Job Discussion Forums

[johnslat]

Dear artemisia,

Exactly - OK, everyone, let's all say "The Serenity Prayer"

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.

Works for retirement planning, too .

Regards,
John

[Cool Teacher]

[Dave_1]

I find it hard to disagree with the chap in The Telegraph. TEFL is a grim job a lot of the time and is terribly poorly paid with a very vague or even no career structure. I see people with MAs in TEFL and 8 years teaching experience on same salary as newbies with CELTA. This is a joke of a career and yes, many who arrive in it after mid 30s seem to have a sorry tale to tell from back home-property market went down, marriage break up etc. It really does attract people on the run from whatever, and also people who simply want a pretty young wife far beyond what they can get in their home countries. Even worse, some will go int EFL to get to parts of the world where they can generally be an alcoholic, drug user and skirt chaser all while pretending they have some kind of professional occupation in teaching.

In terms of achieving goals, language acquisition falls off a cliff after 8 years old so you can forget seeing any major or quick improvement in your students in late teens to adult years. Many schools promise a load of rubbish-false promises to get the money off the student. The teacher is unaware of what rubbish has been promised to the student so be prepared for students being disappointed at not getting the miracle improvements the shister school has promised them!

[Sashadroogie]

[spiral78]

[Kofola]

[santi84]

Dave,

Have you ever tried sitting in the classroom as a student?

I beg to differ as well - I have made great improvements in my second language, which I started at age 26. Does learner motivation not count for anything?

My books are stored away, but I was under the impression that the ability of adult learners has been greatly underestimated in the past, and that adult learners can actually succeed quite well in acquiring additional languages.

Unfortunately, it's true, adults have a much more difficult time getting rid of that pesky accent. I can't roll my French R's - my son can, even though his primary language is English. His Quebecois father screaming "TABARNAK!!" during a hockey game seems to have rubbed off better on him than me.

Please don't let a poorly rolled R fool you into thinking that my ability to acquire French has gone down the toilet though. You have to look beyond the immediate surface.

[Tudor]

[Teacher in Rome]

[santi84]

I am one of those who gave up a "good career" for TESL (meaning a government position with a good wage and pension plan).

I think well-paid jobs "back home" can be overrated. It is natural that TESL draws those who don't necessarily value top dollar over other things.

Sure, my government job gave me a few weeks vacation and a good wage to go on vacation. My TESL career allows me to live in different cultures, absorb new languages, and have "clients" that I enjoy.

My clients "back home" were all a bunch of whiny, angry, violent drunks. At least the drunk students here don't threaten to kill me So far

[spiral78]

[santi84]

If all I cared about was a good career, I certainly wouldn't have had kids either! Those little ones keep setting me back, no matter what field I choose to work in

But of course, it seems those kinds of comments come from those who assume all TEFL'ers or TESL'ers have a basic degree in arts with a one month certificate. Some TESL instructors make decent money. Nobody would mock me for teaching mathematics or physical education, so why TESL? It seems people assume that their crappy language school gigs or unmotivated mass university students represent the reality of TESL everywhere.

[Tudor]

[artemisia]

[Teacher in Rome]