Job Discussion Forums

[Vegetivita]

Hi all, I only discovered I have a passion for teaching about 1 year ago and I'm itching to begin as soon as possible for various reasons. As a result, I intend to move to my country of choice (Vietnam) early next year without a bachelor's degree in teaching and attend a TEFL class in Ho Chi Minh City. However, I am a high school dropout (though I have earned my GED), with no teaching experience whatsoever. Am I making a huge mistake?

Here are two major skills I should have but don't:
-I have a difficult time identifying nouns/verbs in complex sentences.
-I tutor some native Vietnamese friends through Skype and they have a tendency to leave out the words "a" or "the" (ex: "I went to store" should be "I went to the store"). I can tell them the correct way but I don't know how to explain it to them.

I'm actively seeking an English tutor to help me learn the above things before I move to Vietnam, but I'm curious what everyone's opinion of my situation is. Given my gaps of knowledge in the above paragraph, how likely is it that I could fail the TEFL course? Am I a fool for planning to move abroad with zero experience? Is it a mistake to plan on getting my TEFL certificate abroad, rather than in my home country?

I would appreciate any and all advice; thanks in advance.

[nomad soul]

You really should post your questions on the Vietnam forum.

[spiral78]

Well, you're brave, for sure!

Concrete info: identifying nouns and verbs is extremely basic.
Nouns name things (a post, a pen, a forum) and verbs name actions (to write, to contribute). Nouns can be one or many and have plural forms (posts, pens, fora). Verbs indicate tenses (past, present, future, ++ wrote, contributed ).

Articles (a, an, the) are not basic. Native speakers pick these up through early language learning (by developing the relevant intuition) but correct article use is one of the highest level skills for non-native English speakers, and, in most cases, is one of the last things they come close to perfecting. Consider this sentence, which I heard from a 3-year-old the other evening: "Look, daddy, the dog has a light!" When you think about the complex choices required in 'the' and 'a' in this seemingly simple sentence, you can see why non-native speakers would struggle.

In terms of a career in EFL or ESL, without a BA degree, your options are extremely limited. There is quite a lot of competition for jobs these days in almost every job market, except maybe some very rural locations, and employers can afford to check the boxes in terms of academic qualifications when the other candidates pretty much all have them. That's not to mention many regions of the world where you cannot legally get a visa to teach without the degree.

If you're really serious, the best scenario is to get a degree; otherwise you will forever be stuck at the very bottom of the barrel with dodgy employers, unless you get very, very lucky.

[scot47]

English has articles. Some language do not. Articles are - "a", "an" "the"

Have you ever learned a foreign language ? Learning a foreign language is often a good way of getting insight into how the grammar of your own language works. Another route is to make a formal study of Grammar through PARSING, analysing sentences in their basic units.

Other advice is get a college degree.

[nomad soul]

Since Vietnam is your target for both your TEFL training and teaching jobs, you especially need to find out if you qualify for legal employment.

[AGoodStory]

Welcome to the forum, Vegetivita!

Two things:

First is that Vietnam requires a B.A. for a work permit to teach legally. If you read the Vietnam subforum you will see that a lot of schools do hire a lot of teachers without work permits. BUT, you should be aware that you would be working illegally if you follow this route, and that you would not have access to the better jobs or employers. I can't give further advice, because I have not worked in Vietnam, but do your homework--starting with a thorough reading of the Vietnam subforum.

Second, and easier to answer: grammar is the part of TEFL knowledge that most lends itself to online learning, or self-instruction (cracking the books!) If you have average intelligence and a reasonable command of the language, you can learn everything about grammar--well, not everything, but certainly as much as you need to start. There are a number of grammar courses online to choose from. For example, here is Ontesol's 65-hr grammar module which can be taken on its own. I like it because it is one of the few tutored online courses, which makes it much more useful and helpful. Having a real live human tutor adds greatly to the experience in my opinion.

https://ontesol.com/celta-certification-course-grammar/

Bridge offers their own self-taught course for about the same price. There are MANY others out there; these are just two reputable providers that I know of. Whether you take an online course, or buy a few good textbooks, this is an easily solved problem. (The lack of a degree is a much bigger hurdle.)

Again, welcome!

.

[santi84]

There is no legal work in Vietnam if you don't have a university degree (assuming you don't qualify for any other visa).

Are you making a huge mistake? Well, I think you can set yourself up for success by considering a better long-term strategy. Explaining nouns, verbs, and articles (a/the) are so basic that you will likely be overwhelmed when it comes to the gritty stuff (mood, aspect, IPA).

I really recommend you consider a college degree, or at the very least, consider entry-level linguistics/TESL courses at a university (along with volunteering in local ESL classes, an extra conversation practice partner is usually a welcome sight!). You could try and take a CELTA (which is a common TEFL course) but your lack of grammar knowledge will probably not get you in. "TEFL" is a generic term for a course that may or may not pass you, I have no idea if you would pass or not.

I understand you have the itch to teach (and that's fine), but if you can't teach the basics, I'm not sure how you intend to keep any job you get. Students will not be pleased if you can't explain elementary concepts. Think long-range and go for it if you think it's the path you want!

I agree with Scot about learning another language and also Scrivener's Teaching English Grammar.

Good luck!

[AGoodStory]

Ditto Santi's idea about finding some volunteer ESL work. This is an excellent suggestion. Before you start investing in flights and TEFL courses and moving to the other side of the world, get some local experience to be sure its for you. I don't know where you are located, but there are many community-based programs for ESL learners that will accept and often train volunteer teachers. Most start off by having you observe and then assist an experienced teacher.

.

[nomad soul]

Assuming you're American (or Canadian), contact your local community college and ask about classes that focus on basic English. That will help you develop English skills and boost your confidence. But better still... you can always start with an Associate's degree via a community college and then transfer to a BA program, if you're willing to commit to getting a degree.

[sigmoid]

Well, first of all, you should read through the threads on this Vietnam forum.

[Vegetivita]

Thanks for all the quick replies and great information!

[spiral78]

[sigmoid]

[skarper]

No degree will limit your progress but not impede your getting a foot in the door.

TBH a degree in Biology or even English literature will NOT help you teach EFL any better. It is just a hurdle we have to clear to get a WP.

But the biggest issue with WP is employers won't do their side. They prefer to exploit the supply of wide eyed newbies.

In fairness the newbies exploit the employers too, and the only losers are the students.

Any fool can find work teaching in the larger cities here. If you are willing to take what is on offer and can be presentable at interview.

There is work but it may not be well paid or very satisfying. A few months living in cheap hotels and eating street food while 'teaching' a few hours a week can be fun but a few years not so much.

Generally if you have a reasonable career path open to you at home I advise people to pursue that. And just visit South East Asia for holidays.

Say you spend 2-3 years here than want to go back? How impressed do you think prospective employers will be?

But if you don't have good job options at home or just can't stand the humdrum life any more by all means go for it. Just don't say you weren't warned....

[GHL]

There's no such thing as a reasonable career path 'back home'. Because that would involve living 'back home'.

Rather earn peanuts in SEA than have the big house, white fence, and 2 cars on the driveway back home.