Is EFL teaching dead?

rudder · Post by **rudder** » May 31st, 2014, 1:07 pm

It seems there are lots of countries where even if you have a TESOL certificate then you can't even really make enough money to get by, or you can just barely get by.

I would assume if there were really a big demand to learn English, then there would be more pay for teaching. Is it because there are just too many EFL teachers nowadays?

Cornfed · Post by **Cornfed** » May 31st, 2014, 1:12 pm

Too many teachers, too many overeducated and underemployed Westerners generally, too much competition from skype, too many local teachers trained to a high standard, not enough children being born in target countries, not enough people who need to learn English due to the decline of the West and so on. Yes, while of course it is a big world and some people will still make a good living teaching English, as a general rule it is not a great profession to get into now.

zboy1 · Post by **zboy1** » June 1st, 2014, 8:09 am

Cornfed wrote:Too many teachers, too many overeducated and underemployed Westerners generally, too much competition from skype, too many local teachers trained to a high standard, not enough children being born in target countries, not enough people who need to learn English due to the decline of the West and so on. Yes, while of course it is a big world and some people will still make a good living teaching English, as a general rule it is not a great profession to get into now.

Yeah, but it will still provide you with a decent lifestyle--especially in comparison to the West.

I'm only teaching English as a starting-point for bigger and better things...hopefully.

Hero · Post by **Hero** » June 1st, 2014, 9:21 am

rudder wrote:It seems there are lots of countries where even if you have a TESOL certificate then you can't even really make enough money to get by, or you can just barely get by.

I would assume if there were really a big demand to learn English, then there would be more pay for teaching. Is it because there are just too many EFL teachers nowadays?

Which countries are you looking in? And who do you want to teach English to? School kids? Businessmen?

I went to an orientation session for teaching ESL. I was told that there were good opportunities for me in Argentina, because I've been working in corporations for the past 5 years, and a lot of Argentinian businessmen want to learn English in order to conduct business with the USA.

xiongmao · Post by **xiongmao** » June 2nd, 2014, 12:04 pm

There are still opportunities but it's worth getting some additional experience. I have a postgraduate degree which is very useful (doesn't matter what it's in). I've also worked in IT for a long time, so I could specialise in business English.

As Hero says as well, think beyond China. There are loads of other places where teachers are needed.

Cornfed · Post by **Cornfed** » June 2nd, 2014, 1:46 pm

xiongmao wrote:As Hero says as well, think beyond China. There are loads of other places where teachers are needed.

Like where exactly? Of course there will be some teachers needed practically everywhere, just as there will be some need for male prostitutes to service female supermodels, the winners of beauty contests etc. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that the supply and demand situation is favorable to the average new entrant to the market.

Taco · Post by **Taco** » June 2nd, 2014, 3:05 pm

Cornfed wrote:Too many teachers, too many overeducated and underemployed Westerners generally, too much competition from skype.

Don't even think about online teaching right now. After teaching online for 3 Russian Online English schools earlier this year I ended up quitting after just 1 month having made only $108.00.

Hero · Post by **Hero** » June 2nd, 2014, 3:29 pm

xiongmao wrote:There are still opportunities but it's worth getting some additional experience.

Yeah, that's what they told me at the info session for the Oxford TEFL certification. It should be easy to get some experience right here in the USA, especially if it's volunteer work. That might help you get a foot in the door.

One other piece of advice: start working as a teacher as soon as you get your certification. Otherwise you'll have a gap on your resume.

Cornfed · Post by **Cornfed** » June 2nd, 2014, 3:54 pm

Hero wrote:One other piece of advice: start working as a teacher as soon as you get your certification. Otherwise you'll have a gap on your resume.

If having gaps in your resume is inherently problematic then you picked the wrong profession.

Hero · Post by **Hero** » June 2nd, 2014, 3:57 pm

Cornfed wrote:
Hero wrote:One other piece of advice: start working as a teacher as soon as you get your certification. Otherwise you'll have a gap on your resume.
If having gaps in your resume is inherently problematic then you picked the wrong profession.

What do you mean? If I choose a career in EFL then I'll have lots of periods of unemployment?

Cornfed · Post by **Cornfed** » June 2nd, 2014, 4:13 pm

Hero wrote:
Cornfed wrote:
Hero wrote:One other piece of advice: start working as a teacher as soon as you get your certification. Otherwise you'll have a gap on your resume.
If having gaps in your resume is inherently problematic then you picked the wrong profession.
What do you mean? If I choose a career in EFL then I'll have lots of periods of unemployment?

Yes, probably. The market in the West is absurdly overcrowded. If you go overseas then it takes time to find jobs and meet visa requirements.

Hero · Post by **Hero** » June 2nd, 2014, 5:28 pm

zboy1 wrote:I'm only teaching English as a starting-point for bigger and better things...hopefully.

What kind of things?

Is EFL teaching dead?

Is EFL teaching dead?

Re: Is EFL teaching dead?