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| Is 18 too young to start teaching English abroad? |
| yes |
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| no |
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| Total Votes : 3 |
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ls650
Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia
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 Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 7:12 pm Post subject: |
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| amy1982 wrote: |
| i'm not saying that those of us with little to no experience should get to start at the top, just that we should be permitted to start. |
Are you really having difficulty finding a job? Go to SE Asia for a year: if you post your resume on the web you'll receive half a dozen job offers from China in the first day. China is so desperate for English teachers you can easily find a job with no university degree or TEFL certificate.
I know of one woman who worked as a psychiatric nurse. She earned a 4-week TEFL certificate at the same school I attended, and came down to Mexico. After searching around she was able to find a teaching job relatively easily - but the pay was only about 4500 pesos a month. If your heart is set on Latin American, I think there are jobs for people with no experience - but don't expect to earn more than survival wages.
My recommendation would be to teach in Asia and build up some experience; it will make you look a lot more desirable to employers in Latin America.
| Quote: |
| a question for the more experienced teachers... do you think that a 1-month intensive training course is sufficient preparation for esl teaching? |
No. Of course, no amount of training is enough for EFL; you can only truly learn this job by doing it. |
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amy1982
Joined: 09 Dec 2004
Posts: 192
Location: Buenos Aires
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| Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 7:21 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| No. Of course, no amount of training is enough for EFL; you can only truly learn this job by doing it. |
ok, ok, so no amount of training is enough... but is a one month course worth the money for the certificate and preparation that it does provide, or do you think that is a waste and something more substantial is really what is needed?
as far as getting a job as an esl teacher, i haven't started yet. i am more referring to the job market in the states and the frustration i have had there. a question like "is 18 too young to teach" and answers involving experience seemed analogous to me, so i put my two cents in. that's all, just trying to answer the question and vent a little at the same time, i guess. |
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ls650
Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia
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| Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 8:07 pm Post subject: |
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I would say 'yes', a TEFL Certificate with real classroom practice can be highly valuable, and well worth the $1500-$2500 price tag that is typical.
IMHO, an online TEFL Certificate with no teaching component offers you nothing useful except a piece of paper. |
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Ben Round de Bloc
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 1946
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| Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 9:21 pm Post subject: |
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| amy1982 wrote: |
| at first i was going to respond to my quotes, but then i realized they weren't all mine. |
Sorry about that. I've just edited that post and think I have the quotes correct now. |
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amy1982
Joined: 09 Dec 2004
Posts: 192
Location: Buenos Aires
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| Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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no need for apologies... it was a comic moment  |
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gambasbo
Joined: 23 Nov 2003
Posts: 93
Location: Cochabamba, Bolivia
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| Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 1:39 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Amy
If going to China doesn't appeal, you could always come to my city, Cochabamba, Bolivia. (The City of Eternal Spring! - but not at the moment, as it's been wet and cloudy for about three weeks which is most unusual)
I am fairly confident that, as English is your first language and you also want to teach, you would get work easily enough. I am often inundated with students who want to learn English. But as someone said, it would be survival wages. Great experience, though.
You can post here or e mail me if you wish to know more. ([email protected])
Mike |
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nomadamericana
Joined: 18 Dec 2004
Posts: 146
Location: Minneapolis, MN
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| Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 6:40 pm Post subject: |
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In response to Ben Round De Bloc's comment about my post:
1) I simply stated that AS A STUDENT I prefer a young teacher... and that is still my opinion no matter how wrong you think it is. I am not talking 18 or 20 when I say young... I was more thinking under 35. And I am not quite sure WHY I would be stating that in a interview for a potential job... as you stated.
2) Knowledge about another culture can be dangerous... but it also helps you get by and survive in a new culture unlike your own.
~nomadamericana[/quote] |
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Aramas
Joined: 13 Feb 2004
Posts: 874
Location: Slightly left of Centre
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| Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2005 3:00 am Post subject: |
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Since western countries have become "nanny states" and the media has driven parents into a frenzy of irrational fear, children are no longer permitted to develop normally. The majority of today's 18 year old westerners are less mature than the 15 year olds of 20 years ago.
Imo, most 18 year olds shouldn't venture far from their mummy and daddy |
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Ben Round de Bloc
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 1946
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| Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2005 11:59 am Post subject: |
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| nomadamericana wrote: |
In response to Ben Round De Bloc's comment about my post:
1) I simply stated that AS A STUDENT I prefer a young teacher... and that is still my opinion no matter how wrong you think it is. I am not talking 18 or 20 when I say young... I was more thinking under 35. And I am not quite sure WHY I would be stating that in a interview for a potential job... as you stated.
2) Knowledge about another culture can be dangerous... but it also helps you get by and survive in a new culture unlike your own. |
1) I didn't say I thought your preference for having a young teacher was wrong. I only suggested that when applying for a job, you might want to downplay that, especially if the person doing the interviewing isn't all that young. I don't think it would be all that unusual for an interviewer to ask your opinion about working with older, more experienced teachers as well as what kinds of teachers you'd prefer to have teaching you.
2) What bothered me about your statement was that after only 7 months, you felt you had a comprehensive grasp of the culture, language, and social expectations. Perhaps you and I have different concepts of "comprehensive." I've been living and working in the same place for almost 10 years, and I wouldn't claim to have a comprehensive grasp of those things.
No offense intended in my previous post. I posted it only as suggestions to think about. |
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2005 3:36 pm Post subject: |
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Many, even most schools, including the one I'm in, prefer to hire people with experience. The problem is, given the wages here, we sometimes don't have that luxury. A young, keen, serious person still has a chance, and we have several pretty young ones on staff now. (23 and under)
The problem we run into is that an experienced, highly qualified teacher can make thousands in SE Asia or the Middle East, or hundreds here. Even though this is a comfortable wage HERE, most people think about the saving potential, and head of to greener horizons.
So I say give Latin America a shot. If you're thorough and persistent, there is work to be found, at any age.
Regards,
Justin |
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