|
Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Mr.A618
Joined: 26 Jan 2016
Posts: 1
|
 Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 12:17 am Post subject: Just another newbie seeking answers |
 |
|
Greetings all, Alexander here. As someone new to the forums I was hoping the more knowledgeable would be able to help me out.
I am 24 years old, but look much older if that matters. I have a BA, a teaching license from the state of California and 1.5 years experience in teaching high school (student ages 15-18 ) not English Language Arts, but social sciences. I have worked a variety of jobs from retail to research to teaching. And have an almost clean record (ticket for playing music too loud when I was 18 ).
I am a native English speaker, and can speak fairly fluent German, having lived in Europe for a year.
I am currently working on a Masters Degree in Education and was aiming to get my CELTA after that, which leads me to my first question. Most people on the forums seem in agreement that one should get their CELTA where they end up teaching. I was planning on using a good chunk of my savings to get my CELTA here in the U.S. before leaving, so would it be economic to get the CELTA overseas? I understand it's usually good for networking to get your CELTA where you intend to teach.
I am also curious about my prospects with my credentials plus experience. Friends of mine teaching in China keep telling me I'm set in any Asian country (except Korea), but I'm wondering about other parts of the world? Just a general sense of the word would I need anything else to be successful in South America or the Middle East?.
Once I am finished with my Masters (and should be finished in about 6 months) I am pretty free to pack up and go (minus time for visas and such) and I could be ready to move sooner depending on where I do my CELTA. How long before I may be mobile should I start poking into the job forums? My friends in China said 4 months in advance, but I was hoping for some additional thoughts.
I really am open to the idea of teaching anywhere provided I can make a decent living. I've lived in a few different climates so that's not a huge deal, nor is dietary restrictions.
So I'll summarize my questions:
-Would it be economical to get my CELTA where I end up teaching?
-With my experience and credentials, what are my prospects in the Middle East and/or South America?
- How soon before I am mobile should I poke into the job forum?
I appreciate any input at all, I have more questions but I'll start with these. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
-Alexander |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Kowloon
Joined: 11 Jan 2016
Posts: 133
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 1:23 am Post subject: |
|
|
With a teaching license, Masters in Education and a CELTA you will be in a strong position. The only thing you are lacking is direct TEFL experience (but you already have 18 months teaching experience anyway).
If I were you I would consider international schools. Good options all over the world I'd imagine but in particular I know of people in both HK and the UAE who started with less experience than you have now. With the former you often need to be in country to interview and what not. With the latter I think you have a higher chance of a direct hire from the US.
Tbh I wouldn't really bother slogging it out in Mainland China, South Korea, Japan etc if I were you (unless you were able to secure a lucrative int. school in any of those countries). The world is your oyster with those qualifications. Good luck. Remember to check out the individual country forums once you have a better idea of where to go. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 3:35 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Mr.A618 wrote: |
I am 24 years old, but look much older if that matters. I have a BA, a teaching license from the state of California and 1.5 years experience in teaching high school (student ages 15-18 ) not English Language Arts, but social sciences.
....
I am currently working on a Masters Degree in Education and was aiming to get my CELTA after that, which leads me to my first question. Most people on the forums seem in agreement that one should get their CELTA where they end up teaching. I was planning on using a good chunk of my savings to get my CELTA here in the U.S. before leaving, so would it be economic to get the CELTA overseas? I understand it's usually good for networking to get your CELTA where you intend to teach.
....
So I'll summarize my questions:
-Would it be economical to get my CELTA where I end up teaching?
-With my experience and credentials, what are my prospects in the Middle East and/or South America?
- How soon before I am mobile should I poke into the job forum? |
For some regions, recruiting will start in the next few months for the 2016-2017 academic year. However, you'll very likely need to have your physical M.Ed. diploma in hand when you apply, if you're using it as your qualifying degree.
Option 1: For teaching adults, an M.Ed. + a CELTA and unrelated teaching experience won't be enough to land you a position in Qatar or the UAE. Employers in the region want to see a related MA + several years of tertiary-level EFL teaching experience. (Not all employers consider an education degree to be relevant to TEFL.) Plus, the government universities in the UAE (the biggest EFL employers) will be phasing out their English foundation year programs in about 2 years. Competition at the private unis in the UAE is tight; those with experience teaching Arabic L1s get put at the top of the list. Saudi Arabia is a possibility, but your lack of TEFL experience won't impress the better employers. Moreover, regardless of how you think you look older, your young age could be an issue as well.
FYI: Be aware that the governments of Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain do not recognize qualifying degrees that entailed any online course credits. This information gets verified with the visa applicant's university. So if that's your situation...
Option 2: For teaching elementary/secondary learners, seriously consider foregoing the CELTA and instead, focus on teaching social sciences in accredited American-or IB-curriculum private schools overseas to native/near-native English-speaking learners. (I attended such a school as a continuation of my US elementary education when we were stationed in Taiwan many moons ago.) You already have the experience and US teaching license and would be good to go once you graduate. The better international schools abroad (including the UAE and Qatar) want to see a teaching license, experience, and degree major all in the same subject. Look at job ads and qualifications on sites like Teach Away, Seek Teachers, and Footprints. (Alternately, do an Internet search on IB social science teacher uae.) Lastly, check out International Schools Review, which is specific to content/subject teachers.
In a nutshell, going the CELTA route to teach EFL doesn't guarantee you'll get more than an entry-level position. While focusing on teaching social sciences abroad gets your foot in the door as an experienced, licensed teacher.
Figure out which countries you're interested in and then do your research on both options. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
bule_boy69
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
Posts: 158
Location: Jakarta
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2016 2:15 pm Post subject: Teaching Licence |
|
|
| Kowloon wrote: |
| With a teaching license, Masters in Education and a CELTA you will be in a strong position. ......... |
I was looking into teaching in Taiwan public schools, but the recruiter said I needed a 'teaching licence'. Not a term I was familiar with.
Now I understand what is required (for Australian trained teachers) is to have teachers registration. I have a high school teaching qualification, but I let the registration lapse years ago.
Curious to know in what countries this is (or isn't) a requirement for high school work.
Anyone?
Thanks. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
spanglish
Joined: 21 May 2009
Posts: 742
Location: working on that
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2016 3:08 pm Post subject: |
|
|
You're doing it wrong. Forget the CELTA - down that path leads subsistence-level backpacker wages. Finish your master's, get another 6 months - 2 years of public school teaching under your belt, and start applying to real genuine accredited American or IB schools - as Nomad Soul suggested. You'll make 3-5x as much money and have far, far more country options than you will as an entry-level CELTA-holding teacher of English of as a foreign language.
As a California licensed, experienced US teacher, you are an in-demand, skilled professional, able to command a comfortable living wage. You are in a much stronger position than your friends teaching in China with an unrelated undergraduate degree and no teaching license. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2016 10:11 pm Post subject: Re: Teaching Licence |
|
|
| bule_boy69 wrote: |
I was looking into teaching in Taiwan public schools, but the recruiter said I needed a 'teaching licence'. Not a term I was familiar with.
Now I understand what is required (for Australian trained teachers) is to have teachers registration. I have a high school teaching qualification, but I let the registration lapse years ago.
Curious to know in what countries this is (or isn't) a requirement for high school work.
Anyone? |
It's a requirement of the better, IB or western-accredited private/international schools, regardless of the country. For example, qualified/licensed teachers teach the dependents of US, Canadian, Australian... expats as a continuation of their western education. (This was the type of school I attended in Taiwan.) However, there are also private, western-curriculum schools for children of non-westerners for those who can afford it. The teachers at these schools are also likely to hold a western-teaching qualification, depending on the school. Ditto for some public schools. At the bottom are the pseudo international schools which include English instruction but are basically privately-owned schools that don't adhere to any specific western standards. Generally, a teaching licensure/qualification isn't required for employment at these schools.
So in answer to your question, it mainly depends on the type (and quality) of school since the three teaching situations I described are in just about every country. Obviously, the better schools offer top benefits and salary, which is a good reason for you to get re-qualified in Australia.
Last edited by nomad soul on Mon Feb 08, 2016 2:06 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
suphanburi
Joined: 20 Mar 2014
Posts: 916
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 1:33 am Post subject: Re: Teaching Licence |
|
|
| bule_boy69 wrote: |
I was looking into teaching in Taiwan public schools, but the recruiter said I needed a 'teaching license'. Not a term I was familiar with.
Now I understand what is required (for Australian trained teachers) is to have teachers registration. I have a high school teaching qualification, but I let the registration lapse years ago.
Curious to know in what countries this is (or isn't) a requirement for high school work.
Anyone?
Thanks. |
Qualified but no longer having current "licensure" eliminates working in mainstream schools in Taiwan or Hong Kong (NET program). It will also preclude working in internationally accredited schools in most of the rest of the Asian region.
That said, there is work in mainstream (local) schools in most of the rest of SE Asia (Brunei and the Philippines being notable exceptions) for someone without current licensure.
The requirements are typically a Bachelor degree and clean police clearance.
EFL pay is crap compared to properly licensed teachers in international schools. As an example, EFL in Thailand pays about 1300 AUD/month whereas working in a properly accredited international school pays from 2400-4500AUD + benefits like airfare, housing and medical.
The situation is similar in most of the rest of the region.
Korea is OK for EFL but not a lot of high school work. You'll have to go to the Korean boards and re-register to post on the forums for Korean information.
China has a LOT of options but untried entities like yourself will have to start at the bottom and work your way up. If you are 1/2 way decent it won't take long. Networking is the key. The same with the rest of Asia.
. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
