 1988:147). Shy students who do not participate on a regular basis have the opportunity and usually capitalize on it when playing games. When learning English...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word "bunkum". This word is a noun and refers to foolish talk or nonsense. The word came into existence after a representative for Buncombe County, North Carolina, held a speech on an irrelevant subject in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1820. Soon after, the word "bunkum" became known as a synonym for nonsense. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This lesson covered present tenses. In this...  [Read more]