“Be Fearful When Others Are Greedy and Greedy When Others Are Fearful” – Warren Buffett – The person many financial publications consider to be one of the wealthiest in the world suggests that you see opportunity when and where other people are fearful of doing so. You might want to consider this for the TEFL world. Listen carefully – I am not suggesting that you endanger yourself – understand that first. What I am suggesting is that people who are interested in teaching abroad, in the exotic land of your choice, get ready right now. Get your TEFL CV/resume ready, get your TEFL certificat ..read more

What to do about it?  Teaching IS about being up there in front. If you feel you have stage fright then it is a good idea to do some practice teaching. Most of us do feel some anxiety when teaching a new class with students you don't know.  Even I do, with 25+ years experience, it is still there! Another way to deal with it is to be SUPER prepared and practice in a mirror.  Practice a lot. It can seem silly, but it does work. If you are a naturally shy and quiet person (I am) then the preparation helps. Try to view teaching as theatre. Practice some disciplinary redirection, s ..read more

Certifiably Different?  Not Really. TEFL Certification or CELTA? CELTA or TEFL Cert? Check out our TEFL Certification Course. Many people new to the business of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) are confronted with this question when they decide to get some training before they start teaching. So, what is the difference between the two training courses? Like the old saw about apples and oranges, they are really just different kinds of fruit. All quality TEFL training programs will impart roughly similar teaching methodology, grammar, pronunciation, offer observed teaching pr ..read more

Getting a TEFL certification while in China is a lot easier than you think Many teachers head over to China to pick up a teaching job, or are recruited by a school to China, only to find out - once there - they need a TEFL certification to qualify for proper working papers. TEFL Educator can help you obtain our fully-recognized and accepted TEFL Professional certification (120-hour) quickly and get you on the path to being legal. Our course is online and fully accessible to you while you are in China. Take a look at our 120-hour TEFL course and you'll find it meets all the requirements. In ad ..read more

What Do You Know? Many Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) transition into teaching from a totally different line of work. Before I began teaching, I was a social services administrator/social worker and had worked in a variety of roles. I know other people who were business people, stock brokers, marketing agents, scuba divers, military personnel and who held a whole range of other jobs before they decided to live the good life abroad as an English teacher. There’s no one right way to prepare for being an English teacher, and, in fact, having skills from another job or field can ..read more

 If I teach English overseas, will I live well or suffer for my dreams? Don’t worry! Usually, teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) make more money than does the normal John Q. Public in their host country. This means that most English teachers are able to support themselves in a style better than most of the locals. Sounds good, right? Wait a minute… What if Mr.and Mrs. Public live in a hovel, with a leaky, corrugated tin roof and a dirt floor, plus or minus a couple of chickens? It’s good you asked. Teachers of EFL may find that their quality of life is modest. But modest can ..read more

Real Money. Real Fun. Real Job. Can I take TEFL seriously? If supporting yourself while living overseas, living well, and experiencing another culture is a goal, then yes you can consider TEFL a “real” job. If the possibility of saving substantially more money over a year than you could “back home” is your goal, then yes again. If you would like to live overseas for extended periods and travel extensively, all while making a decent living, then yes, yes, yes, you can consider TEFL a “real” job. Like any real job Just like any “real” job back home, you can expect to start out at the bottom in E ..read more

Don’t Know Chinese? How Can I Teach English if I Can’t Speak Their Language? How will I survive? It’s a question that’s on a lot of new teachers’ minds when they start Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL): What if I can’t speak the local lingo? Will I still find a job teaching? Rest assured, nervous teachers! ** You don’t need to know your students’ native language in order to teach them English** Yep, you can relax (about this issue anyway!). In fact, most EFL teachers won’t understand or speak their students’ mother tongue, especially when they first get to the country. Schools almo ..read more

It's not what you earn. It's what you can put in the bank. Let's talk TEFL money... Here’s the real bottom line: it’s all about money. A lot of people go overseas to teach English because they want to save some money and when they’re working an entry-level job in their home country they can barely make ends meet. They can’t save a dime, can’t pay student loans, so can’t really have much fun at all. They’ve heard about teaching English abroad and that you can have a great time and still make some real money. So... people always ask, “Hey, how much money can I make in Taiwan, Korea, China, Thai ..read more

Contrary to Popular Belief, Contracts are not as Important as you Might Think I read some promotional material today from a TEFL course provider and it was about checking on the details of your contract before being hired. I agree that you certainly need to check on the basic details of your contract before signing a deal and heading across the world to take up a position. But, be aware that there is a bit of a problem in the thinking of legalistic and litigation minded Westerners when they start talking about contracts. Away from the Western world, much more business is done with a handshake ..read more