Job Discussion Forums

[ioamosalerno]

Hi! I am currently looking for work in Brussels and the Flanders region of Belgium. Since I lack EU citizenship, I have been going to different schools with hard copies of my cv with cover letters. Unfortunately, I had a bad experience when the director at one of the schools I was applying at asked me to sit down then and there for a 'quick talk.' It was essentially an on-the-spot interview (which I should have been better prepared for) to scope me out. Everything went o.k. except for one thing: she asked me HOW (what methods I would use) to teach the simple present and present continous/progressive. Since I have not formally taught before (with the exception of my practicum), I couldn't really answer the question. I mentioned teaching the progressive first, then after a while the simple, but never both at the same time. What I want to know is what kinds of questions like this should I be prepared for? I know they are not going to ask me anything too complex, but I can't affort to look like such an idiot again. Specifically, what are some common questions asked about grammar and teaching methodologies? Thanks for the help.

[spiral78]

I worked in Brussels a few years ago on a spousal visa (I am American) and at that time, it was impossible for a private language school to hire a non-EU citizen legally. I will be interested if you find something at all, and if they somehow can get you a work permit. Please do keep us posted.

So far as your grammar question, they are usually looking for something like a contextualised lesson focus description (brief). Mainly, they want to hear if you can approach a grammatical point from a functional, contextualised standpoint, rather than just explaining it to the students. So, for example, you could approach I do versus I am doing with the distinction between habitual behaviour and current activity. "I ride my bike to work." (every day) and "I am studying English now." It's pretty easy to think of ways to build on this.

Why never both at the same time? Comparing and contrasting tense usage is a common way to practice tenses, and to present ones that the students aren't proficient in yet. Also, keep in mind that it's not really accurate to say we are going to 'teach' a tense as though students are going to totally get it at that time. Tense acquisition is a matter of practice.

[johnslat]

Dear spiral78,

Do you think it would be too much to throw in "non-continuous" verbs, where the present simple has to do both jobs: now/not usual and habitual?

e.g. I want some coffee right now; I often want coffee.

And if that's too much, I guess throwing in some verbs with "non-continuous" AND "can be continuous" meanings would definitely be too much.

I have a pencil in my hand right now. I often have a pencil in my hand

Are you having a good time?

Regards,
John

[spiral78]

Dear John:

My head spins if there are more than two distinct elements in a lesson at one time. My poor students must find me challenged at times:-)

No, not having a good time, but AM on a break (or: breaking:-)) from listening to oral assessments.
Mental capacities not functioning at peak due to continuous listening assignments.
In this moment.

Best,
Spiral

[ioamosalerno]

Hey, thanks for the quick responses. I am wondering if anyone can point me towards some place that I can read up on these methodologies. I'm not sure that I completely understood what the interviewer was asking me, but it seemed 'method' was simply a more elegant way of saying 'how' would you teach it, but I dont know. I explained the difference between the habitiual and time-specific nature of the tenses, but I was asked again what methods I would use to teach it. Having not taught before, questions of this nature are obviously very difficult to answer, and I basically made myself look like an idiot. Perhaps there are some good sites that touch on this sort of thing? Also, is just about any grammar point fair game for an entry-level interview, or are there usually specific concepts that they want a beginning instructor to know, and figure that anything beyond that will be taught be a more experienced instructor? thanks again

[spiral78]

What kind of certification course did you take? A CELTA or equivalent will usually answer questions such as these pretty clearly....

You said you've done a practicuum, so I assumed you have had some TEFL training. If this is not the case, you are at a very serious disadvantage on the European job market, where most newbies have a CELTA (120 hour on-site TEFL course including practice teaching with real students).

If your practicum was in general education or something other than language teaching specifically, you will find that employers like the one you describe will often not consider you seriously for positions. General education and TEFL are significally different fields in terms of approach and method.

Approaches and methods refer to things like 'communicative' and 'active' and 'learner-centred' as versus the more traditional 'grammar-translation' or 'lecturer' approaches. Basically, these days most employers want to know that you are not a very traditional teacher and that student talking time will exceed teacher talking time in classes.

I am afraid that overall it sounds as though your chances of finding something (legal) are not very strong. You could try to quickly read up on TEFL methodology, but without some active practice behind you, it's going to be tough.

What if you get to the demo lesson stage???!!!

As a non-EU member citizen, you've only got 90 days in the Schengen zone to get legal working papers filed. Your clock will be ticking.....
when did you arrive in the zone?

Some reading that might help (but not likely in time, I'm afraid)

Lightbown and Spada: How Languages Are Learned
Nunan, D. :Second Language Teaching and Learning
Richards & Rodgers: Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching

Just to clarify where I'm coming from: I worked in Belgium briefly, in Luxembourg for a year, and in the Netherlands for six and a half years. I am pretty aware of the job market in this region and know that it's fairly competitive - and VERY difficult to get legal work permits as a non-EU member citizen. I also know that it's possible to have one's passport checked on trains and even busses - and that border control does check for how long one has been in the Schengen zone. I really HAD to show my residence/working documents on multiple occasions in this region. Do take the 90 day Schengen zone rules seriously.....

[Glenski]

If you're not sure what the interviewer was asking (and I admit I'm not sure from what you wrote), then the thing to do is ask. Preface it by saying in one sentence the difference between the 2, as spiral has pointed out, but when someone asks about "methodology", that's a toughie to answer, IMO.

Methodology?
Uh, I would teach the grammar point first, probably give a handout so they can refer to something during and after the lesson.
Then, I would give some vocabulary with words and pictures in some fashion -- it would vary considerably, as I have several ideas that would work. This would be done between the whole class and me first, or in small groups/pairs with me monitoring.
Finally, individual students would have to generate original sentences somehow, whether in something as physically active as charades or in another fashion like a classroom survey with discussion. I might even have a game board to facilitate that.

Good enough for ya, Mr./Ms. Interviewer? If you want "methodology" to mean something else (like how much L1 vs. L2 I would use, or what sort of grammatical definition I would provide and with what support, etc.), I just can't answer that until I know what you mean.

[spiral78]

If you are without specific TEFL training, you might try contacting CERAN, at Spa. It's remote, but they provide training in the method used there. Again, I do not know if they will/can get you a legal work permit and the school is very remote, so not for everyone. Also, I do not know if they take totally untrained teachers, but I do know they provide training, so perhaps.

[sparks]

As far as methodology, in Europe at least, I would say that you should always mention the word "communicative". This is a magical word which seems to represent a creative, interesting approach to teaching which will keep students coming to classes. Certainly don't say "direct" (this means too much teacher talking) "Audio-lingual" (too much listening) or "indirect" (means you're lazy). There are many others but they probably just want to hear "communicative".

[spiral78]

[artemisia]

I agree that a TEFL course like CELTA sounds like a must if you haven't already done one (and hopefully you'd have more ideas how to go about teaching tenses etc. if you had, so I guess you haven't).

In the meantime, and as part of preparation for a TEFL course, how about looking at English language course books such as New Cutting Edge and English File? You should be able to access them in a bookshop or library. Even better would be looking at a teacher's book. It will give you a few basic ideas on how to go about structuring a lesson. There are online sites, too, such as onestopenglish.com but you sometimes have to be a paid member of these 'clubs' to access resources.

[ioamosalerno]

Hi again, and thanks for all the responses! The support here is awesome! I am indeed TEFL certified (although not CELTA) with 100 hrs. instruction and 20 hrs. practicum. I also understand the difficulty of finding work legally in this country, and am heading to Italy at the end of the month (while my passport stamp is still valid) to look for more 'under the table' positions (I speak Italian decently as well).

I think I need to do as artemisia said, and concentrate on a few specific point (modals, conditions, simple/progressive tenses), and formulate some lesson plans that I can carry around with me so nothing like that happens again. Are there any other grammar points that I should be prepared to explain and demo during an interview? Being a new teacher, I am prepared to put in extra hours making effective lesson plans, and helping students one-on-one, but I need to have at least a foundation to work off of before I try again.

Also, spiral78, thanks for the region-specific insight. I want to ask you if you have ever hear of a freelance work permit for here in Belgium? Some schools are specifically looking for freelance instead of long-term contract, so I'm wondering if maybe this is easier to obtain than the type B work permit? thanks again everyone!

[ioamosalerno]

*sorry, should mention that I'm heading to Italy if I don't find anything here in Brussels or Flanders region, Belgium.

[spiral78]

No, freelance will be impossible to obtain - you must do it entirely on your own, and without a work contract in hand, you haven't a prayer of qualifying.
Schools are looking for freelance staff because the work isn't consistent and they don't want to pay a regular salary. The job market is very tight in this region. They are basically looking for people who already live there and who need just a part-time supplemental salary.


If you end up under the table in Italy, we will be interested to know how that goes long-term. Before Schengen zone rules (Jan 2009) it was fairly common, and I've got a friend who worked for three full years in Rome mostly under the table. However, since then I've heard quite a few horror stories about exploitation of illegal teachers: schools not paying and also landlord/lady exploitation, because such teachers can't go to any authorities. Not to mention the border issues. It would be interesting to know how it goes for you.

[spiral78]