I am an ESL student myself and the class is quite fun. My teacher taught us a couple of things using some methods like slang cards, stories, research and others. Although, I already knew English cause I come from an English speaking country but others in the class were Indians, Koreans and Chinese. I wish I could give you a lot information but I can’t. If you need more info, email me at [email protected]

Same here! (To the first sentence) Well firstly, I am not a teacher, but am hoping to become one. Pros are: You get to teach kids! You watch them learn and grow. You form bonds. You never get bored– ever and the day goes by so fast! For the most part, you’re in control of your classroom/job. You are well respected. Good benefits. Oh and here are the cons… Many classroom items will be paid for out of your own pocket — expect hundreds if not thousands of dollars per year. His advice would be to go and volunteer in a real elementary classroom and spend time talking with teachers, administrators, parents, and students. Get the real picture of what a teaching career involves, not the one portrayed on news programs or in the movies. Don’t make the mistake many people do by thinking since they went to school themselves, they know what teaching is like. Be sure this is the career for you before you commit to the long and expensive process of becoming a credentialed teacher. Teaching is not an easy job and only the most dedicated ones will truly be successful. Go for being a teacher!!!! Woo! Go teachers! X.X I think teachers should be payed more, ‘cuz without teachers, everyone would be uneducated and they wouldn’t have smarticles (just a funny word we made up, our class) and everyone would be a BUM. =l

I hate to rant, but just because you’re a native speaker of a language, doesn’t make you over-qualified for a EFL teaching position.

If you had studied TEFL or TESOL, you wouldn’t be devoid of ideas on how to teach.

In the short-term, I suggest you read up a lot on ESL/EFL techniques.

www.tesol.org

www.eslcafe.com

for starters

Long-term, you should go to school and get certified…

No, just having the education doesn’t automatically make you a good teacher. Frankly, I don’t count weekend EFL certificates as an education, either.

So ask yourself – What sort of expertise do you have in linguistics: phonology, morphology, syntax, discourse, semantics, pragmatics? How about socio- and psycholinguistics, such as first and second language acquisition in regards to human development, or personality, cognitive, biological, and socio-cultural factors that impact language acquisition? How about the interface between language and culture? How’s your academic grammar? Do you know much about teaching literacy, reading, vocabulary, writing, grammar, speaking, and listening skills? How about valid assessment tools? How about general learning theories and human development? Your backpackers with the EFL certificates probably have no idea what I’m talking about.

What I’m saying, is that all students deserve to have good teachers – yes – teachers who ENJOY what they are doing, but also know the WHAT, WHY, and HOW of teaching.

Being a certified ESL teacher or evening having a master’s degree in TEFL, TESOL, EFL, etc., does not necessarily make one a good teacher. Some people are professional, dedicated, patient, bright and capable teachers. They are fine educators. Not all of them are certified. Conversely, many backpackers who have bought a piece of paper and sat in on some seminars are walking around with certified EFL credentials, making a mockery of education wherever they’ve been hired.

Good luck with your English teaching job. Try to enjoy what you do and project that to your students. Younger students tend to enjoy teaching that incorporates music and pictures. Try to be positive, animated, and enthusiastic. I hope it works out. As for certification, if you have the time and the money to do this, go ahead and do it for the sake of your curriculum vitae and salary.

Ask them to find out about the person that is sitting next to them (where they are from, their names and hobbies….etc…) and report back to the class.

Then have a contest to see who can remember the most names of the students…etc.. This is for group classes.

You could do this for private lessons too except for the contest. Private lessons are a breeze….btw….

Good Luck and have fun!