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Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
As someone of mixed heritage, I have always had an interest in learning about cultures other than the one I live in America. My father is Colombian and my mother is American, so growing up I felt obliged to learn more about the Colombian background I was fairly unfamiliar with.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Catherine P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
I never felt satisfied with the amount of exposure I had to my Colombian heritage. My mom never learned Spanish, so around the house, it was easier for my dad to speak to my siblings and me in English. As a result, we barely grazed the surface of the Spanish language and... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Dorothy Brown Smith
Destinations Alumni Experiences
I have always wanted to travel and go abroad. I talked about it with family and friends on many occasions. When the opportunity came for me to teach in China, I immediately said, “NO!” I was thinking of traveling to places like South America, France, Italy, Greece, etc. because I had romanticized these places in my mind from what I had seen on television and read about in magazines. China was not even a thought in my mind! The opportunity kept coming to teach in China. I would see advertisements, run into people who had just came back from China. I even met someone studying Chinese to be an interpreter! I kept running into people who had some kind of connection with... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
At a very early age, I was amazed by the sounds of English. I used to listen to songs in English while one of my parent’s friends was cleaning his car. He used to play them out loud and I wanted to know what the lyrics said. Several years later I had the chance to go to China to be part of a cultural exchange program to learn Chinese. My accepting interview was completely in English rather than Chinese or even my native language Spanish. All paperwork was done in either Spanish or Chinese depending on where I was. Either here in Latin-American or on the other side of the world, the medium of communication was English.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Andres G. Please note that this blog... [Read more]
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Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I have been working in China for more than six months now and it’s been a very interesting time for me not just to learn more about the country and its people, but also to enrich my teaching skills and grow professionally as a teacher.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Evgeniya S.
When I arrived in China, I hardly knew anything about specific features of teaching in that country, so I thought that the knowledge I had was quite enough to handle the classes in kindergarten or primary school. But since my first working day, I have often been surprised and even sometimes perplexed by what I have seen at kindergartens and schools in China. Many teaching techniques and methods that Chinese... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
Learning a second language can be difficult, and this is especially true when the learners L1 and their target language are completely different in structure, sound, and tones. An English as a second language student who speaks French, German, or any other European language will have an easier task than one who speaks a language that is not of European origins. One such language is Mandarin Chinese.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ashley L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
The areas that native Mandarin speakers most often run into difficulty are pronunciation, tones, tenses, and sentence structure. A Chinese speaker might... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I first understood the role of a teacher during the second grade and knew then that I wanted to be just like my teacher, Mrs. Atkinson. She was the first to see my real character and hidden potential through the windows to my world, my eyes. I believe that teachers were made with eyes that would not only see things for what they are but for what they could become and could achieve.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Michelle S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
The teaching profession is seen as a very noble profession, as it represents positive change and growth. Teachers on a whole have gained the respect of others to the... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
As someone who has been to school in the USA and China, I’ve experienced the difference between student motivation in both countries. From this experience, I’ve concluded how to better motivate students in the classroom.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate JongMay U. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
In the U.S. students are quite vocal about their thoughts and ideas at a young age, teachers encourage classroom discussions, and in higher grade levels teachers often encourage students to “prove them wrong”. If a student has a thought or idea that differs from the teachers, they are mostly encouraged to seek the truth and... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Joanna Dineva
Destinations Alumni Experiences
Traveling for me is more than seeing a tourist sight and snapping a picture for your social media. Traveling is the opportunity to explore the world, immerse myself in different cultures and connect with the people of those cultures. Teaching English abroad has allowed me to do just that. In late 2019 an opportunity presented itself for me to teach English in Beijing, China. I had never been to China before. I had never traveled to Asia before. Having an adventurous soul and nomadic heart that I have, I accept the offer without too much hesitation. At the time of writing this personal experience article, I have lived in China for approximately four months and would like to share... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Sabrina Segal
Alumni Experiences
Language skills begin in the womb when a fetus's hearing first develops, they begin to listen to the language of their mother. Once the baby is born they recognize their mother tongue. Though, a baby is born with the ability to learn any language and multiple languages. When babies hear a word repeatedly their brain forms neural connections, which is a step towards their speech. The brain of a child is like a sponge. It retains so much information that by the time a child reaches 3 years of age, their brain has formed double the amount of connections that adults have. Young children learn language through simple exposure. It is possible to learn a language later on in life but the process is slower and more... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
Malaysia is located in South East Asia which occupies parts of the Malay Peninsula and some part of the Borneo Island. These two lands are separated by the South China Sea It was once colonized by the British from the 18th century until it gained its independence in 1957 as the Federation of Malaya and later on formed Malaysia with joining of the North Borneo, Sarawak in 1963. Bahasa Melayu commonly known as the Malay Language is the national language of the country while English becomes the second language.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Karibo B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
In the early 18th century, many Malaysian... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Anastasiia Ovchinnikova
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
Two months ago, I closed my laptop after a one-hour defense over Zoom of my MA dissertation from the University of Barcelona on mobile-assisted language learning in front of the most highly cited researchers in the field of Applied Linguistics. It was very satisfying and rewarding to know that everything I had done before directly led me to that point. In this article, I am going to elaborate on the following topics that helped me to get into the competitive program in Applied Linguistics:
Learning the English language has always been key to my personal development. When I was 15, due to my English level, I won the FLEX grant program... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
My own teaching experience, though not as extensive as many seasoned teachers, is quite diverse. I have taught English class to middle and high school students in the US public school system, worked for an alternative school for students with behavior problems, taught in a language training school, taught in a bilingual Montessori kindergarten, tutored numerous students one-on-one, and I’ve taught many different kinds of online classes. Currently, I work as a course designer and an actor, filming fun videos to teach Chinese students English through an interactive online app.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Christy N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
In this short essay, I would like to share the differences in teaching YL and Adults. For effective learning, it is important for us, as teachers, to understand how these two groups go about learning. The critical point is the suitable design and delivery of the program.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Eddy P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Malcolm Knowles differentiates between teaching adults (andragogy) and Young Learners/Children (Pedagogy). Malcolm Knowles based his theory on 5 assumptions of the way adults learn:
He suggests including adults in both the planning and development of instruction. By giving them a voice... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Linda Dunsmore
Destinations TEFL Information
Are you planning on quitting the 9-to-5 and embark on an adventure of traveling the world? The following 10 women have done exactly that. Most of them got their TEFL certificate and are teaching English abroad, while others started out teaching and are now full-time travelers. Here are 10 female travel bloggers you should be following!
Jessica from @curiositytrav is from San Diego and has visited 40 countries so far. After studying International Business at San Diego State University, she also studied in Buenos Aires. After her experience in South America, she moved on to teaching English through the EPIK program in South Korea for two years and backpacked around Asia for 5 months... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I have a very strong reason why I should complete a TEFL Course. I am taking the 220 hours. Well, base on my plans I have the desire to be a tutor online. it's totally out of my line, I was once a registered nurse, I was a fashion designer and even studied Fashion Design at London and Singapore. I owned a wedding shop in the Philippines and catering to different clients worldwide. and fast forward I got married. But, since I tied the knot and settled here at California. everything has changed.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Odessa M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
I had a hard time looking for the right job for me. I... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I have a very strong reason why i should complete a TEFL Course. In fact, i am taking 220 hours. Well, the base on my future plans i have the desire to be a tutor online. it's totally out of my line, i was once a registered nurse, i was a fashion designer and even studied Fashion Design at London and Singapore. I owned a wedding shop in the Philippines and catering to different clients worldwide. and fast forward i got married. But, since i tied the knot and settled here at California.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Odessa M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
everything has changed. I had a hard time looking for the right... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
We all played them and we all loved them as children. We made them up and we bought them. It is still a large industry today. There are easy ones and hard ones. There are thinking ones and action ones. What am I referring to? Games! From hide-and-go-seek to Monopoly, there are all sorts of fun games to play. So why don’t we incorporate them into our TEFL lessons?
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Samuel S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
You can create your games or adapt to the ones you already know and love. They can be used for all kinds of language purposes, from learning vocabulary to conversation starters. They can also... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I started teaching English as a foreign language teacher in my second year of university when I was a Bachelor’s Degree student in Xi’an, China. My reason for doing so was to earn extra cash every month. I was a China/ Guyana government scholarship student and I lived on a fairly low stipend which wasn’t sufficient for a foreign student to live on. For a couple of years, I had been hearing that students could earn extra cash by teaching English on the weekends or one on one classes for a pretty penny. I asked around and got in contact with an agent.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Nico R. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
Lately, I have been hearing the question “Can a non- native English speaker teach English?” and my answer to this is “YES” but in certain conditions. My answer is based on my experience as a non-native English teacher that is why I chose this topic. I would like to tell my story of being a non-native English teacher.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Maricor B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Way back in the Philippines, there was no hard time for me to apply to schools and companies because, in our country, almost all of the English teachers are Filipinos. I grew up learning English through my Filipino- English... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
I started my journey as a TEFL tutor by having classes online. I just tried my luck and applied for some random ad postings on social media. A few days later, I received a call and it turned out to be a phone interview. I got the job soon after that phone call ended and later that day I was introduced to my trainer.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate John K. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Next, I was trained for just one day about the tools, the materials and how to handle classes online. Soon, I just need to pass the demo and I’m good to go. Without any background in teaching, I managed my way to become a top tutor with just... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
In China, there’s an old saying: Destiny can be changed by your knowledge. English, is not only a tool to become knowledgeable but also a skill that helps you to get a better career development.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mingxue J. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
English can expand students’ vision. There’s no doubt that there are more and more industries involve using English with the development of globalization. For Example, I live in Tianjin, China. It is an important port city, which is nearby Beijing. The hospitality industry, business industry, automobile manufacture industry, financial industry… all... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
Over a hundred years ago, in the late 19th century, a Polish-Jewish eye doctor named Dr. Ludwig Lazarus Zamenhof wanted to bridge the gaps and misunderstandings between different ethnic groups that he grew up around. Being from a Polish city that, at the time, was a polyglot, multi-ethnic mixture of Poles, Russians, Jews, Lithuanians, and Germans, he saw there was a great deal of distrust between each group, and he believed it was due to the language barriers that each imposed. To create a common ground between every group, he created an international, universal language called Esperanto (Yaffe, 2017). While it was a great idea to create a language that did not belong to any ethnic group and could be used... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
Lately, I have been hearing the question “Can a non-native English speaker teach English?” and my answer to this is “YES” but in certain conditions. My answer is based on my experience as a non-native English teacher that is why I chose this topic. I would like to tell my story of being a non-native English teacher.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Maricor B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Way back in the Philippines, there was no hard time for me to apply to schools and companies because, in our country, almost all of the English teachers are Filipinos. I grew up learning English through my Filipino- English... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I have 3 years of experience in teaching English in a few kindergartens in Beijing, China and some experience in teaching adults in a training center.
When I started in kindergarten, it was very difficult because I didn’t have enough information about how to make a proper lesson plan. I didn’t have enough materials, games, songs, and it took me a lot of time to collect all the necessary information for teaching and creating my teaching plan. Without experience, it wasn’t easy for me to build a good rapport between me and my students. It took me a while to build a connection between me and the kids.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Lidiia L. Please note that this blog post might... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
Growing up I always had an interest in learning and teaching a language. Of course, English was my best subject and I always made sure I was part of the drama club playing one of the big roles. During my kindergarten days, our teacher used to play musical chairs as we waited for our parents to come to pick us up. It's interesting that now as a teacher I really love using it for my lessons and have tried to upgrade it just a little bit more.
I am currently teaching at a kindergarten in Shanghai, China. I really love my job and my workmates who have become more like family and friends. When I started working there, like any other teacher, I was scared, felt vulnerable and wanted to do my best. I kept asking... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
Classroom management is an important component when teaching in any area of the education system. It is the process that the teacher follows to make sure the classroom lessons go about easily without any difficulties. When the classroom is well managed, the students are more comfortable when asking the teacher questions, the classroom is more organized, the students are involved with the lesson and they are more motivated. A well-managed classroom should involve student commitment, effective time management, and maintaining discipline.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Semra G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Student commitment... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
As time goes on, the world is becoming more globalized. Learning English is a requirement in most countries and it is affecting how information is spread in the world. What this means for current students is that, most likely, English will become a part of their career at one point or another. When we think about all the companies in the world and how they have spread globally, employers are looking for talented multi-lingual more than ever.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sirat B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Access to information has become more prominent in the world and for one to holster more knowledge, they need... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
To be a great teacher is always my dream. In order to gain more experience in teaching, I started to teach my foreign teachers' Mandarin when I was a freshman in university. After I graduated, I chose to work as a teacher without any hesitation because I love the English language and I really enjoy teaching. So far, it has been for about 11 years. I have taught so many students. My youngest student is a 6-year-old boy and my oldest student is 76 years old. My class types range from tutorial classes to big lecture classes. How time flies!
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ling Y. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Teaching is... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
Teaching is probably one of the most rewarding professions that can exist. I've always dreamed to be a teacher, being able to make a difference and be the one students can look up to. This opportunity was given to me when an English training institute from China called Web international English (also called Web) hired me as an ESL teacher. The web is a private English school which provides different class sizes such as VIP(1 to 1), Private(1 to 4), Salon(1 to 10) and Social(1 to 25+). These various courses helped me to differentiate and experience the difference between teaching one to one and groups.
Hence I will detail in the following paragraphs my personal observations between both types of classes. Starting... [Read more]
Tefl-certificate
Federico Riva
Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences
Hello everybody, Liza here and I'm super happy to welcome you to this ITTT live session. It's a bit of an unusual time to meet because my sessions are usually on Tuesdays and today is Saturday. Anyway, I'm super happy that you could make it. Today's session is going to be slightly different because we are going to talk with my good friend about teaching in China. I know that many people are interested in this topic, so stay tuned because in a moment he will join me to talk about working in China and stuff like that. If you guys have any questions, feel free to ask them via the comment section. As for the timing for today, we are going to talk for... [Read more]
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