Earning Money Teaching English as a Foreign Language
Teaching English as a foreign language. How Do I qualify to teach English abroad? I want to travel abroad teaching English.
Travel and Get Paid For It
If you love travel and love meeting new people, it is a wonderful way to go. All over Europe and the Far East people are being taught English and there is a demand everywhere, from Lithuania to China.
It is not a way to get rich although, if you get to be good at it, you can build up a client base of one to one clients and make a good living.
What qualifications do I Need?
Here is a list of the most common ones:
- TEFL Teaching English as a Foreign language
- EFL English as a Foreign language
- TESOL Teaching English to Speakers of other languages
- CELTA Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults.
- DELTA Cambridge Diploma in English Language Teaching to Adults.
- CALLAN A Direct Method of Teaching that is Different in Approach to the others.
1,and 2 are most commonly taught by private schools, colleges and online. They vary in their quality and cost. Do some research before starting.
They usually teach a range of techniques and have follow-up tests at the end of each module. In my opinion they are fairly basic and they are not recognised worldwide in the same way others are.
The colleges that deliver these courses often have links to specific countries and areas and can help you get work. They often offer a package of training first and job placement later.
The wages tend to be at the lower end of the scale.
3 and 4 are much more internationally recognised.
TESOL is organised by Trinity College London and
CELTA is governed by Cambridge.
These two are intensive courses and can be done over 4 weeks of full time study. There is both theory and a lot of practical with actual teaching experience as part of the course.
They have written modules to be completed and involve 4 full weeks with a lot of preparation at home in the evenings.
A word of warning: Do not imagine you can work or do other things beside these courses. There is so much preparation to do that you will be working all evening to complete the assignments and planning / researching.
(I loved the CELTA course, even though it was very pressurised towards the end.)
Some providers run part time courses in TESOL or CELTA over 6 to 12 months.
All of these courses require a degree of practicing after the courses. TESOL and CELTA are considered to be a basic level course and are considerably more demanding than TEFL and EFL courses.
They also open a lot more doors to jobs abroad.
Many of the better overseas teaching jobs require a degree and a CELTA qualification. These tend to be big city jobs, often with accommodation and better pay.
DELTA
This is the Cambridge Diploma and is usually only taken by those wishing to train teachers. It is very introspective and full of self-analysis so you would need some years of experience before taking on the DELTA.
Me
I have a degree in English, various other teaching qualifications, NLP Trainers Training and CELTA. I am also a Qualified, accredited and experienced Callan Teacher.
I am not boasting, just demonstrating that I have some experience in this field.
Callan
There are many different techniques to teaching and especially language teaching needs a variety of approaches depending on the level of English, the experience of the students and the culture of the students.
The Callan Method was developed in the 1950s and 60s by Robin Callan as a “Direct Method” of teaching. The teachers teach the students to speak first, then read and lastly to write. This is the same way we learn our native language.
Most of the learning occurs in the classroom and the biggest difference of all is that there is little preparation for the lessons, for the teacher.
Traditional teaching involves detailed planning of lessons.
With Callan, the lessons are already prepared; the teacher has to learn them. This does mean the same lesson is taught (at the same level,) in any Callan school in the world.
Although well known in Poland, Brazil, Spain and a few other countries, the method is not highly promoted. It was first launched in 1960 with updates through the years.
The Callan school in London has had enormous success with over 2,000 students a week in the summer. They opened in the 60s and have had a good run.
Sadly, it has suffered from the high accommodation prices and strict visa regulations in the UK and has now closed. The business continues, but mostly online.
Experience Needed
No matter how you qualify, you will need some experience before you can find the methods that suit you and gain some confidence.
Remember that all experienced teachers were newbies themselves once.
I personally taught 30-40 hours of free lessons to get my confidence up. It was hard but well worth it.
To find schools, search under TEFL or CELTA or TESOL in your area.
To find jobs – search the net and contact the schools offering the courses.
For CELTA and TESOL, advice on how to get good jobs and vet possible overseas schools, is included in the courses.
Shall I Shan’t I?
I find people fascinating and their stories wonderful. That means that, for me, teaching English to non-English speaking people has meant learning a lot about their countries, their lifestyles and how they came to this point in their life.
I have made a lot of friends which is of more value than the currency they paid me in. Long after the English course has finished, the friendships have endured. Move over FB, this really works.
Level to Study
Study the highest level you can.
Arrange the job before you travel.
Ensure you have visa’s and paperwork before you travel.
Get some experience, practicing what you have learned quickly.
Keep contact with your colleagues on the course. Sharing experiences and comparing notes is invaluable.
Passport, certificate and a change of clothes? Go for it.
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