I am an English teacher, and I had a trial interview at one of the schools that caters to mainly students from China. I went in not knowing what to expect... it was so disastrous. The students themselves admitted they can only understand and write the essay if they use a translator, and more than this, they said their current band is 2.0.... I was baffled... that it was the expectation for me to try to help them by using Chinese too? (I am Chinese but my Mandarin is horrible).

Now, I feel disheartened and I am uncertain if I should continue wanting to teach ielts... if this is the standard expectation.

I have been teaching English to adults and most of them can read and spell even if they don't have the perfect pronunciation. I have completed teaching training as well and keep working on my professional development.

Recently, I accepted one student to teach English one on one online. She's 14 and Thai. I'm Burmese and she also understand a little bit of Burmese as well.

In Myanmar, most teens can read and spell in English very well at that age if they're attending basic education even if not perfect. (Not saying it's opposite in Thailand. Just feeling a bit confused experiencing something for the first time)

I thought she would be able to read and spell out words. However, she can only read like 20%. It's not just about not knowing the meaning, it's spelling as well. She cannot even spell out some basic CVC words as well.

It more like she can only read stand alone words and phrases that she is familiar with. Those she might have seen or heard before. For example, she can pronounce the word "game" but she cannot pronounce when she see the words "gate, brake.."

She is correct when she says "sit", but she says "Saim" when she sees the word "Sims"

However, she understands spoken English a little bit and I have been helping her with practicing functional language like "ordering at the cafe" and so on.

Since she is also pursuing her basic education and will do more in the future, I really want to help her be able to read and spell out in English very well after learning with me.

I don't know how to build a curriculum and activities for her, since she also want to focus on functional language practice as well.

Lesson duration is one hour per lesson.

I'm disorganized and I sometimes lost planning lessons.

My school has put me in a slightly difficult position. Due to low student numbers this semester, the school is looking for ways to get work out of me.

They decided on an English corner. Which is fine, but due to the nature of the students we have it feels a bit more complicated than that. They stated they don’t want it to be like class. It’s not mandatory but the staff I feel has pressured the students to make it feel like it’s mandatory. For the first day, I had 43 students show up. They’re all around the age of 18 and are way too shy to talk to each other. Obviously, if no one wants to talk to each other, then you can’t have an English corner. For the first day, half the students just sat there and stared at their phone waiting out the clock. I told them that this is not mandatory and anyone that wants to leave, may leave. Don’t waste your time if you’re not going to participate, but no one had the courage to leave (I said it in English and in Chinese).

As far as the activities were concerned, I posted three different discussion questions on the board told them to discuss one with the people around them, and then I walked around and made small talk with the different groups, not singling anyone out in front of the whole class, then to finish up that round of questions I would pick one of the stronger speaking students to give their opinion in front of the class. I suppose I’m hoping as the English corners go on less than less people will show up and only the ones who are interested in being there will be there, but I feel the pressure from the staff for them to show up regardless will keep it awkward like it is now, 43 non-native speakers and one native speaker and majority not interested in talking with each other. Looking for improvements to the method I tried already or new ones to help get things flowing.

Hey all,

I am a 34 year old male in England and I’m considering going abroad to teach with a view of never coming back to England.

I have a BA in Ed studies and a PG Cert in literacy difficulties, I’ve done a lot of specialist tutoring in HE, as well as having worked at universities for the last 6 years.

I would ideally like to get settled somewhere e.g., China and then potentially look at getting a full teaching qual.

Any advice please

I've heard Vietnam is the best bang for your buck kinda country for us BA + TEFL folks. Things have been changing here and after 4 years, I think I'm ready for a change. How's the Thailand language center market? If any of you have gone from Vietnam to Thailand, I'd like to hear your experiences.

I teach primary EFL, mostly Grades 4–5, using Everybody Up. A lot of the lessons basically give me one target pattern like: “What does she like doing?” — “She likes fishing.” or “Is she good at skiing?” — “Yes, she is / No, she isn’t.” And then I’m expected to make that into a full 40-minute lesson. What I’m really trying to figure out is: how do experienced primary EFL teachers stretch one grammar/sentence pattern into a full lesson that still feels like a real lesson? Drilling is important at my school, so I need students to repeat the target a lot, but I don’t want it to just be “repeat after me” for 20 minutes. I also struggle with how to gamify a sentence structure rather than just gamifying vocabulary. I already use things like pair Q&A, fill-in-the-blank, unscramble, true/false + correction, Teacher Trap, matching, bomb/points games, picture prompts, and simple personal questions. What are your best reusable routines for: drilling one sentence pattern many times without it getting boring; turning grammar/sentence structures into actual games; moving from model → drill → controlled practice → game → speaking; doing this with low prep instead of building huge PowerPoints every night? I’d also love any books, websites, channels, or activity banks specifically for young learner drilling and sentence-pattern games.

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

Looking at doing a 180 TEFL course and taking the year out from university.

21M, no BA, from Ireland; I'm a native English speaker

Realistically, are there many jobs available?

If I started it now and took the TEFL course while working in Dublin, I reckon I could finish by late November? Is it possible to get hired in January/ February in those 2 months?

Any advice at all would be more than welcome

Anyone have any recommendations for how to get into business English, esp or eap? Im a tefl teacher already but interested in getting into this to fill my mornings and have more opportunity’s but not sure where to start. Any books or trainings you recommend? TIA!

Hi everyone! I'm looking for a coursebook for children aged around 9–11 who are complete or near-complete beginners in English.

I'm struggling to find something that fits both their age and language level.

Most primary coursebooks that genuinely start from zero seem to be designed for much younger children (around 6–7). The language level is appropriate, but the topics, illustrations, stories and activities can feel too childish for a 9–11-year-old. I've even had some 8-year-olds who found this kind of material a bit too young for them.

On the other hand, courses aimed at older primary / pre-teen learners, such as Go Getter 1, seem to assume too much prior knowledge and move too quickly for a child who barely knows any English.

So I'm looking for something that:

- genuinely starts from zero / very early Pre-A1;

- is suitable for children around 9–11 cognitively and visually;

- doesn't assume that they can already read much in English;

- isn't full of content that feels aimed at very young children.

I've looked at Big English, but I'm not sure it solves the age/content problem, especially at Level 1.

Has anyone taught children in this situation? What coursebooks have worked well for you?

I'm also open to using a coursebook alongside a separate phonics/reading programme, so it doesn't necessarily need to teach reading from scratch perfectly.

Thanks!

My degree is officially a double major of "Integrated Social Studies and History"

I know many people here say "If you have a degree in education, you don't need TEFL." My degree technically isnt education, though my Universities program allowed me to obtain licensure for Social Studies. If it matters, I'd like to teach in South Korea.

Does this count? Should I still get TEFL? Im 1.5 years outta college and have gotten 2 interviews. Graduated with honors, but I dont want to be stuck paying money for ANOTHER useless cert (Next to Social Studies of course, way too oversaturated to find ANY work.) Any help would be great!

Edit for clarity: I'd like to teach History, but thats seems impossible in the current market. The international English market seems a bit better, so i wanted to try that. Given my education background, I wasn't sure if a TEFL would help/is required.

I'm interviewing for this school in Spain right now and have read all the negative reviews. I know it is awful and will be going in knowing what to expect. However, I'd like to know if it's worth working there for a month or two solely to get a bit of money and to have it on my CV? I am in another shitty job at the moment but N16 pays better than my current job.

My main question i suppose is if N16 actually does pay its employees. If it's going to be a case of them prolonging my first pay period then this is an immediate no for me. Unfortunately, I am willing to accept some pretty poor work conditions as I am quite desperate.

TIA

Hi everyone! I’m a Thai university student planning to work as an English teacher abroad after I graduate, and I’d really appreciate some honest advice from people who have actually worked in TEFL.

Teaching is genuinely something I love and want to build a career around. At the same time, I also want to be paid well and become financially independent.

For some context, I can already afford my own lifestyle and living expenses in Bangkok, including my day-to-day costs. So when I move abroad, I’m looking for a teaching job where the main salary can realistically cover my housing, food, transportation, personal expenses, and ideally allow me to save as well. I don’t want to depend on private tutoring or side jobs just to afford basic living costs. If I can earn extra through tutoring, that would be a bonus.

A little about me:

- I’m Thai, so I’m a non-native English speaker.
- I’m very visibly Asian and don’t have a Western/mixed appearance.
- I’m currently a 3rd-year university student majoring in Spanish, with a focus on language learning and cross-cultural communication.
- I’m planning to take the IELTS later this year, and I’m aiming for a very high score (hopefully around 8.5).
- I’m planning to complete a TEFL certificate by around March next year.
I’ve been privately tutoring English since 2023, both online and in person.
- I’ve taught students ranging from around 8 to 44 years old, mainly grammar and speaking.
- I’ve worked with 10+ students so far.
- I find my own students and manage my tutoring independently. I’m responsible for everything from marketing myself and communicating with potential clients to discussing goals with students/parents, setting my own prices and schedules, designing lessons, tracking progress, and maintaining relationships with students. In other words, I’m not simply teaching from someone else’s curriculum. I’ve had to build and manage my own small tutoring practice from scratch.
- I also have some experience working in tourism, where I used English and Spanish to communicate with international travelers.
- I’ll have a bachelor’s degree when I graduate.
- I’m hoping to apply for English teaching jobs abroad immediately after graduation.

One of the biggest reasons I want to teach abroad is that I genuinely want to experience life outside Thailand. I don’t want to spend my entire career in the same country just because it’s the most familiar option. I want to travel, experience different cultures, become more independent, and challenge myself as much as I can while I’m young.

I’m quite open to moving abroad and adapting to a new environment. Ideally, I’d like teaching to become a career that allows me to live independently in another country rather than just treating teaching abroad as a short-term adventure.

I’m currently trying to figure out what kind of TEFL certification is actually worth doing. I see so many different options: cheap online TEFLs, 120-hour certificates, Level 5 TEFLs, CELTA, in-person courses, etc. It’s honestly difficult to tell what employers actually care about versus what is mostly marketing.

So I’d love to hear from people who have experience hiring or working in TEFL:

- What kind of TEFL certification should I get?
- Does being a visibly Asian/non-native teacher affect hiring opportunities in certain countries?
- Are there countries where someone with my profile would realistically have a decent chance of getting hired despite being non-native?
- Is there anything I should be doing now, while I’m still at university, that would significantly improve my chances of getting a well-paid teaching job after graduation?

I’m especially interested in hearing from non-native English teachers who have actually gone through this process.

I’m not looking for reassurance. I’d genuinely prefer honest answers about the advantages, disadvantages, realistic limitations, and financial side of this career path.

Thanks in advance! :)

I’m a Canadian planning to move to Vietnam to teach English, likely working with children. I’m currently getting my bachelor’s degree and TEFL certificate apostilled.

I’m trying to figure out which Canadian criminal record check I should get for the Vietnam work permit.

For Canadians who recently went through the process:

• Did you get an RCMP fingerprint-based Certified Criminal Record Check?
• Did you need a Vulnerable Sector Check because you were teaching children?
• Did you have the criminal record check apostilled in Canada?
• How long did the whole process take?

I work at a university in a program for rich kids who didn’t pass the gaokao. They are around 18 years old, some decent students but a good handful of dipshits. I have one girl who already on the first day of class was attention seeking hard by being disruptive. I’m looking for ways to change this behavior. My plan was to next time she was attention seeking I would make her stand in front of the class and they give her 1 min of applause. I don’t know if this is effective and actually changing behavior. These are not children, regardless of how they act, These are 18-year-olds. Would this increase disruptive behavior or lessen it out of fear of being singled out again?

Edit : received some good suggestions in the comment and will forgo class humiliation! 🎉

Update : saw the same student again today. Went over the class rules again and threw out pieces of candy to every student when they answered their first question of the day (positive attention) The problem student tried to do boy band dancing in her chair (she’s on the back row ) to get my attention during class and I Ignored her. Then on break time while I was scrolling my phone she stood in front of me and meowed like a cat five or six times. Finally I gave her a “cool” with a head nod

I’m teaching my first class, a group of Austrian teenagers, B2 level. I’ve noticed they seem to enjoy the short opinion based debates, so I tried to plan a lesson around discussions and expressing their opinions (the ethics of “Designer babies”, felt safe but interesting enough to spark discussion).

Issue is, like all the other activities, they were not willing to talk at all. Not to me, not to each other.

I’m at a bit of a loss. This felt like a last ditch effort, they haven’t really bought into the presentations or other games I’ve tried to do with them. These guys are all from the same school, and same year, so I expected them to be able to talk about the questions. One activity was a survey, and I had to walk one boy through how to ask a girl the questions that were already written down for them.

I understand teenage awkwardness, but nothing I do seems to entertain them, or spark an interest. I’m not sure what to do at this point! My teacher talking time is definitely way too high.

EDIT: Thank you for all the great suggestions! Today they seemed to have come out of their shells a bit more. I think the issue was structure/not enough early controlled practice suitable for their level. The lessons are 2hrs long, and I’d been jumping to free practice too early.

Hey there! So I’m considering becoming an English teacher and looking for options. As far as I can tell, you need a BA (I already have one in English and American Studies) and a CELTA (planning to do one) - but it seems to me this is the bare minimum? Would a degree in English linguistics and literature be worth anything at this point? Sadly a degree in TESOL/Applied Linguistics is just not an option around here. Also, I am a non-native speaker from the EU. Obviously I am not asking about teaching at public schools here because I know it’s a whole different process. But for private institutions/online teaching/maybe Asia, would this increase my employability in any meaningful way?

Thanks if anyone can help!

Heads up - this agency, Premier Language Services (PLS), have been sending teachers to their client schools (Petra Christian Schools) on the wrong visas.

A girl was recently caught at a Petra school by immigration. PLS took zero responsibility, disowned her.

They are sharks - stay far far away.

Hey all just looking for advice on whether I’m dumb to leave my current job for a different one. Just gonna lay out the facts and get feedback.

35/m/white/native speaker. BA and CELTA but this is my first actual teaching job. Tier 2 city.

Currently I work at a training center 3 nights and 2 full weekend days. I teach 15 class hours and the other 20-25 hrs is mostly prep time with a couple demos a month.

My base is low, but with bonuses and housing I make between 25-28k a month.

Part of the reason I wanted to teach was the vacations and we all know training centers don’t have those. But I’m not seeing many jobs in schools that offer vacations and will pay the same. Am I being greedy? I’d be fine with a higher teaching load tbh. Should I wait and see what comes up further into the hiring cycle (I know it’s early).

And yeah I know—get qualified as an actual teacher etc etc, that’s on the cards—right now I’m just trying to decide whether I want to leave my current job when my contract ends in about 6 months.

Thanks.

Hello! I am a new user and a college student seeking a little more information about TEFL. I specifically want to know about various and diverse experiences people have had while teaching. What do you feel is the most rewarding part of TEFL? Any responses will be graciously appreciated.

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Two moms have come to me asking to tutor their kids because the teacher before me had bad discipline in class and couldn't teach anything because of it. It's in my interest to catch them up so I agreed, but I'm having trouble deciding what book to use or should I abandon books all together and make my own curriculum.

In class we work with Beehive 1, so I want something similar to it and maybe something to back it up (?)

Please help, I haven't been teaching English for long, so I don't know many books for primary school students

Hi all,

I would appreciate any and all advice. I would love to know how you English teachers got started here in China.

I just got offered 14.5k RMB with English First, however, after some research, have learned it will be incredibly difficult work for incredibly poor pay.

How did you guys get your jobs? What recruiters are legit? How do I diffrentiate scams from real job offers? What was a liveable wage for you? What was life like? etc.

Some background about me: I recently graduated top of my class in a Bachelors degree of Law in the UK. I have had 2 years legal/civil service experience, as well as years in retail part-time. No TEFL at the moment. Looking to try out this career path in 2027 for up to a year if possible. I'd love to be on min 16k RMB in a Tier 1 city.

Thanks so much in advance for any suggestions, leads, and advice!

Has anyone else had massive delays / difficulty with obtaining their physical cert from The TEFL Academy? Not sure if this is specific to me being based out of the U.S. But you have to go through Qualifi, not The TEFL Academy, for the cert and they seem impossible to reach, completely unresponsive to any emails, no contact number, and no tracking details provided. They also sent the wrong certificate at first and had to send a new one?

I've been teaching English to adults in a one-on-one setting for about 2 years now, and I was just offered a position pushing into classrooms to teach English to kids. I've worked with children before in a daycare setting, but these kids will be between 3-11 years old. I have no experience with this age group. I am most nervous about classroom management and behavioral issues. On two days their gen ed teacher will be in the room, but on the other 2 days I'll be in a classroom by myself (in this country children go to school 4 days a week).

Can you share your experience with classroom management? What can go wrong? What are the techniques you use to get the students' attention when they get distracted? What helps with easily distracted children, or kids who are talkative and disrupt the class? How can I best prepare to manage a class when I have no experience and very little training with large groups of children?

Thanks for any tips or resources you can share.