Awesome Country

Mark Crocker Destinations The Middle East has been a popular region for teaching English abroad for many years but how do you know which country is the best fit for you? Each individual country has its own attractions and characteristics, some you might like and others you might not. Take a look at our country match guide to help you decide which destination is the one for you. Mark Crocker Destinations Although Latin America is a popular destination for teaching English abroad, there are many different countries to choose from and they each have something to offer. Our country match guide should help you decide which of these top destinations would best suit your individual...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate explains how songs can help in teaching grammar. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on the teaching skills important for the classroom. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on teaching grammar. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on using games in teaching. Elizaveta Pachina Alumni...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate explains how songs can help in teaching grammar. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on the teaching skills important for the classroom. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on teaching grammar. Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on using games in teaching. Elizaveta Pachina Alumni...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on their favorite teaching approach. Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In this blog post, our recent TEFL graduate shares their thoughts on volunteer teaching. Mahmoud Maihoob Destinations Alumni Experiences Are you interested in teaching English in a country with an incredibly fascinating history and culture? Here are 6 reasons why teaching English in Egypt is an awesome and wholesome experience. Shanique Hutchinson Destinations TEFL Information ...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Let us start off with a question. Should you have a TEFL certification to teach English abroad? If you do not. I do recommend you do. These are the six reasons you should. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Devin D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first reason is respect for your future students. It is easy to get distracted by how awesome it will be to live in another country. Unless you have years of experience teaching English, you owe it to your future students to complete a TEFL course. No matter who you are teaching, someone is paying a lot of money for your services. The parents or the student might be paying the...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences In my experience, many teachers are not really sure about the difference between teaching ESL and teaching EFL in the classroom. In this post I will try to explain both situations and give some insight into each as they are actually quite distinct. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Amal S. ESL refers to teaching English as a Second Language in a English-speaking country where the student's native language is not English, while EFL refers to teaching English as a Foreign Language in a country where English is not the primary language. In the ESL classroom, students are often from different countries, backgrounds and religions which can make it difficult for the teacher as he/she has to be...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Destinations Although Russia has one of the highest demands for English language teachers in the world, it is often overlooked. However, there are many reasons why we think you should seriously consider Russia as a TEFL destination, and here are our top 5. Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Check out these 7 awesome ESL conversation activities that will really get your students talking and help them learn English in no time! Linda Dunsmore Destinations Spring is the ideal time to start your TEFL adventure! Here are our top 10 places to take your TEFL course in the springtime. Linda Dunsmore ...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Unlike learning a first language, learning a second language is a task that can sometimes seem frustrating and at times even impossible. There are many reasons for this as learning a second language is very different than learning your mother tongue. Firstly, there are biological factors involved and the fact that normally children tend to assimilate things more easily than adults. Secondly, it is often harder to get the same level of exposure to the language than it is when learning a native language where repetition from parents etc. is constant. That is why when you sign up for an English class, or any other language for that matter, teachers will try to replicate that scenario with endless repetitions and fun...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences The local cultural environment undoubtedly plays a crucial role in a community’s education system. When specifically talking about developing countries, it is unavoidable to include Laos among those with a strong cultural background. Although Laos can be considered a fairly small country, it surprisingly contains more than 45 different ethnic groups, most of which boast their own traditions, culture, and language. This is a peculiar context that certainly needs to be taken into consideration when talking about education development. In a country like Laos, where old traditions and beliefs are still strongly followed by the community, the education system tends to absorb many of the local customary rules. This...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information oday’s exciting topic is the top hiring seasons for teaching English abroad. We're going to go over different countries on different continents and what their hiring seasons are, so when's the best time to go job hunting. Also there will be some tips for job hunting in those places as sometimes you need to get hired in advance when you're still in your home country and you can do online interviews, but in some countries you need to apply in person. So we're going to talk about that as well. Thanks so much for tuning in and as always please don't forget to like and subscribe so that you never miss a live session. We go live twice a week, one time with me on Fridays, or Thursday...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas English to me and I'll answer them to the best of my ability. We have a first time watcher Sebastian watching from Cameroon and it is 2:00 a.m. there, wow thanks so much for staying up and watching our live stream, that's awesome. We are actually streaming live on Facebook and also on YouTube at the same time, so wherever you're watching from you can throw your questions at me at any time and if you don't want to miss out on any of our live streams don't forget to like and subscribe so that you always get notifications. I go live every Friday morning my time, depending on where you're watching it might still be Thursday, and then my colleague...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences There are many different reasons and obvious advantages of taking the TEFL course. One of the main advantages is the fact that it is a form of validation or certification of your credentials, as a qualified language teacher. This thus makes job interview processes more convenient and increases your chances of employment in the top job markets around the world. With a wider range of options to choose from, this can only make your dreams or aspirations to teach in your potential country of choice, much simpler. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ken Y. On a personal level though, besides the aforementioned rationale, the decision to enroll in this course would be for one other specific...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences As more and more countries place a growing importance on its people to learn English as a secondary language, for work purposes or for general use, there is a growing debate about which is the better English to learn - British English or American English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Max E. The argument stems from the growing influence of America in the modern world. British English has a longer standing history, but in today's modern society, it is almost impossible to go through the day without hearing American English in use. We hear it in television programs and films, more businesses from the US are branching out to foreign soil, and many countries feel that American English may be the...  [Read more]

Anastasiia Ovchinnikova Visa and Legal Budget and Salary Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Starting a new exciting journey as an EFL teacher abroad can also be quite stressful, especially when you are taking your first steps in this profession. When you type in “Teaching jobs in China” you immediately see that the Internet is overloaded with “incredible” opportunities for teachers, including free accommodation, a 5-hour working day, salaries of more than USD 2,500 - all with “no teaching experience required”. Sounds incredible, right? Those companies are the death traps; they most likely won’t be able to guarantee you anything and don't care...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas A TEFL course, otherwise known as “Teaching English as a Foreign Language,” is an essential educational component for any foreign language educator who wishes to teach English in their own country or to non-native students living abroad (“What’s the Difference Between CELTA and TEFL?” 2019). To be certified to teach English as a foreign language, a language educator possess at least a TEFL or TESOL certification, with a degree of practical, in-class teaching experience. The most prestigious TEFL courses, such as CELTA (Cambridge English Teaching Language Assessment), are accredited, which means their curriculum has been reviewed and accepted by international committees to ensure that they meet local,...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Budget and Salary TEFL Information Welcome, I'm Linda from ITTT, and we are doing a live Q&A session today, so let me just check if this is working. Is anybody here if you're here, if you can see me if you can hear me. Please, leave a comment. That would be great so that I know that you are here. And, please, let me know where you guys are tuning in from? I would be super interested to see where you are tuning in from. I'm in South Korea. I'm about an hour and a half outside of Seoul, like in the middle of South Korea in a city called Cheongju. It's not that big. It is quite big, but it's not pretty well known, but um, I've been here for five and a half years already. So, hello, some people are here great! Hi,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Vocabulary lessons are quite easy to teach and students love them because of the many exciting games teachers usually implement. In this article, we want to share several unusual ideas for building strong English vocabulary that will definitely help you in your classroom. You can approach any age group with this activity asthere are always visual-spatial types of learners. Plus, it is scientifically proven that the human brain creates strong connections between hands-on experiences and abstract concepts like words. So, if you want to help your students remember new words better, offer them spelling those words with PlayDough or plasticine. You can also use water colors, markers and any other materials for this...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Different classes have different requirements for appropriate teaching materials. These requirements are influenced by several factors, such as the skill level of the class, their age, ability, their native language they speak, and the unique problems native speakers of that language have when learning English. Cultural factors also need to be taken into account. Course material could become problematic in a classroom if they deal with family relationships or gender in a way that particular culture of a country or the students may find inappropriate. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Joshua W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT....  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Hello everybody and welcome. We're actually also going live on Instagram today, so I'm going to check that out as well as the usual Facebook and YouTube. Hopefully everything will work fine. I hope everybody can hear me well and can see me. This is the first time that we're actually live on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube at the same time, so I have a lot of screens here in front of me. Hello there, I see somebody tuned in on Instagram and we have a few people here on Facebook and YouTube already. I hope everything is going well today. Unfortunately, if you're watching on Instagram you won't be able to see the screen and maybe some of the...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Destinations Whether you are a newly qualified EFL teacher, or you have some experience in the classroom already, there comes a time when you have to decide where to look for a teaching job. Across the world there are many regions and individual countries that offer a variety of opportunities, but which ones would suit you best? One big consideration is your own personal motivation for wanting to do it. Do you want to earn money to fund world travel or to pay off your student loans, or are you simply looking to escape the daily 9 to 5 grind? Are you looking to explore a foreign culture or to learn another language? Whatever it is that is driving your ambition to teach English abroad, the chances are you can find what you are looking...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas First of all, let us define the meaning of the phrase “global language”? I suppose a “global language” is the language suitable for communication among a huge amount of people around the world. We also can say it is the language of global meaning. After the Second World War and especially since the beginning of the 90th years of the twentieth century, English became the most common international language. Artificial languages, created specifically for international communication, for example, Esperanto, are also supposed to be multinational. Common characteristics of international languages are: a lot of people are native speakers; among the non-native speakers there are a lot of people who use this...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Indonesia is a developing country where the majority of its population uses their respective regional language. Indonesians only speak one language to unite the nation, that is Bahasa. In this country, learning English isn’t an obligation, nor a requirement. In some less developed remote areas, English isn’t needed at all. However, the demands from the education system and the government are making it more common for learners to understand and communicate in English. Also, the fact that English is a global language and a status symbol for many Indonesians, makes learning English increasingly more attractive. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Cinca P. Please note that this blog post...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences It's quite weird and confusing that English is different in different places. Many students are being taught in one way, while others in another way. Sooner or later they all face some problems in real-life communication. So, the question is, do they need to learn different versions of English or not? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Taylor K. A student from rural China grows up learning British English in his local language school. He applies to a university in the United States and gets accepted. When asking for directions to his classroom he is told to go to the second floor, but cannot find his class because he is searching one floor higher than he should. During his class, he...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Hi, I am back for another live session this week. My name is Linda from ITTT. I took a break last week, I was traveling a little bit in Korea, not too far but I got to enjoy the cherry blossoms. That's why there was no live session from me last week. But I'm back this week and I'm super excited. Today we're going to have a Q&A session, so you guys can ask me questions about TEFL and TESOL, teaching abroad, teaching online, whatever you want to know about. So something a bit more casual, let's have a chat. I would like to get to know you guys better and you can get to know me, ITTT and TEFL. If you can see me and hear me please drop a hi or something into the comment box so that I know that everything is working...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas I have chosen this subject because I have some experience in teaching young learners and motivation has always been a hot topic of discussion with my peer teachers. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Lenuta M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Young learners have a short attention span and teachers or educators have to manage this issue in the first place. When dealing with teaching English to little ones, a first step is capturing their attention and interest since the intrinsic motivation is not yet developed. One method is to engage them using songs and movements. Even if they don't understand the lyrics, the rhythm and...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences As a speaker of 5 languages (French being my native one), I’ve been exposed to different ways of teaching how one particular language sounds and why it sounds that way, what kind of meaning is conveyed using what sounds in what order, and so on. Quite often, I’ve noticed that in the school system, not enough emphasis is put on studying the sounds that pertain to the language itself. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Luca D. When learning English in a French-speaking country, the main goal for the teachers and the students alike is generally “to be understood” by the English-speaking person one is having a conversation with. Almost no importance is given to pronouncing the...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences I decided to write about the subject I’m an expert in, my personal teaching experience. The focus will be on what I’ve gained from the last nine years as an EFL instructor. I’ll begin by telling you about my first teaching position in rural South Korea. Next, I’ll share my experience taking the TEFL course. Finally, I’ll discuss my efforts to become an independent online English instructor. I hope my experience can provide some insight into some of the many options for EFL teachers. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Karissa B. After too many hours in an airplane and another two hours in a taxi, I finally arrived at my new home. My co-teacher was there to meet me. He would become...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Budget and Salary Destinations Japan has been a popular destination for teaching English abroad for many years. This is mainly due to the country's vibrant culture, the great food and friendly locals. Japan has a lot to offer and it can be overwhelming to find the ideal city to move to. This post looks at the 10 best cities in Japan for teaching English abroad. All cities are listed in no particular order. Also check out our other related Japan content: * Step-By-Step Guide To Legally Teaching English in Japan * Teaching English In Japan - The Salary and Budget Guide * The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program: All You Need to Know and How to Apply * The Most Common Problems Students in Japan Face When...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Hello everyone, how are you doing? Linda from ITTT, back again with another live session. I’m super excited to be here today to talk about this exciting topic, teaching English abroad and how it enhances your career prospects. I'm just going to wait for a couple more people to join, you know how it usually works. Once we are a good sized group of people we can start diving into this topic. If you can hear me and if you can see me please leave a comment. We are live on Facebook and on YouTube at the same time, so wherever you're watching from just leave a quick hi or hello in the comment section and also let me know where you are watching from. I am in South Korea about an hour...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Every language has its peculiarities, more so in the English language, which is spoken in the largest number of countries in the world. And thus has attained the status of a global language. Factors attributed to this phenomenon are many. One of the major reasons is that the Britishers had a large number of colonies which enabled them to come in contact with the inhabitants of different parts of the world. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Stone S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Moreover, the colonies had the English language as the official language. As language is the most potent means of communication, it was natural for...  [Read more]