Teaching English in a Foreign Country

What does it mean to teach English in a foreign country? Well, simply put for some places and schools it is just about having a native teacher with a TESOL certification in the classroom and for some schools it means having a skilled individual who is able to break down complex grammar points for students and to help them advance their language acquisition at a rapid rate. Every country and even school you go to will have a different goal and plan in mind. As an English teacher it should be your goal to find out what is expected of you in the classroom and to adapt to those conditions and desires.

The English language is fluid and there is not any correct or perfect way to teach it. As time passes and goes on you will see your students pick up certain characteristics and traits in their speech and work in the classroom. The language can be broken down into four main points that are the most important those of which being: reading, listening, speaking, and writing. In addition to this phonics falls under the same umbrella; however, it is very important to develop a strong foundation for phonics skills early with students because these skills will be very important for young students to grow and learn the language over the course of their studies. There is also a different emphasis on skills and requirements for English learning depending on your students age and levels.

Personal Teaching Styles vs School Teaching Style Expectations

When it comes to your personal teaching style and where you work, you may be put in the uncomfortable situation of pushing your personal style aside to suit the needs of the school. In the English teaching industry this is very common and as a teacher you need to be able to adapt to where you work. In this chapter we will break down the expectations from some schools and discuss how they come into play with your own personal beliefs and styles in teaching. While working abroad each school is going to have a certain goal or certain expectations of their teachers, this is usually not something that is told to you directly or something that can always easily be ascertained. These expectations can vary drastically from school to school, so it is always good to research your position, the students' ages, and find out as much information about where you are going beforehand.

One of the most common styles schools look for teachers to use while teaching English in abroad would be a lecture style teaching, where the teacher says something in English and the students just repeat and write what was said. In foreign country English classes this style is the most common due to the thoughts on what the English language is and what each country believes that the teacher should be doing in the classroom. In the classroom teachers use repetition to deliver the materials to the students and there is not much depth to it when it comes to teaching. This style does not require much fluidity and just focuses on using the teacher as a tool to deliver English in order for the students to develop writing, speaking, and listening skills. However, with this method the students are unable to typically gain much from just pure repetition and it often can become simple parroting without actual learning taking place. In the modern day this method is something many linguists and others in the education field have frowned on as the learning benefits from it are a bit dubious. However, in reality if you are expected to deliver a lecture style at school you will not be able to budge much when it comes to classes and expectations for your classroom. 

The second style of teaching that we will talk about is focused more on games and exposure time for young learners. When it comes to teaching abroad for younger learners in kindergarten to elementary school it can often be that schools are mainly expecting exposure to foreigners and the English language for students rather than direct knowledge and information. This style will require a lot of games and planning as extremely young learners can have short attention spans making it so that games and activities can often last no more than 15 minutes at a time. In addition to that if you are teaching certain core concepts to children such as phonics or reading it will require a lot of time, repetition, as well as patience for the students to learn. In later modules we will discuss fun and non-intrusive methods to teach these topics rather than direct lecturing to the children. In these situations, lecture style teaching is impossible due to the fact that students are too young to comprehend the English language well, and they also are unable to write or sit down for long periods of time due to being so young. Often in these types of classes there can be difficult days where nothing is accomplished with very young learners; however, you should not be discouraged and you should slowly work with students in order to help them with developing their language at a pace that is good for them.

The final style that we will be talking about is something that is not even a direct teaching style or method, as it focuses on the school and what they could potentially be looking for. While this style can have some similarities to the previous style mentioned, this style throws all teaching out the window and can hardly be called teaching at all at times. Some schools abroad are looking for foreign teachers to come to the school and to just spend time and play games with the students. With foreign English teachers being a draw for parents to sign up for the school, some schools have low expectations of learning and just want to have a foreigner at the school to increase enrollment. With these types of schools, you are expected to be an entertainer rather than an actual teacher. For this type of teaching a lot of planning is required as you will be required to constantly keep the kids entertained, so it requires the heaviest planning out of all of the schools and styles that we have talked about so far. Some schools will require that students are always having fun and active at all times during a class (sometimes even for 1-hour periods!). This means that as a teacher in this kind of school you would need to plan heavily for your schedule and also give yourself the proper preparation and materials for each class that you go into.

As a teacher you should be able to adapt your style to your students, to the school, and to the environment and situations that you find yourself in. While it is easy to talk about these and break them down into paragraphs, the best experience you are going to get is actually working in the field. Our recommendation to you as an aspiring English teacher abroad is that you look at the school you are applying to and you do some digging to see what is required of you as an English teacher in your future country and future teaching institution. From there you can try to find the best school that will fit both your teaching style and you as a person. It is very important that you find something that will make you content as an educator so that you can have smooth easy lessons, rather than dreading each upcoming class or having to scramble last second to make a lesson plan.