Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in Nanbukuangqu Guanweihui? Are you interested in teaching English in Wulanchabu Shi — Ulanqab? 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.
It goes without saying that the first step to obtaining a career teaching English as a second language is completing a training course. A basic 120-hour course is going to limit the opportunities that will be available. I recommend putting the time and effort into obtaining a more advance master course qualification. In addition, special courses such as Young Learners or English as a second language for Business Purposes will also broaden the opportunities that will be available. Ultimately, the better the education and training a new teacher obtains the better teacher you may become. Don’t limit yourself, as the saying goes, “Knowledge is Power”. Don’t forget that there is a lot of resources available for Teachers in the ESL world. Websites such as Fluent U, Busy Teacher or Go Abroad.com. Digital apps like Memorize or Story time. Even Amazon for things like Games for the ESL Classroom. Check out British Council/BBC for Teacher development and connection to other teachers around the world. Use as many resources that you like, just use them! It is also important as a new teacher to have a personal goal to help shape your path. It doesn’t have to be complicated or extensive. Especially since your goal should evolve and change as you learn, grow and succeed. You can start with something as simple as the place in the world that you are interested in teaching. Please remember your training and thoroughly learn about the region you would like to teach in. Do not embarrass yourself or offend and embarrass others! Another option for new teachers is start with younger children first as it will be a bit easier than trying to obtain a job with a large company to do training with their employees to speak Business English. When beginning as a teacher it’s very important to use the personal daily goals in your lesson planning and pay attention to the details! People love to hear their own voice. When starting out as a new teacher you may be tempted to want to shower your students with all of your English knowledge, please refrain! It is so important to let your students do most of the speaking!! After all they are trying to learn a new language and speaking it is the most effective way. Build rapport with your students, first and foremost, learn their name. Try to find out something personal about each of your students, i.e. favorite color, hobbies or interests, family members. In addition, share something personal about yourself. Be patient but also have boundaries. Enjoy yourself, if you are excited to teach, your students will be excited to learn. Try to inspire and excite your students. Choose materials that your students are interested in. Sing songs, use TV/Movie/Cartoon clips to grab their attention. Gap fill worksheets are easy for the teacher but may not be particularly fulling to your students. That’s not to say they aren’t useful or have their place in the classroom but use sparingly. Go for activities that allow students to speak the most such as creating stories or clue finds with classmates. Use color on the board to attract attention rather than just plain white chalk. Use positive reinforcement and finally show, don’t tell. Teachers starting out in teaching English as a Second Language should be excited about their new adventure, take the time to invest in yourself and your students and let the world guide you to endless possibilities.
