Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in Zhunge'erzhao Zhen? Are you interested in teaching English in E'erduosi Shi — Ordos? Check out ITTT’s online and in-class courses, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English ONLINE or abroad! ITTT offers a wide variety of Online TEFL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language.
The difference between learning and teaching English as a Second Language and learning and teaching English as a Foreign Language is much more than the one letter difference in their acronym. Whatever differences and specificities any of them are known for, one is clear - becoming an English Teacher gives the privilege of sharing your acquired knowledge and passion for the English language to students, may it fall under the name of ESL or EFL. Learners' motivation, expectation, and implication will be different in both cases though. In the case of EFL, most of the time students are in their home countries surrounded but their family, close friends, and more importantly their mother tongue. As they do not usually use the foreign language in their everyday life, it creates a lack of interest which decrease their motivation for learning. These students are mostly exposed to the language and can mainly practice it in the classroom or while doing homework (if applicable). However, as we all know, the two very crucial factors while learning English are exposure and practice, which makes it harder for them to develop their skills faster and easier. On the other hand, ESL gives some advantages like the environment (multilanguage class), motivation. It is usually the case of non-native immigrants and learning the English language in an English-speaking country or a country where it is used more often. They may immigrate for different reasons: for studies, work, or citizenship and others. But, whatever the reason, knowing and speaking the language of the country, or in this case English, becomes a priority. Thus, they are highly motivated and surrounded by the language anywhere outside the home with a lot of opportunities for practice. The above-mentioned differences influence the design of lessons' topics (or content), as well as methodology and materials used by the teacher. It also requires the teacher’s different approach for both groups knowing that students cannot progress the same way in both cases. We may be tempted to think that the environment and high motivation in the case of ESL make the teacher’s job easier, but that statement is not true at all. In Teaching English as a Second Language, as a teacher, one will have to focus and meet everyone's needs in regard to learning English language, keeping in mind that each student might have different reasons for learning English: simply better communication purposes, or studies, or better job options, etc., while still be responsible for teaching general English. Whereas, while Teaching English as a Foreign Language, teachers must figure out a way to compensate for the insufficient exposure to the language caused by the lack of opportunities of practice and also provide students with sufficient knowledge and practice of the language. This means he/she must deal with both factors during the class hours and include these two priorities into the lesson plan. Regardless of those differences mentioned above, no matter where the teacher finds himself/ herself teaching, the job is quite similar. At least the basics: every teacher must know his/her student (‘s specials needs, English level, and progression) well, in order to be able to help each and every one of them develops their skills and gets the best and the most useful knowledge needed for their personal purpose. He/she must create the best possible environment and harmony in class so that no one - weak (slow progression) or strong (quick progression), will feel excluded or get bored; focus on language development in regard to both accuracy and fluency; check constantly students’ comprehension and adjust instructions and materials according to their responses; monitor and evaluate their language development and create a safe practice environment as a whole. The teacher stays the principal source of the language and students will always have high expectations from their teacher regardless of whatsoever they will face while learning. That is why the teacher should never stop improving on his/her teaching skills and never stop learning her/himself because any language itself has a daily evolution and development.
