Learn a new language while you are teaching English abroad

Posted by Kiva Richard - 16:13 on 27 April 2012

| |

While you are teaching English as a foreign language there is nothing stopping you learning a new language yourself.

Teaching English abroad is an incredibly exciting experience. You will be exposed to new cultures, people and a completely different way of life. One of many valuable skills that TEFL teachers take away from their experience is a new language. You may be surprised at just how easy it is to pick up a new language while living in a foreign country so why not make a conscientious effort to learn it.

Before you go

There are a few things you can do to prepare yourself before you set off to teach English abroad. Travelling to a foreign country can be a bit daunting, especially if you don’t know any of the language. So why not focus on learning some key phrases and words that will be useful to you before you go. Don’t try to cram learn the whole language – that will not work!

While you are abroad

You may want to keep a list of translations handy in case you forget any of these. Keeping a pocket size phrase book or dictionary will also be very helpful. In fact any resources you can get hold of will help, remember it will always be better to be over prepared than feeling like you don’t have sufficient resources. Remember, trying to converse in a foreign tongue will always make the locals more willing to assist you and they will appreciate your attempts.

As you are teaching English in the classroom you will only be speaking English. Locals will often be keen to practise their English on you so don’t worry if you are not fluent in a foreign language when you first arrive!

In order to teach English abroad you will need to get your official TEFL certificate with TEFL Wales.

Check out our TEFL Course Options.

Find out more:

Free TEFL taster course
TEFL Courses - options
Dates and locations
Book a course

Add your comment below

Recent TEFL Wales Blogs: Funding Your Travels By Jenny Marsh; Why TEFL in Asia? By Jenny Marsh; Welcome to Warsaw! By Jenny Marsh

Monthly Archive: May 2013; April 2013; March 2013; February 2013; January 2013; December 2012; September 2012; August 2012; July 2012; June 2012; May 2012; April 2012; March 2012; February 2012; January 2012; December 2011; November 2011; September 2011; August 2011; June 2011; May 2011; March 2011; February 2011

Tags: Country Guides (27); General Articles (29); TEFL Courses (15); Tefl Jobs (15); TEFL tutors (3); Testimonials (3)

What our students say about us...

“Firstly, I cannot praise the tutor, Richard, highly enough... he is simply superb in the way he imparts his knowledge and makes every aspect interesting. There wasn't a single part of the course I didn't enjoy or learn from. ”

Alistair Cristinni

More comments >>