We want to great! Not Good. Not OK. Great! Follow these top 10 skills to become the best TEFL teacher that you can be. Once you learn the skills of a great teacher, there'll be no stopping you.
Teaching English as a foreign language is a sure way to have success and travel the world! Being an EFL teacher is quite straightforward to do, but what are the skills needed to be a good teacher? In this blog, we’ll let you in on the not-so-secret secrets to become just that!
Here are our top 10 skills of a great teacher:
Skill 1: Qualifications
First and foremost, qualifications are a huge part of teaching English. You’ll need the minimum requirement of the 120-hour TEFL Certification. Not only does this give you the certificate for visas and higher paychecks, but the TEFL courses come with reference books, peer community, learning materials, and guides to help you become the best teacher you can be. Teaching qualifications are a definite must!
A third-level education, like a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, will also stand to you. Degrees can help you with visas and paperwork as well. They will also help you if you decide to teach business English as companies love to see that you have a wide range of education.
Skill 2: Experience
The only way to be perfect is to practice, practice, practice, and becoming a great teacher is no different. After a time, you’ll get comfortable with your teaching styles; what works best for you. You’ll also find out who you prefer to teach and you’ll be able to time your lesson plans more accurately. Only you know how long it will take you to teach something.
Skill 3: Reading the Room
A skill that is often overlooked is the ability to read the room. One lesson plan that you used a month ago for the same topic may not work again. You’ll have to take into account the average age of the students, the likes and dislikes, and the culture of the students. You can somewhat generalise this to what extent, but the best way to run a great classroom is to get to know the students.
Skill 4: Bluffing
Spoiler alert! Unfortunately, we don’t know every word in the dictionary. You may from time to time get a question that throws you. Maybe you have taught present perfect continuous in a while, and you have a blank. That’s ok! It happens to the best of us. A great skill to have is to be able to bluff your way out without getting caught. One I remember in school is “That’s a great question! Write that down and see if you can figure it out by yourself until the next class”.
Skill 5: Genuine Interest
So far our skills have shown us how to become great teachers! However, all of this can be moot if you don’t have the interest needed to be a great teacher. Believe it or not, we would definitely rate this as a skill. As they say, when you love what you do then you’ll never work a day in your life. Another amazing reason to have genuine interest means that you’ll naturally show enthusiasm in the classroom, which brings us to our next skill.
Skill 6: Enthusiasm
We all know it. There is nothing worse than an unenthusiastic teacher. It can put you off a subject of life! No pressure or anything, but you’ll need to bring your A-game. Students will only learn if they want to. They will only want to learn if they are enthusiastic. And, they are only enthusiastic if you are. They will feed off your energy and you have the power to make the classroom energetic and fun!
Skill 7: Compromising Skills
As an EFL teacher, your career will be global. Even if it’s online teaching you’re after, your students, peers, and bosses will be from all over the world. There are different work ethics and minimum salaries, as well as classroom ethics, from country to country. This is why compromising skills come in handy as an EFL teacher! You will need to negotiate contracts. You will need to compromise with your student’s way of learning.
Skill 8: Chameleon Skills
Similar to compromising skills, this one is vital if you want to work on a global scale. You’ll be encountering many different cultures and ways of life. Something that can really compromise your teaching lifestyle abroad is homesickness or unwillingness to adapt. Your work/life balance is crucial. Happy teacher, happy students!
Skill 9: Love of Learning
No, this doesn’t mean the same as enthusiasm or genuine interest. What we mean is that you must have a love of learning for yourself. It’s no secret that teaching methods change over time, as so do teaching etiquette and technology. Great teaching skills need experience. Experience needs time. You must learn to change with the times. Keep up with new methods. Keep up with the kid’s trends and use gamification to be relevant as a teacher.
Skill 10: Jack of all Traits
If you are looking to be an EFL teacher for a long time and work up the ranks, you’ll need a little bit of knowledge in everything. Why? Because the best way up is by teaching the higher levels of English and teaching business English. These are higher-paid jobs, but normally require ESP (English for Special Purposes). This means you may need vocab in business areas or vocabulary in certain industries, such as technology. You may also go into territories such as politics and society. Higher level students need to be able to talk about this to reach C1 or C2 level, so as a teacher, you’ll need to know this too.
There are many different skills that help you to become a better EFL teacher. No, you don’t have to have them all, but the more the better! We’ve comprised our top 10 skills in this blog. You’ll see the list below: 1: Qualifications 2: Experience 3: Enthusiasm 4: Reading the Room 5: Bluffing 6: Genuine Interest 7: Compromising Skills 8: Chameleon Skills 9: Love of Learning 10: Jack of all Traits See our blog above on why these are so important as an EFL teacher!
A Level 5 qualification is measured on the National Frameworks Qualifications. In teaching, level 5 certifications are CELTA, Level 5 TEFL, and TrinityTESOL. These are all level equivalent. The methods that you learn are all slightly different. For instance, TEFL focuses on teaching English abroad, while TESOL focuses on teaching English in your home country, but they are interchangeable and most employers will accept either three.
To become a TEFL teacher, you’ll first need to complete a TEFL course and gain certification. This can be anything from the 120-hour TEFL Course to the 310-hour Level 5 Hybrid Course. The rule of thumb is that the more hours you have under your belt and the higher qualifications you have gives you more opportunities and a higher wage. This being said, the 120-hour TEFL Course is perfect for teaching young learners in most countries.
TEFL Courses focus on the knowledge and skills you need to be an English teacher. In comparison to TESOL, TEFL in particular focuses on grammar and pronunciation skills, as well as having elements of both American and British English. This is because TEFL is aimed to teach English abroad and globally, so it will cover a wide aspect of the English language.
This is a fully-loaded question! There are lots of elements to becoming a good teacher, such as knowledge, empathy, enthusiasm, and caring nature. In particular, to become a good English teacher, you must be adaptable to culture, patient, pronounced, and have serious skills in the English language.
TEFL teachers normally get a standard western wage. However, when you pair that with the cost of living in other countries and the fact that online extra hours are easy to come by, TEFL teachers live very comfortably across the globe. Depending on your job, what you teach, and where you are based, you can earn anywhere from $1000 to $4000. Some program providers will include perks such as accommodation, dining, training programs, and visa fees, so you may see a deduction in your wage due to these, but it does work out all the same in the end.
Step inside
Your first steps to becoming a fully accredited, internationally recognised EFL/ESL teacher within 4 weeks!
Your Insights to a successful TEFL Career
Let us guide you on the best ways to do your job research, application & interview. This is your bible to success.
Step inside
Your first steps to becoming a fully accredited, internationally recognised EFL/ESL teacher within 4 weeks!
What’s inside?
Your first steps to becoming a fully accredited, internationally recognised EFL/ESL teacher within 4 weeks!
Download Brochure
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.