Job Discussion Forums

[Perilla]

This is a serious question for those TEFLing in the UK:

Why?

This question is based on the assumption that most of you must have pretty dire jobs. Ergo, why do it? Why not head for sunnier climes or do something completely different? I expect a lack of alternatives will be the answer in some cases, but it'd be interesting (and perhaps enlightening) to find out.

[scot47]

TEFL in the UK is strictly for the insane or the terminally gullible.

[LH123]

On the face of it, ESL in the UK does seem pretty dire. Pretty much minimum wage, little or no opportunities for career progression and frequently grim working conditions combine to form an ugly picture. Why teach ESL in London, when armed with nothing more than a CELTA you can go to sunnier climes and have a much better standard of living?

I wouldn't go back to it, for the reasons mentioned.

But, as with most situations, I suppose there are some potential benefits. If you already have money (either through a spouse, savings, or whatever) then I guess teaching ESL might be considered a relatively stress-free way of earning some pocket money.

If you are 'between jobs' abroad (say...you've finished a contract in Thailand and are about to start one in Mexico) it might make sense to do ESL for a couple of months in the UK to kill time and save a bit of cash (assuming, of course, that you are staying somewhere rent-free).

ESL in London (and I would guess it is similar in other cities) is not hard, the students are normally delightful and well-motivated, and as low paid as it may be, it still counts as experience on the CV. And, with a few years' experience, there is always examining (Cambridge, etc...) to supplement the income a bit.

Such jobs are not careers, and they do not pretend to be. The crazily high labour turnover in most language academies is evidence enough of that. Working at such a place is not/should not be something that anyone aspires to exactly, but it's understandable (if not inevitable) that British TEFL teachers will find themselves doing a spell in domestic ESOL, for however short a period it might be for.

Low paid and direction-less? Certainly. But, for the most part, it's stress-free and fun too.

[Ad�n]

[Perilla]

[Madame J]

I'm currently looking to teach in my native land. Why? I miss being in the classroom, and having a partner here means I can't teach abroad for the time being.

�13 an hour doesn't seem like a bad rate for somebody under 30, especially somebody like me who's never earned more than a pittance here. I don't have kids and yes, my partner is able to pay the majority of the rent. I'm not sure how long I'll realistically stick at TEFL, but I'd like to do it for as long as I'm not sick of it. If hours here really do turn out to be as unreliable as people say then yes, I'll eventually jump ship. I do have an alternative career plan in mind but if it even is realistic then I'll need to get further training to make it achievable. In the meantime, I may as well try doing something I enjoy rather than sell my soul to temping agencies.

[Mr. Bourenmouth]

[artemisia]

I only experienced a brief TEFL stint in the UK myself in summer schools. I found it to be a very useful filler but I�d not like to do it all the time.

At least TEFL teachers, especially all those working in the UK, perform a useful civic duty in obviously providing some of those working elsewhere with a sense of feeling absolutely delighted with oneself and of general smugness! (It�s always pretty good news when the social pariahs give you the chance to feel morally, educationally and financially self-satisfied, isn't it? ).

Adan: I was interested to read about your experience of working in the UK. It's good that you've got something you feel happy with and have good professional support as well. Would you consider going abroad to work or have you already done that? Working for a long time in a foreign country can take its toll and maybe that's the trade off - you get to be back on your own stamping ground - albeit with less money.

[Perilla]

Mr Bournemouth, tks for the synopsis - very funny and it brings back memories of my own involvement in UK TEFL. Actually my only direct experience in the UK came right at the start of my TEFL "career" when, after doing my CELTA I returned to my then hometown and took up summer work (like Artemesia) at a local private TEFL school, which had some parallels with your list above.

The school was run by two brothers (I won't say where as I think it's still running and it's a good school - and I have no complaints about my few months there) and a DOS. They were all quirky characters in their own way. The older bro did the day-to-day management and would have made a good old-fashioned school headmaster and the younger bro (about mid 30s then) fancied himself as a bit of a lad with the young female students. And in fact they both ended up marrying former students. The DOS wasn't very good (once gave me some totally inappropriate material for a beginners class) but regarded himself rather highly (better than this!) and spoke with a loud BBC/Oxbridge accent. You had the feeling he felt he ought to be a Cambridge prof, but something had gone wrong somewhere along the line. And there was something a bit hinky about him I could never quite put my finger on.

I enjoyed my summer there and compared to the barwork etc. I'd been doing beforehand it was well paid, but I quickly sized up that there was nothing for me in the long term. The work dried up in September and wouldn't have started again until the following May, apart from bits and bobs. They had one moreorless f/t teacher and it worked OK for her as she had a husband who earned a proper salary. I could have stayed in that town (I loved living there) and found other work to get me through the winter, but it would have worn me down in the end and if I had ever fallen out with the two bros I'd have been out on my arse, which would have been inevitable as it was too claustrophobic and parochial for me. Nor would I ever have been able to get a mortgage or save proper money for the future. Anyway I hadn't done the CELTA to work in the UK and so I applied to the EPIK programme that winter and the rest is history.

Actually, there was another private TEFL school in this town which was run by an ex army captain or somesuch, and he was another quirky customer. I imagine that the world of private sector TEFL in the UK would provide great material for a writer (fact or fiction) and I hope one day someone manages to capture it, but for a steady career with prospects most of us need to look somewhere else.

[PattyFlipper]

[Mr. Bourenmouth]

[coledavis]

Well, I don�t fit into any of the items on the list and I can think of lots of others who work in TEFL who don�t. (Which doesn�t mean we�re not quirky, I know.) One teacher I know taught in mainstream and accepts the considerable drop in pay as a necessary evil in being able to do real teaching as opposed to what she calls �crowd control�.

Do note that characterising sets of people in this way may amuse but it is very much tabloid and glossy magazine territory, neither real psychology nor really of use to anybody. But it might make teachers more depressed than they need to be.

Which brings me to a philosophical point: Worrying about what other people get, like actively searching for happiness, is a way of making yourself miserable. Ok, if you need more money, then do something else, but please, if you are not realistically going to do something proactive, the worst course of action is to bemoan your situation.

Which reminds me: If you really wish to make money and want to stay in TEFL, it is not impossible. Think of either setting up a school somewhere or writing for EFL. In both cases, if you look at the people involved - and again, can we please ignore the more scabrous stereotypes - many of these are simply teachers of English who have �made good�.

[steviok85]

Mr Bournemouth is actually hitting the nail right on the head with many of his comments, and I can relate to many of them.
Yes, my DOS at summer school in 2007 was a bit 'different'. He also seemed to waltz around with bits of paper in his hand in an act of fake business (busyness for those who remember the nineteenth century). The rest of the time, I think he used analyse crease dimensions in the textbooks and try and flatten them with his wooden ruler. Testing students has never been rocket science, either. They make such a big fuss out of it like it is some complex surgical operation. Perhaps they have to judging by some of the layabout teachers I have met at summer school who all speak with that oh-so-annoying rise in intonation at the end of every sentence. Yes, that mob.
At a different camp the following summer, the ADOS was a very capable person and had 8 years experience. He was very good at his job. The DOS had a background in selling timber and his English skills were, hmm, slightly questionable. It is absolutely true. How could this be?
How?

[Perilla]

[coledavis]

Well, if it's ok to caricature TEFLers then I'd say that the less colourful teachers are a bit like Homer Simpson: "And the moral is, don't even try."

Sure, all writing is competitive, but I can think of some niche areas in TEFL which are relatively untouched. (I've written a book about a different discipline which sells online via so-called vanity publishing. If I had the time, I know what I'd do in TEFL.)

With regards to the comment about obvious areas being saturated: this was particularly Simpsonian. So seek the less than obvious. I know at least one town in Europe with no language school and lots of would-be students.

Again, waxing philosophical. If you want to get out of TEFL, then think of a game plan and follow it. If you want to stay or can't think of a way out, then try to think positively. If you want to stay and improve your lot, then think imaginatively and positively.