Teaching English in Hong Kong: What Options Are There?
Hong Kong has a lot to offer if you are looking for an English teaching job because Hong Kong has a very active and diverse education system. If you live in Hong Kong and want to start a teaching career or plan to move to Hong Kong with the idea of teaching English, this blog post will help you understand what to expect and covers three main options for teaching English in Hong Kong.
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Hong Kong's NET scheme
A quick Internet search about teaching English in Hong Kong reveals the Hong Kong NET Scheme. The NET Scheme is a recruitment system developed by the Hong Kong Education Bureau, focused mainly on teaching in primary or secondary schools. Being part of the NET Scheme means having access to good teacher packages and a considerable salary, higher than other teachers not part of the scheme.
NETs (as the teachers in the scheme are referred to) are entitled to amazing benefits, including special allowance, baggage allowance, and medical insurance. All you need to be considered for the NET Scheme in Hong Kong is a bachelor's degree in any subject and a TEFL/TESOL qualification.
## Teaching position as an English Class Teacher
The alternative to applying for the NET Scheme is applying directly for teaching positions at kindergartens and other private schools. Most of these positions are advertised on websites like jobsDB.com, CTgoodjobs.hk, or Linkedin.
If you look for a job as a class teacher, most of the online job ads are for full-time positions. As an English class teacher, you most likely work for a private international kindergarten to conduct their English language lessons. The class teacher positions are great for anyone with little to none teaching experience. This kind of position offers more support from the management and staff and provides you with a detailed curriculum and the books used for the lessons. A class teacher also works closely with a Chinese teacher at all times. This co-teacher offers a lot of help and assistance so that you won't be left alone dealing with the students and lessons to prepare.
Teaching in a learning center
If you don't like working with the same students in the same school all day and every day, a great option is to work for a learning center.
The main job of a Learning center is to offer tutoring services to students after school. Learning centers don't have teaching hours in the morning and will outsource your teaching services to two or three different kindergartens for morning classes.
In this case, contrary to a class teacher, you will hold lessons for a maximum of 30 minutes per class, meaning that you will perform lessons non-stop, covering levels from nursery, K1, K2, and K3 classes, with only 10 to 15 minutes break in between. You will also have to prepare materials and lesson plans for at least 4 classes per school, but sometimes you can use the same material for different schools.
Once the classes in the morning are done, you usually have a few hours of free time before heading back to the learning center for tutoring classes. The learning center provides all the teaching materials for the tutoring lessons and you won't have more than six students at once.
Come and teach English in Hong Kong!
As you can see, teaching English in Hong Kong can be exciting and challenging at the same time. However, hard work and local connections will pay off.
Most importantly, look for a position that suits you the best, offering you stability and good working conditions, and your life as a teacher will be much easier.
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