Job Discussion Forums

[ands]

Hi.

I've just graduated from a B.Teaching/B.A, and am certified to teach in Australian primary schools (students typically aged 4.5 through to 13 years of age). I am thinking of teaching ESL in Spain. I have a UK passport, so will be 'legal'.

Training
Looking through job ads and at the major language schools' websites, it appears that TEFL training is pretty much universally required. Given that i have a 4yr teaching qualification, the equivalent of half of an Aussie school year of practical teaching, and that i will have had about another half a year's worth of post-grad teaching experience before i arrive in Spain, what would be the best training option? Is a CELTA still appropriate, given i have minimal (and i really do mean minimal as most unis in Aus don't seem to believe that ESL students exist in our school systems) ESL training? Or is there another course that is more appropriate to people who already have a basis in teaching/pedagogy but need the TESOL side of things?

Hiring
Are there any really bad times of the year to arrive? From reading through other posts, it seems that schools pretty much shut-down during the summer. When do the schools reopen? Is this a major hiring period, or do they hire before/during the summer? The earliest i could arrive would be around mid March. Is this a notoriously slow period?

Thanks!

[Moore]

Really it depends whether you intend to do TEFL teaching after you leave Spain, in other countries, or even back in Oz, in which case getting a qualification would be a good idea. The most universally recognised qualification is CELTA. There are a ton of courses out there, all claiming to be recognised everywhere, but CELTA is the one that all schools internationally will accept. Trouble is it's expensive to do, and of course takes another month, so if time's a factor for you, then that's a problem.

Your experience is probably already enough to get you a job in Spain: it depends a bit on your working papers situation really: if you have them then with your teaching experience you'll be fine, if not then a TEFL qualification would definitely help. Also, if you have your working papers, then summer need not be a worry for you, as you will be able to nip across to the UK in summer and teach summer schools, and for this you will need a CELTA or equivalent.

In terms of the hiring time of year, you seem to have really done your research: if you arrive mid-March, then that gives you April, May, June for sure, then July is a bit dodgy, August hopeless, then September a bit shaky. What you have to do then is either go to the UK (need papers) or do summer camps here: there are more and more of them springing up and you don't always need papers to work on them- if you're nice and outgoing and don't mind mad kids, then you'll be fine and it's a great experience.

Basically when you get to Madrid, apply to as many schools as possible, go to a load of interviews to try and get the best deal going, and then apply for summer camp work immediately after you have a job sorted out: schools start recruiting pretty early for summer.

[ands]

Moore

Thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed, helpful reply.

I think i'll do the CELTA to begin with, just to get a bit more of an idea as to ESL teaching. But just another question... Do you think having a CELTA on top of my existing quals and experience would enable me to be more selective in terms of accepting and applying for jobs, or would i simply be adding something that won't really get me anywhere in terms of job hunting, pay, conditions, etc?

Thanks again.

[Moore]

Basically having a CELTA will help you most in places where you are legal to work, but obviously it would also give reassurance to any school considering taking on someone without working papers that at least they're taking on a competent TEFL teacher, and that will probably have some influence on what you're paid.

A bigger influence on the money you make though is checking out as many places as possible: it's amazing how much pay varies between schools, so legal British workers can end up earning 12 euros an hour, while workers without papers are getting 18 an hour because they took the time to hunt around for the best deals. Also your primary teaching experience may set you up well for getting well-paid private classes with kids which would supplement your income.

I think the main benefit of a good TEFL qualification comes when you go to the next place: maybe you'll end up teaching a bit closer to home like in Thailand or Japan, where you're on a level playing field with EU teachers in terms of working visas. Also, as an Australian, if you're young enough you'll also be eligible for a temporary working visa in the UK and you could teach English there so again a qualification would come in very handy for that too.

[eric_p_m]

Dear Ands,

If you have a high proficiency level in another language or if you have a degree in a foreign language, many institutions will accept this training in place of TEFL training... as long as you are a native speaker of the target language.

I know that in the US, if you are a teacher (with a degree in Education), to obtain certification in another given area only requires proof of competence. For example, I teach both Spanish and English as a Foreign Language, but after living in China for the last five years, my Mandarin skills surpass most non-native speakers in the US. If I opted to take a Chinese language placement test, that should suffice for me to be able to teach Chinese in the US.

On the other hand, I would recommend some training in TEFL/ ESL so that you can have an international awareness of what you are getting ready to get yourself into. If you haven't taught abroad yet, you will have classes on culture shock and other cross-cultural points to help you adjust and enable you to teach your forthcoming students that wish to study abroad.

Moreover, such training would ensure that you have both phonemic and phonetic awareness, and perhaps have a better understanding of the English grammar system.


Sincerely,