Job Discussion Forums

[Martinaj]

So I have just finished a 3.5 year term of teaching EAP in China, and I'm leaning pretty strongly towards making TEFL my career, and Central Europe is one of the regions on which I have lain my eyes for my next destination. I have a BA in English, and as mentioned, I have a few years of teaching under my belt, and can furnish a glowing letter of recommendation from my former employer. I'm about to start week 7 of my online IDELT course, which I will have earned by November, with additional classes in grammar and in custom course design. I doubt it would matter in Europe, but just in case, I have experience teaching AP English to non-native speakers.

I'm wondering what my chances would look like in landing a job in CR (or Hungary - it doesn't seem to have a forum on these boards), and how picky I could afford to be. I have heard it's easier to find a job in that region if you're actually in the country, so if it would significantly boost my chances, I might take a short holiday to the CR and bring a bunch of resumes with me.

[spiral78]

Have just answered your post on the Newbie forum.

The Czech Republic is a teacher-training center mecca, with five or six big, long-lived schools in Prague. This means that there are literally hundreds of new teachers hitting the streets every few months - with ON-SITE certs that are recognized by local employers.

These new teachers may not have 3 years (in China; it's apples and oranges and employers here know that from past experience!), but they have had supervised teaching practice with actual Czech students, and feedback from experienced trainers on how they've done.

You've also got the significant drawback of not being from the UK - there are many teachers around from the UK who do not need work visas. As a US citizen, you've got to find a school that needs someone badly enough to help him/her jump through the considerable visa hoops. It won't happen with an online cert and experience in China

To get started here, plan to take a CELTA or equivalent course at the end of the fall this year, or (better) August 2015. The peak hiring period is September, with a small bump in January.

Reputable employers in this region (not just CR) don't hire from abroad; there are enough teachers around so that they don't have to take chances on anyone sight-unseen. So come over, take a course, and hit the streets. The training centers can help you get connected with reputable local employers.

[spiral78]

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=95456&start=0


Differences Asian-European classrooms. Your glowing recommendation from a Chinese employer won't help much here, unfortunately. It means that they liked you in China; that's absolutely no guarantee of success with European students, who are motivated very differently and who expect quite a lot of meat in their lessons.

[Martinaj]

Well, thanks for the advice. Sounds like I ought to focus on Asia for now. I'll shoot for Japan and after a couple years there maybe revisit the issue of higher certification and look into CELTA.

[spiral78]

CELTA isn't 'higher' - it's a basic entry-level cert in most parts of the world. Asia is the notable exception; any cert at all is better than many teachers there have.
The standards in Asia don't apply elsewhere, frankly.

[Coolguy123]

That's interesting that they like people with CELTAs from Czech. I was told that a CELTA is the same regardless of where you do it. I guess I should have done my CELTA in Europe instead of at home if my goal was to go to Europe in the end.

[spiral78]

The CELTA is the same everywhere; the only difference is the students you teach on the course. The OP taught in Asia (and then took an online course without practice with real students), where students are automatically deferential to a teacher and in many cases can be hesitant to talk and participate in class. They also take little responsibility for their own learning (stereotypically; of course there are exceptions).
Czechs and other European students are typically higher level overall, have far more intrinsic motivation to learn, and are by no means deferential to a teacher - they want some meat for their time/money.

Your classes in the US will have been another beast entirely; likely students from mixed language backgrounds, without a common class language other than English. This is good and bad; you will be less likely to have encountered a class that can use its L1 to talk outside your understanding, but you may also have encountered a range of different student types. If they were all Asian, you might as well have taken your CELTA in Asia - but likely they were a mix. It may help you to be aware of this and to be ready to describe your actual teaching experience from this standpoint to prospective employers.

Though, on the gloomy side, you're coming at an awful time to try to find work. There IS a small hiring bump for January, but it's small. Ditto Sigma's advice about considering going outside of Prague.

[Coolguy123]

I did my class in Hawaii - which is where I live now. Students were all Japanese, so that probably doesn't help in terms of experience with mixed students. I tried to do some ESL teaching here in preparation, with no luck unfortunately, as it seems like there is simply no work here for that, or you need quite a lot of experience as with most places in the US.

As far as the preparation in the class, there seemed to be slight differences between the preparation I received and the preparation a friend of mine received in Poland - they way drilling was done was slightly different, and there were some differences in what was covered.

One question I was asked - "how do you deal with students who won't do their work in class" met with a response from me - I haven't had to deal with that problem too much! I'm guessing that schools in the CR may have had issues with teachers with experience in Asia not knowing how to deal with certain types of behaviors...

[spiral78]

Asian students are far more passive and undemanding. The teacher gets automatic respect. Teachers in Europe are seen as more like service staff in some ways - you have to earn respect (by knowing your stuff and delivering lessons that students can immediately perceive as useful).

Mostly Czechs WILL do work you set them in class, but homework, likely not. Starting out here, you'll likely be working mostly with businesspeople, and they notoriously expect English language learning time to be limited to the time you spend with them.