Interesting Things In Japan

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences With the end goal of working in a Japanese kindergarten or pre-school, I decided to take the Teaching English to Young Learners certification course to accompany the TEFL course I recently completed through ITTT. Even though I knew the skills necessary for teaching young learners would differ from teaching learners of other ages, I found a lot of useful information in this course specifically regarding the topic of classroom management. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Melissa M. For context, most teaching environments for entry-level teaching positions in Japan involve a foreign teacher working alongside a native Japanese teacher. That being said, with the proper certifications and...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore TEFL Information Teaching English abroad is one of the most interesting career paths one might take up. You get to move to a new country and even get paid for it! However, too many people are unsure whether teaching EFL is right for them. This article highlights 6 things you will miss out on if you don’t teach English abroad. When routine becomes a ball and chain, you know it’s time for something new. Moving to a new country to teach English is the perfect opportunity to discover a whole new world. Whether it’s cherry blossom season in Japan, Chinese New Year festivities in Taiwan, Christmas markets in Germany or the Carnival in Brazil - there are new experiences ahead of you on every corner! It’s not only large cultural...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When I moved to Japan over two years ago, I had no formal teaching experience. I hit the ground running, visiting five different elementary and junior high schools in my small town, and getting to know the students and teachers I would work with there. I made many mistakes but also learned a lot about teaching along the way through my own experience, observing the teachers I work with, and taking an online TEFL course. I hope to use this knowledge to further improve my teaching skills. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Anna G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There are many things about teaching that I was able to learn...  [Read more]

  In this TEFL review Koichi from Japan describes his experience as a TEFL/TESOL student with ITTT. He took the combined course and completed the in-class component in Phuket. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. THIS UNIT,JUST LIKE THE OTHER UNITS TALKS ABOUT MODALS,PHRASAL, VERBS AND PASSIVE VOICE,WHICH ELABORATES HOW WE CAN IDENTIFY THE PASSIVE AND ACTIVE VOICE. IT ALSO TALK ABOUT THE 3 CATEGORIES OF CLAUSES AND WHEN THEY ARE USED.WE ALSO...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences I’ve always wanted to be a teacher. In high school, I was inspired by my English teachers and the way they were able to make material interesting and motivating. I remember telling myself that I would not be the person who changes the world, but perhaps as a teacher, I would be able to inspire the person who would. From the beginning, my motivation was to help others in a meaningful way. My goal was to improve the lives of others. When I entered university, I found myself studying philosophy to become a professor in the future. However, the reality of being a university professor was a lot of presenting and publishing, with very little teaching. Because teaching was my goal, I decided to leave my Ph.D....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences I chose to write about this subject because I feel that the role of the teacher is a really important part of the classroom and also in the student's life. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Tabitha B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. If the class is boring, then the students don't have any interest in learning, so it is up to the teacher to teach knowledge to their students but also making the class interesting for their students. This is not an easy thing for the teacher, it requires a lot of thinking and lesson planning. In my experience, almost anything entertains younger students but the older they get it gets harder to...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT TEFL Information Teaching Ideas This ITTT TEFL article looks at 30 course books produced by a variety of EFL publishers for general English lessons for children. Mark Crocker TEFL Information Working online is an increasingly popular option in many professions and English language teaching is no different. Unfortunately, several online employers insist on their teachers having a degree which can put many people off. However, there are still some good options out there for teachers without a degree. Jon ITTT TEFL Information Teaching Ideas This ITTT TEFL article looks at 12 different...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Destinations TEFL Information Welcome to another live session. My name is Linda from ITTT and you can find me on social media at @lindagoeseast. Thanks for tuning in, let me just see that everything's working. If you can see me and if you can hear me, please leave a comment as always. I have been living in South Korea for five and a half years. I am about an hour and a half South of Seoul in a city called Cheongju. It's kind of in the center of South Korea. We are the only province that doesn't border the ocean but it's really great and it's actually snowing right now. I’m excited to be here today as you probably already know what the topic is going to be about today the best countries for teaching English in...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences It was the last day of Japanese class and my teacher’s last day of teaching at our school. We were all standing up getting ready to bow him one last time. It was dead quiet but I could still hear sniffles around me and felt the sadness of the moment. I never thought I would care so much about a teacher leaving. To this day, the words and wisdom my Japanese teacher taught me still ring in my head. Flash forward to a few years ago, I went to Japan for the first time, after a hiatus of not studying Japanese, but amazingly I still had all the skills my teacher had taught me in high school. How did this person have such an impact on me? The answer I have come to realize is that because he truly cared about me becoming...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences British English (BrE) and American English (AmE) are two of the main varieties of the English language. There are other different varieties of English that exist such as Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, South Asian and African English. Although English was introduced to America through the colonization period by the British, the two varieties of English have evolved to be quite different from each other in certain areas. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Shanique H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. One of these areas is vocabulary, which is one of the most notable differences between the two varieties. For instance,...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information Hi everyone, here's Linda again from ITTT. Today we're talking about something really interesting and exciting, teaching English in Asia. Also, all you need to know about how to get to Asia, the countries in Asia with the highest demand, and also the best sort of recruiters and teaching job platforms where you can find the best jobs for teaching English in Asia. I'm super excited about this topic today as I have been pretty much based in Asia since 2012. I spent some time in China and I am now in South Korea where I've been for the last six years. I'm so excited to share my experience with you guys and hopefully maybe some of you can also share your experience, if you have experience...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In Japan, elementary schools typically employ an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) to provide support to homeroom teachers during English classes. I have been working in such a capacity for the past two and a half years, first through an international program and currently as a direct-hire via my local city hall. Until recently, mandatory English classes at the elementary school level have been limited to the fifth and sixth grades, but new national requirements are being rolled out that will require mandatory English classes as early as third grade while doubling English classroom hours for the fifth and sixth grades. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Rodica C. Please note that this blog...  [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 Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Hi guys, my name is Linda from ITTT, nice to see you again. If you can see me and hear me just say hi in the comment section, it would be really nice. Yeah, back this week with another exciting topic, how much money can you really make teaching English? Very interesting topic as we all need to know how much money we can make if we want to go and teach English abroad. I'm also going to cover how much money you can make when you teach online, so very important topics that we are covering today. If you are listening to this as a podcast episode, thank you so much for the download. As you might know we always turn our live sessions into podcast...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When starting any class, if you expect that your students will be motivated to learn a new language, at first, you have to be primarily motivated and enthusiastic. We have seen that we can have self-motivated students and also reluctant students, it’s the teacher’s role to make the best to involve providing an interesting and pleasant class when you show passion to the subject that you are teaching, it can be contagious for most students, who will model your positive behavior. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Thamiris M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Your approach and your attitude in class will reflect on the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences English is causing many problems in Asian countries which can be seen just by the high demand for English teachers - including ESL teachers. One of the countries is Japan, a country with a good economy and a society well known for their kindness and politeness, but unfortunately also for the low number of English speakers. There are many reasons why English is likely to pose problems in Japan but there are many possibilities to improve the English lessons to offer lessons that help Japanese students to achieve a higher English level. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Eileen Cathrin B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. So why...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In February 2019 I took on a part-time teaching job at a language school close to Toulon, France. I am a Dutch citizen and English isn’t my first language, but I am fluent enough to be able to teach several evening classes. And so, I did. Via this school, I was then approached by another institution to teach English to future hotel directors and hotel receptionists. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Marieke V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Seeing as I have a bachelor’s degree in Hotel Management, this seemed like the perfect fit. While teaching I realized that being fluent in English and being able to teach English are...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Reading is important. It is an important tool that aids in language acquisition whether the language is native or foreign. Unfortunately, it is sometimes neglected, especially as the students move up in their studies. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Wesley J. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Having been raised without television until I was in junior high school, I would read books, magazines, and the Sunday newspaper. At an early age, my first card was the library card. I could borrow many books. I would often borrow fifteen to twenty books every two weeks in addition to the four books I could borrow from my school library....  [Read more]

Simon ITTT TEFL Information It’s great to move somewhere new with your TEFL skills and to discover new places but, although traveling is exciting, there are times when you may want to do something without having to move too far from your new base. There are plenty of pastimes or hobbies that can be taken up when moving around from place to place, some of which might help you add variety to your English lessons for your students. For example, you can use your students to teach you about local cuisine to develop their vocabulary associated with food, language patterns for describing how to cook things, or how to give recommendations. They learn, you learn! Here are some other ideas for you to think about. When living abroad in a new culture,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching English as a second language is a very rewarding experience. It is very rewarding as a teacher to help and watch your students succeed in their lives. The teacher does have to be understanding of several things while teaching in the classroom. One of these things is cultural sensitivity. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Nicholas S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Just as the United States has its own culture and cultural values, so does every other country in the world. It is crucially important that a teacher understands the culture of the students they are teaching, even if they are teaching English to students...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas As an EFL teacher, one is expected to create a proper and culturally sensitive atmosphere in the classroom at all times. Unfortunately, this does not happen in every instance because many different errors can occur. To prevent possibly contract terminable offenses, a special mindset and system of preparation must be instituted. When approached correctly, discussing difficult or even controversial ideas in a foreign country can be both culturally sensitive while also not needing excessive censorship. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate James S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first and arguably single most important way to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Pablo Picasso once said: “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” Teaching is so much different from many other professions that it would be difficult to define it in its entirety in a few pages of text. A surgeon is skillful in what he does and even though he or she may explain the procedure to a patient, the patient is only interested in one thing and that is to know that everything will be alright after the surgery. The patient may have some understanding of what the surgeon will do, but will never be able to use or repeat the procedure except to remember what had taken place. An experienced motor mechanic may be capable of resolving issues with a vehicle...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Hello and welcome to the weekly ITTT live session, my name is Liza and I'm glad that some people have joined already. I hope everything works smoothly here and you can hear me clearly and see me well, if not please let me know in the comment section so that I can fix it quickly. Today we are going to talk about the vital topic of lesson materials. I know that many people struggle looking for resources and content for their lessons so this is something I want to look at today. While we are waiting for some more people to join us, please let me know where you guys are tuning in from. I'm located in the Euro region of Russia in Yekaterinburg city,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas “Who wants to play a game?” I would ask my students this question whenever I start a lesson. The resounding answer would always be, “Me!” In all my years of teaching, I have yet to see a student refuse to play a game. Games are effective teaching tools because it makes learning interesting and fun. I can tell you more reasons why games are good for teaching. Now let me give at least six of them. Firstly, games make you practice a lot. As the saying goes, ‘practice makes perfect.’ In everything you do, whenever you play a game over and over, your mind gets better at it too. For example, when students play ‘Boggle,’ they have acquired many three- and four-letter words by playing numerous times. When...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Budget and Salary TEFL Information Teaching Ideas Today, we are going to talk about the “biggest misconceptions about TEFL and TESOL and teaching English abroad”. We get a lot of questions here at ITT, and a lot of people are confused and I just want to clear a few things up, some myths here and there, and I think I've narrowed it down to eight misconceptions that we're going to look at and you can throw your questions at me at any time. I would also really like to know where you are like in your TEFL journey, are you currently taking a TEFL or TESOL course? Are you thinking about it? Are you already certified? Or are you already teaching abroad? Let me know, that would be interesting to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Ever since I was a little girl, education has been a huge part of my life. My mother was a teacher at the elementary school I attended and also taught me and my sisters Japanese after school in our home. I have always been inquisitive, constantly asking questions to my parents and teachers about topics I was interested in and about things I didn't quite understand. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Kim S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I always enjoyed learning and loved the feeling of accomplishment when I received high scores on tests and other assignments. My favorite subjects were reading, writing, and spelling....  [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]

Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information Teaching English in 2021. A few people have told me about their teaching journey already, so keep letting me know what your plans are in terms of teaching English abroad or teaching English online. Somebody said they're interested in teaching online, so that's really cool. Someone new has just joined us from Laos, hi there. We have Margaret who is also teaching online, very cool. I’m going to talk a little bit about teaching English online in this presentation. Juliana says hi, I think you've watched before as I recognize your picture, thanks for tuning in again. It's really good to see new faces and old faces in our TEFL family today. I have prepared some visuals that I'm going to...  [Read more]

Amanda Stern Alumni Experiences Globalization has been changing our world. Once foreign cultures have become more and more familiar, and some even hit the global mainstream, such as Bollywood film and the recent wave of K-pop. One thing aiding in bridging this gap would be the rise of interest in bilingualism and multilingualism. Many children are in education systems where a second language is mandatory to study from a young age. For example, In Canada, my home country, French is taught in the Anglophone provinces from grade 4 (about 10 years of age). In Japan, my current address, the English curriculum is changing, and now students will begin learning from 三年生 sannensei, about 9 years of age. Of course, many more curriculums of multitudes...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences There is no doubt that it is the Information Age people are currently living in. And it is cannot be ignored that online education is one of the fastest growing teaching and learning methods in recent years due to different reasons and needs, which takes the advantages of the Internet and save both teachers' and learners' time and energy that has been spent on the distance and traffic. Among that, ESL online learning gets a great acceptance from the ESL learners. And here is a discussion about the advantage of ESL online education. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Xue L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Compared to...  [Read more]