TEFL Teaching Information

You can find paid TEFL teaching jobs in most countries around the world, whilst some gap year teaching placements are voluntary.

Popular teaching destinations include:
- TEFL Asia
- TEFL China
- TEFL Thailand
- TEFL India

There are a wide range of teaching opportunities abroad, like finding teaching jobs, language courses, becoming TEFL, EFL, ESL certified and searching for paid short and long term teaching projects worldwide. Some people take a TEFL course which helps prepare you to be a teacher.

A TEFL / TESOL certification is usually globally accepted across a whole gamut of institutions and organisations. Once completed you will then be qualified to teach anywhere in the world! Once qualified you could travel to South-East Asia and have a unique opportunity to explore countries like Thailand and earn money teaching while you travel.


Teaching Skills Needed / Requirments When Teaching Abroad

Some schools, colleges and hiring agencies have certain teaching application criteria. Internationally recognized TEFL or TESOL certification are sometimes required and a bachelors degree needed. A lot of institutions also require you to be a native English speaking adult.

You do not need any previous experience of work or the knowledge of a foreign language. All those who are teachers or want to be teachers, those who want to do something different, and those who want to bring some excitement into their lives, teaching abroad is for you. When teaching abroad you might also need to provide a police clearance if working with children from your native country.

A TESOL / TEFL certification, and a Bachelors or High School Degree, are usually the standard requirements for teaching English abroad.


General Teaching Duties and Responsibilities:

- Be responsible for planning English lessons, organising games & conducting workshops.
- Become proficient in delivering interactive content and comprehensive classroom lessons.
- Work with local teachers and assistants to ensure classes are run efficiently and start and end as scheduled.
- Be confident when using scripted printed materials, multimedia and a variety of audio-visual aids.
- Have an emphasis on dialogue, story-telling, singing and role-playing, but more formal exercises, language games and literature can also be used.
- Prepare lessons prior to the start of each class.
- Deliver both formal and informal assessments and progress reports throughout the school term.
- Attend weekly progress meetings with relevant teaching authorities.
- Participate in outside of classroom academic activities with fellow teachers.
- Interact with both parents and young language learners in a way that makes language learning fun, engaging and educational.


Voluntary Teaching

Voluntary Teaching Positions Overseas can be found at community projects. You could help at care work projects helping street kids or at orphanages where you can volunteer and teach around the world.

Teaching in Africa can be very rewarding. Voluntary teaching placements can be found at schools, orphanages and community projects where you can instruct lessons and activities helping to shape a child's life. Teaching in Africa gives you the opportunity to help lift the standard of education provided to children. In Africa there are many children with an amazing willingness to learn, but there simply are not enough teachers to go round which is where you can help.

Most volunteer organisations specify volunteers must be 17 years or older on application. Volunteers need to have an open mind and flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment. You need not be a qualified teacher to join a volunteer teaching program but volunteers should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference.

Teaching in Asia is popular. There are several Tibetan refugee camps and monasteries in Nepal which house hundreds of Tibetan kids undertaking Buddhist monk educational training in Kathmandu to preserve the amazing cultural richness of Tibet and Buddhism practice. By joining teaching English programs here you will help Tibetan kids explore scriptures and circulate Buddhist teachings practice. Volunteer teachers on these kinds of teaching English abroad programs are usually left to their own devices when teaching English.


Gap Year Teaching

Teaching on a gap year is popular with people seeking to do something meaningful and having a structured trip. If you are considering spending your gap year teaching abroad, whether you are a qualified teacher or just an individual interested in volunteer teaching, you might want to consider taking a teaching / TEFL / TESOL course.

It is not very easy to go to a foreign country and deliver lessons in front of children who don't speak your language. With TEFL training and lessons you will gain skills and confidence to teach English to a large number of children, and make this experience beneficial for everyone. Popular gap year teaching destinations include: teaching in Kenya, teaching in China and teaching in South America.


TEFL / TESOL Courses & Teaching Certifications

Before teaching English abroad a lot of people take a TEFL (teach English as a foreign language) course which can be taken online or as part of a learning programme. Various TEFL courses are available including TESOL courses, Celta TEFL courses, TEFL certificate course, international TEFL, weekend TEFL courses and intensive TESOL certificate.

In this fast moving world where individuals are often fixed between professional and personal commitments, an intensive residential TEFL course is not something that can be easily afforded or accommodated. Yet, the desire to pursue an advance TESOL training that can facilitate career growth and open up a broader horizon of work, thrives. Therefore, a sophisticated TESOL course is the right option for you to add wings to your dreams. A lot of providers have excellent links with schools, language houses and can be a great assistance to finding a teaching jobs abroad.


Online TEFL / TESOL Courses

Online TEFL Courses for teaching English are comprehensive, interactive and hands-on. More importantly they can be completed anywhere in the world! There are usually video presentations including detailed teaching explanations, interactive simulations, hands-on exercises, and tests.

Online teaching curriculum is a balanced package of theoretical and practical aspects of language teaching with specialized versions catering to children and business professionals. A TEFL / TESOL course is substantial and enhances teaching skills of an ESL teacher.

Online teaching certifications allow you to create your own learning environment, complete studies at your own pace and fit the curriculum into your schedule, without compromising. The basic structure of online courses is composed of strong theoretical and technical knowledge of language teaching with definite variations in focus. The online TEFL courses provide you with a general guide to the theoretical approaches of teaching. Age levels that these teaching courses cater for range from children to business professional in a widened teaching sphere.

The online certification and placement advice from providers provide a smooth transition to teaching English abroad in countries all over the world. With the online TEFL / TESOL course you can learn while being on move whilst always being in constant contact with instructors who are there to provide guidance as well as tracking your progress.


Benefits of a TEFL / TESOL Course

A wide range of teaching institutions such as the American TESOL Institute provide online or in Class TESOL certification programs worldwide. This online teaching certification almost guarantees its graduates placement assistance for teaching English abroad. Getting an TESOL / TEFL certification literally opens one up to an entirely new world of teaching opportunities overseas.

It is difficult to count the benefits of a TESOL / TEFL certificate in the contemporary world of ESL teaching. A TESOL / TEFL certificate is robust enough to acquire a decent English teaching job at any international location where the ESL market is soaring. And when the same certificate is attached with the name of a reputable institution it becomes illustrious.

On completion of an online TEFL / TESOL certification course you are qualified to teach English as a second language or a foreign language anywhere in the world.

Teaching Jobs

With a TESOL / TEFL certificate, you can teach virtually anywhere in the world. Popular destination teaching countries include China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, Vietnam, Thailand, Latin America, Eastern and Western Europe and the Middle East. Teaching and instructing private lessons can be more lucrative than teaching at normal schools with wages generally being higher.

Types of TEFL teaching jobs in Asia: there are three types of paid TEFL teaching work:

- Teaching full-time at a formal government or private schools, colleges or universities. Teaching hours are normally 7:30am – 4:00pm Monday to Friday. This work is salaried, includes paid holiday and contracts normally run for 12 months or until the end of the academic semester or year.

- Teaching part-time at a language school. Teaching hours are normally weekday evenings and at weekends and work is usually hourly paid. This type of work allows shorter commitments and more flexible working schedules.

- Freelance teaching; teaching hours are usually arranged between the teacher and student.

With the growing need for learning English in non English speaking nations, demand far exceeds the supply so there is never a dearth of teaching opportunities abroad. A lot of teaching course providers offer a TEFL job guarantee, if you follow their advice you should be able to find paid TEFL work shortly after completing the teaching course certification.