Hi,
I'm interested in teaching TEFL over the summer. I have more than ten years of experience teaching in a primary school. I also hope to be qualified as a proofreader by the summer. Would TEFL schools in the UK consider my experience to be good enough to teach TEFL or would they require I hold a TEFL qualification from an organisation like CELTA? I have a friend who taught TEFL in the past, and feels I would find TEFL easy compared to school teaching (and less stressful!). He also feels I could potentially become a good TEFL teacher in a short space of time, considering my extensive classroom experience. Would TEFL schools agree and offer work without a specific qualification?
Thanks for any insight!
Cheers,
Al.
Primary school teacher -> TEFL
Moderator: Joe
Re: Primary school teacher -> TEFL
Not many summer schools specialise in young kids, but if they do I'm fairly sure they'd employ an experienced primary school teacher. Although it's a little early for summer school job ads, you should easily be able to find the details of a few online and contact them to ask.
If you want to teach EFL longer term, want to teach abroad, want to teach teens or adults or want a larger range of schools to apply for, you will need something like CELTA (which is a qualification, the organisation is Cambridge ESOL). In fact, I'd recommend it anyway as I've seen plenty of primary school teachers struggle to adapt to the very different kind of teaching needed in TEFL.
Finally, although teaching adults English is probably easier than primary school teaching (at least in some ways), I wouldn't say the same for summer schools for small kids. You'll have one day off a week and be expected to be on call at literally any other time, with kids whose languages and probably cultures you know nothing about. For that, you'll probably get a contract that pays around the national minimum wage and quite possibly breaks EU employment law.
If you want to teach EFL longer term, want to teach abroad, want to teach teens or adults or want a larger range of schools to apply for, you will need something like CELTA (which is a qualification, the organisation is Cambridge ESOL). In fact, I'd recommend it anyway as I've seen plenty of primary school teachers struggle to adapt to the very different kind of teaching needed in TEFL.
Finally, although teaching adults English is probably easier than primary school teaching (at least in some ways), I wouldn't say the same for summer schools for small kids. You'll have one day off a week and be expected to be on call at literally any other time, with kids whose languages and probably cultures you know nothing about. For that, you'll probably get a contract that pays around the national minimum wage and quite possibly breaks EU employment law.