Teaching English abroad is becoming a known and respectable career option with time and high demand for ESL teachers in the non English speaking countries. But the question is who should teach abroad? Can anybody teach English abroad? Or who are the people eligible for this job or career option.
Teaching abroad is a lucrative career option for which you have to teach English in any non speaking English country. You have to leave your motherland and explore a foreign land. The people with a passion for traveling should choose this career option. With ESL jobs you can travel the world and get to know a lot of new people, their habits and culture and also their economic condition, history, architecture etc. You should know to respect a foreign culture and values for being an ESL teacher. The ESL teachers are expected to follow the dress code of their respective working locations and behave according to the expectations of the natives.
Teaching should be the major focus. So, you need to be a good teacher first in order to pursue this career. A passion for teaching is must. You might/ might not have prior teaching experience. But you should nurture an interest for the teaching profession. You can learn up the teaching skills while pursuing any TEFL/ TESOL program specially designed for ESL teachers. As an ESL teacher you will be asked to teach either the school students or business professionals or adult ones in language training centers. Thus, you must have the skill to induce an interest for the subject in your students irrespective of their age groups and professional backgrounds. You must know the art of satisfying your students and in order to do so, you must have a passion for the subject first.
Candidates with teaching background and experience and TESOL/ TEFL Certifications are preferred. In fact, it is mandatory to have a teaching qualification for taking up ESL jobs. Thus, you need to have a teaching qualification for this career option. Numerous TESOL/TEFL programs are there to offer you training and Certifications on successful completion of the course. The students enrolling for the course must have a high school certificate although the students with university degree are preferred.
Most of the non speaking English countries like to have a native English speaker as an ESL teacher. So, your nationality matters a lot. The non native English speakers can also try out this option if they are qualified for the job but the demand for the native English speakers is much high.
Teachers from all age groups are invited for an ESL career. The minimum age for pursuing teaching abroad is 19 and there is no such maximum limit. The young people looking forward to an interesting career option can go for teaching English abroad after the completion of their studies. The older ones who are fed up with their professions can also try this out. It will surely be a refreshing experience. The experienced teachers with a keen interest to explore new nations, culture and people are the most eligible ones.
So, anybody and everybody cannot teach English aboard. Some of the basic requirements for this career option are: