FOMO That ESL Teachers Experience!
Teaching abroad is a career that many people are looking up to. There are many non-English speaking countries that hire people from native and near-native countries to teach English as a second language in their countries. Language schools, private schools, public schools, etc., are the different academic institutions that recruit English teachers.
If you're planning to pursue a career in teaching English as a foreign language, you must complete TEFL courses successfully. These are online courses and are available in live-online as well as in-class sessions. Aspirants and professionals with a minimum of 120 hours of TEFL certification while having an Advanced or Diploma in TEFL will always rank them higher.
Besides, if you're targeting a niche section like teaching young learners or business professionals, you can opt for either TEFL for young learners or TEFL in Business English respectively. TEFL is actually like an ESL teacher training course that will guide you to know every bit of educating students irrespective of their age and expertise in English.
In most cases, schools hire teachers based on a contractual basis the hiring period depends upon the country you're planning to settle to. In some countries, it is from August to September and then again from January to March while hiring is consistent throughout the whole season in many places.
Every reputed school requires the candidate to have a Bachelor's degree and having prior teaching experience will give you an edge. In fact, some academic institutions recruit teachers for a particular genre based on the experience and qualifications they have. For example, schools in the Middle East always prefer teachers having prior teaching experience because their major students are business professionals.
While you enjoy teaching the speakers of other languages, you unknowingly get emotionally attached to that particular country. You start blending yourself into the local culture, local food, tourist spots around you, and so on. I have heard from a friend that during his tenure of ESL teaching in France, he used to visit The Pont des Artsevery weekend as he used to teach in a language school near that spot. He loved watching couples, holding hands, making promises, and locking their promises over there. He often got mesmerized while observing how passionate they were.
Thus, just like the millennials say, FOMO (Fear of missing out) is bound to hit you hard once your contractual period gets over with a particular school. Another friend used to stay in Japan and got so used to the disciplinary culture of Japan that when she came to her country, it took her some time to adjust to her native culture.
You'll be missing your teaching period a lot,especially, if it is your first job. Trust me, when it is the final day of you teaching your ESL learners and at the back of your mind it is constantly running that time has come to pack everything up and leave for your own country, it hits as hard as Brett Lee's yorker. But then again, the show must go on.
You should never stop yourself from exploring other countries in teaching their students. Asian countries like South Korea, China, Singapore, etc. hire candidates with a good amount of salary and that is based on entire qualifications as well as teaching experience.
Since teaching ESL is one of the top job sectors in the global market, the competition is high. Initially, if you are a fresher, you should not be expecting to get an opportunity in a very reputed institution but the experience you will gather will always guide you in the future. Let's say, you have got your first ESL job in a Latin American school, your salary won't be lumpsum but pretty enough to lead a comfortable life.
Schools in Latin America have a charm of their own and there is madness in the air. The vibe is awesome and you're going to miss that crazy, vibrant, and amiable vibe like anything once you're done teaching there. Yes, you will be not be earning enough to save but a potential break-even, classic local cuisine, and peaceful susurrationwill heal your mind. Those are the memories you shall carry forward and the journey should never end there.
Thus, teaching abroad will not only help you financially but will change your perspective towards life to a huge extent. Most importantly, you will get to learn their languages at a basic level and can enjoy vacation mode during the weekend. An ESL teacher training Course will help! A significant amount of experience in teaching students, also cross-cultural management, will always boost you to become convenient in any risky situation.
At the end of the day, life goes on, and hence once done with teaching in one country start looking for better opportunities!
