Teaching English as a foreign language can be incredibly rewarding, but also extremely challenging. Here are a few practical tips to help you improve.

From its inception, the WTEFLAC set out to raise standards in the TEFL and TESOL sectors. One way to do this was through processes of accreditation and verification so students could tell the difference between high-quality providers and scammers.

However, it also provided extensive guides and information offering practical tips to help you find a placement and become a better teacher. Success in the TEFL world is about much more than just passing the initial qualifications, it’s about learning the people skills necessary to make you more effective.

Communication

Teaching is a difficult profession at the best of times, but it becomes even more challenging when you don’t share a common language with your students. TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Foreign Language) courses give you practical skills to help you get your message across. The most important of these is communication. Without a language in common much of your communication will be non-verbal.

It's an intuitive process in which you’ll have to get to know your students to understand their personalities and connect with them on a deeper level.

Empathy

A cornerstone of this is empathy. Teaching this can be difficult, but you can train yourself to understand the specific cues of your students and understand their needs without the need for words. Nobody learns in the same way. A one-size-fits-all solution will never work. Over time, you’ll find yourself tailoring your approach to different individuals within your learning group.

Organisation

The key to any good teacher is organisation. Having a clear lesson plan is critical to stopping lessons from descending into chaos. This skill can evolve, and you’ll quickly learn the things that work best for you. However, if you start with a clear plan of what you’re going to teach in each session you’ll be on the best possible footing from the start.

Flexibility

Even the best-laid plans can fall off the rails all too easily. That’s why you need to be flexible and adaptable to react to the unexpected. Things can happen during a lesson that can throw things off course or may even offer an unexpected learning opportunity. It’s a good idea to teach with your head up and not panic if things don’t always work out as expected.

Patience

All teachers need patience. It can be frustrating if learners don’t pick up skills as quickly as you think they should, but it’s important to remember that everyone learns at their own pace. The worst thing you can do is become frustrated as it will make things more difficult for everyone. If something’s not working at first maybe you need to give them a bit more time or try something different.

Confidence

Last, but not least, every teacher needs confidence. Getting up in front of a group of people can be daunting, especially if you don’t share a common language. However, your class will feed off your confidence. If you lack belief in yourself, they will quickly start to question you, and what you’re teaching.