Can I really teach? Me?

As I'm about to graduate with degrees in Creative Advertising and Spanish, I feel disenchanted by most of the job options that lay before me. My true desire is to pursue a job teaching Spanish or ESL, but I feel inadequate and unprepared when it comes to my speaking skills (in both languages). However, my interest was sparked when I received an e-mail from Alliance Abroad regarding opportunities for teacher placements in Chile. Though excited by the prospect, my initial thought was, “You can’t do that.”

Then I let the logical side of my brain take over and looked at the actual requirements:

“21-40 years old”
“A native English speaker”
“Basic level of Spanish”
“Holds an undergraduate degree”

I guess I can do that!

Of course, as I started to research more, I found that every program, country, school and individual has a different idea of what should be required.

In an article from The Times Educational Supplement, Gerald Haigh advises that you “don’t go abroad until you are on top of your teaching and able to prepare and deliver your own work confidently” (23). He points out, with good reason, that when coping with a new environment and lifestyle, you don’t want to be overly preoccupied with learning the basics.

Others claim, on the other hand, that you only need to be a native English speaker. TeachAbroad.com, for example, states that “If you are a native speaker you can probably find a job.” And the International Center at the University of Michigan notes on its Teaching Abroad Without Certification page that “your ‘credential’ is simply being a native speaker of the English language."

So who’s right?

More generally, my research leads me to agree with Susan Griffith. She maintains that English fluency alone should not be considered sufficient qualification, but also contends that someone who takes her job seriously and works hard for her students can make the EFL community proud.

In Teaching English Abroad, she writes that “anyone who can speak English fluently and has a lively positive personality has a fighting chance . . .” (14).

Personality

Griffith also points out that “a BA and/or TEFL certficate is no guarantee of ability.” She quotes Marta Eleniak, who after teaching in Spain for a year learned that when it comes to teaching English abroad, you can:

“Forget about your educational experiences. In TEFL you have to be able to do an impression of a chicken, you’ve got to be a performer. And you have to be flexible . . . “(15).

So, I’ve collected that to teach English abroad you need creativity, patience, and flexibility. You need to be committed to your students, outgoing and unafraid to act things out. That is, after all, one of the main ways you’ll communicate.

Resources

If you still have any doubts, try visiting TeachAbroad.com and reading “Is Teaching Abroad for You?”. Also visit i-to-i, which provides an online TEFL trial that includes an interactive version of their courses and a short personality test. Though the sample TEFL courses are painfully easy, questions like “Are you a good listener?” and “Are you lively and outgoing?” may provide insights.

Once you've decided that TEFL is for you, you’ll need to determine your country or region of interest—a daunting task to be discussed in tomorrow’s blog.

Print Sources

Griffith, Susan. Teaching English Abroad: Teach Your Way Around the World. 8th Edition. Oxford: Vacation Work, 2006.

Haigh, Gerald. "Take off for foreign climes." Times Educational Supplement (2000): 23.