Teaching OVERSEAS?

Question

Does anyone know a good place to get info to teach overseas. Also, I'm from Canada and would you like to come with me to teach overseas. I'm just a chicken **** and would love some company.

Answer 1

Good for you! It's great to hear there are other Canadians who want to go overseas to teach. I left for Taiwan with next to nothing in the way of money, preparation or knowledge about what I was getting into......and it was the best thing I've ever done!

There are lots of ways to find countries that are good to teach in, but the best way is to talk to as many people who've actually done it as you can. You'll find some people love a certain country and some just hate it, so it'll mostly depend on your attitude and adaptability. It's alright to go to a school or company that specializes in these things to learn the ropes (like a recruting company or an ESL school), but remember you will be completely at their mercy if you sign anything too hastily.

I don't know about the rest of the world, but in Asia I wouldn't sign for more than a semester (approx 6 mo). Remember, if you're in a country where bargaining is the norm it will apply in contract negotiations as well. I had a contract for my first school, got taken advantage of, and learned my lesson. I did my own job hunting for the rest of the 5 years I taught.

Language barriers aren't actually as big a deal as you would think. It's a pretty steep learning curve but there's so much incentive.... you learn the words for food and directions pretty quick if you're always hungry or lost! I took French in school for 9 years in total and my Chinese was better than my French after only 9 MONTHS of living there.

The major things that you need to know about teaching overseas are:
1. You'll feel like an illiterate bumpkin, but they'll treat you like an all-knowing god (just try to remember your natural Canadian humility).
2. You may be the teacher while facing a class of eager students, but the rest of the time YOU are a STUDENT of their culture (the more you can relate to them, in terms they understand, the easier your job will be)
3.When things get confusing, you feel trapped, frustrated, helpless or angry just figure out a chunk of time that you might be able to put up with whatever's going on and repeat to yourself " I can deal with ANYTHING for ___(amount of time)_____!!" (sometimes this will be "5 minutes", sometimes "till Friday" and sometimes you don't need to put anything there cuz you can deal ANYTHING!!

Answer 2

I actually considered this idea before I became a teacher. Plenty of opportunities exist... mainly on military bases abroad. You might be surprised how easy it is to teach overseas... but you may run into language barriers... that's what held me back. Contact your college career and placement center for more information.

Answer 3

China is hiring many men and women to instruct English as their pupils are in pleasant want of oral English units. They do require that you're a university graduate. They probably don't require any ESL coaching as they only desire you to be an informed local English speaker.