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ElissaAmori
Joined: 31 Jan 2004 Posts: 3 Location: Michigan, USA
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Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 5:32 am Post subject: Looking for Italy |
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Hi everyone-
In the next week, I'll receive an online TEFL certificate. I'm from the U.S.A. I don't have an EU passport. I don't have a teaching degree, but I do have 1 year teaching experience and 2 years substitute teaching experience. I'm 24 and female.
I'm looking for a job in Italy, with being able to (ideally):
1-Receive one of the following: either airfare or housing paid for
2-Work and live with several other Americans or native-English speakers
3-Work for a single semester (6-month max) time period.
My 3 questions are:
1.) What are my chances of being able to find a school that would fit me (re: the above requests I have)? Should I lower my expectations?
2.) What should I be focused on doing NOW?? (Should I be contacting schools directly, or through agencies...or should I be waiting until the summer... etc.)
3.) If the above seems impossible (or even if it doesn't), what are my alternative options? (I'm also interested in teaching abroad in the Czech Republic or in Poland.)
Whatever advice anyone has to give would be GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!
I want to teach English abroad so badly but don't really know what to do....
Thank you SO MUCH!!!!!!!
Elissa |
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grahamb
Joined: 30 Apr 2003 Posts: 1945
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Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 10:40 am Post subject: Italy |
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Have you looked at the Job Information Journal on this site?
Try onestopenglish.com for links to other EFL sites. The terms and conditions vary from one employer to another.
As you don't have a passport from an EU country, you'll find it difficult to work legally in the EU. |
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Teacher in Rome
Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 1286
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Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 8:55 pm Post subject: |
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Quote: |
I'm looking for a job in Italy, with being able to (ideally):
1-Receive one of the following: either airfare or housing paid for
2-Work and live with several other Americans or native-English speakers
3-Work for a single semester (6-month max) time period. |
Elissa - given that you are so keen to work in Italy, I assume that you have researched all the information on Dave's forums.... the Italy forum, the General Europe forum and so on. There's quite a lot of information here which you might find interesting.
To reiterate, you can't work legally in Italy if you don't have EU citizenship.
Nobody is going to pay your airfare or your housing - there's no need for them to do this, as there are plenty of teachers already in place who don't expect employers to do this for them. If somebody offered to do this, I would be very suspicious. Why are they paying for you to come over??
And finally, Italy closes down in August. Literally, the whole country goes on holiday for three weeks.
If you want to come to Italy to live with fellow Americans, you might want to consider coming to study. There's an American university in Rome with a sizeable American population. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2004 10:29 am Post subject: UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS |
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I have decided to become an astronaut in the USA. I am not a pilot but I once read a book about astronomy. I do not often get airsick.
I am not a US citizen but rather like America.
I will require paid transportation from my country of origin to Cape Kennedy where I can spend 4 months on this training. The only convenient time for me is July to October.
Please send my ticket to :
A Space Cadet
Poste Restante
Dublin
Republic of Ireland |
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Teacher in Rome
Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 1286
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2004 12:09 pm Post subject: |
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Scot47,
I always wanted to win the Miss America contest, but I'm not an anexoric size 6, and my body parts are all my own... If I suck in my stomach, do you think that they will notice that I'm not American? I saw Miss America on MTV and it looks pretty easy - do you think I can win? |
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SueH
Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Posts: 1022 Location: Northern Italy
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2004 9:35 pm Post subject: |
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You can just imagine Scot with the Alpha Centaureans - 'I don't know why anyone would want to live on the Earth - they are killing each other all over the place and...'
As for you TiR - I'm not sure you meet the intelligence requirements for Miss America, but keep with the Greco di Tufo and Avellino, two bottles each per day, and you might soon reach it. The corsets are going to be expensive though.. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2004 5:53 am Post subject: Alpha Centauri |
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Good Golly Sue , how did you know that I am regularly abducted by aliens from Alpha Centauri ?
They seem very interested in Planet Terra but I do try to warn them off. |
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Albulbul
Joined: 08 Feb 2003 Posts: 364
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Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2004 8:17 am Post subject: |
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Scot47 is, I think, making the point that there is a phenomenon called the Job Market.
Newbies would do well do research this and not make unrealistic demands.
In Italy, as in many countries, opportunities are restricted. You cannot expect to get what you want in terms of worrking conditions. |
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Joe P
Joined: 23 Mar 2004 Posts: 4
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Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2004 8:38 pm Post subject: |
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Hi, I look forward to reading your replies..question.. I am about to start an online TEFL course..bit worried about it actually..sometimes its worth sitting in a room with someone..Can I ask which website you went through? I am looking at global-english.com
grazie |
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La pittura
Joined: 28 Mar 2004 Posts: 1 Location: Beijing, China
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Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2004 1:23 am Post subject: I have lots of questions to! |
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I am also looking for a teaching position in Italy as well but am a little worried because of my qulifications. I am a Canadian teacher living and working in China right now, I have been here for almost 2 years. I have a TESOL certificate and my teaching experience here and that is about it. How is your search going? Where have you been looking for positions? If you could drop me some information that would be awesome! I get the feeling that many people have mixed emotions about teaching in Italy so I am a liitle concerned with that as well!
[/b] |
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carmenz
Joined: 24 Jan 2004 Posts: 20
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Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2004 6:34 am Post subject: |
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The last time I was in Italy nobody understood a word of English to me. I'd also like to know who are all these qualified English teachers in Italy that are snatching up all the jobs. Are they all British and Irish? The last time I checked English was like the fourth official language in Italy, France and most European countries. They are by no means native speakers. If a German person who speaks some English says they can come to Italy and teach English there....are his/her Italian students really getting a good English education? I imagine that in the future EVEN Europe will start looking outside the EU for native English teachers because as far as I can tell they are few and far between in Western and Eastern Europe. |
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SueH
Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Posts: 1022 Location: Northern Italy
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Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2004 8:08 pm Post subject: |
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Unfortunately when people say that it is difficult for non-EU citizens they are not making it up. There is a pretty good supply of people available from UK and Eire to meet the demand plus other native speakers who have managed to get round the bureaucracy (luck, marriage etc).
The fact that people didn't understand you doesn't mean that there is accordingly a massive demand although at least with Italy and some of the other southern European states they often have inadequate school teaching of English, and hence a demand for private language schools.
In Northern Europe school teaching often achieves a very high standard. I remember a local bus driver in Sweden who switched to English instantly and perfectly when I looked blank when he spoke in Swedish to me. A Dutch friend visited me in the UK once and I couldn't believe she hadn't been before, her English was so good.
There are ways of getting round rules but I wouldn't rely on excessive optimism in this regard. Financially it doesn't make a great deal of sense either if you need to earn good money. |
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Teacher in Rome
Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 1286
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Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2004 10:19 pm Post subject: |
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Sue - you're right.
There isn't a huge demand for English, as many companies have slashed their training budgets. The Italian economy is sluggish at the moment, and training is always one of the first things to go.
Carmenz - I'm not sure what you're saying exactly. That Germans teach English in Italy?? Perhaps, but most language schools ask for native speakers of English.
It may come as a bit of a surprise, but not all Italians care whether they speak English or not. Most Italian companies are small, and trade exclusively within Italy. Most Italians take holidays within Italy. Only a small minority of Italians need to speak English, and even then, their opportunities to practise are limited.
The fact that there are large numbers of tourists in Italy doesn't seem to be that interesting to a lot of Italians. In Rome, at least, people will try to understand and help you out, but go beyond the most touristed places, and Italian (or one of the Italian dialects) is the lingua franca. |
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khmerhit
Joined: 31 May 2003 Posts: 1874 Location: Reverse Culture Shock Unit
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Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2004 12:54 am Post subject: |
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I met a couple of italians in Cambodia. the first was a rip-off merchant who scammed me for a phonecard--i thought i was helping out a stranger till later i read that he was a well-known conman who had been there for years. Wow, was i green. the second italian guy was quite nice, a sex tourist who gave me his unneeded clothes (not that i needed them) he reminded me of my catholic family. My Italian is OK to a certain conversational level, and althoug I hadnt used it in years it all came flooding back.
ci vediamo!
khmerhit |
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Teacher in Rome
Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 1286
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Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2004 7:55 am Post subject: |
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You met a couple of class ones, didn't you!
Hope you remembered enough Italian to slag them off appropriately. Or some of the hand gestures, which are just as expressive.
Ciao, caro. |
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