Why You Should Teach and Travel the World

Why You Should Teach and Travel the World

There comes a time in everyone’s life when we need a change. We are stuck in a rut, going nowhere fast in our jobs, or just dissatisfied with the way our lives have turned out. That’s normal. What you need to do at times like these is decide how you can make changes to your life to get you out of that space. 

Teaching English as a Foreign Language is one way you can make a change for the better. 

You might not have considered teaching before, but teaching English as a Foreign Language is a bit different to what you might be expecting. You and your students will probably come from totally different backgrounds, have completely different life experiences, and speak different languages. While you might think these are hurdles you will need to overcome, you’ll actually find that this is what makes this job so rewarding. Challenging – yes, but so rewarding. 

There is no other experience quite like teaching English as a Foreign Language – and travelling – to get you out of your comfort zone.

Even if you have no teaching experience or teaching degree, you can be a TEFL teacher. All you need to do is sign up for a 120-hour TEFL course. On the course you will learn the ins and outs of teaching English as a Foreign Language. Theories of learning, teaching methods, classroom management and, of course, the fundamentals of the English language. You can do the course face-to-face or online, and there is usually the option to get some real classroom experience under your belt as well.

Once you’ve got the course, you just need to decide where you want to teach! This is where the TEFL World Factbook 2021 from the friendly folks at The TEFL Academy comes in. Download the Factbook and it’ll give you all the info you’ll need for over 100 countries for you to decide which destination is calling your name. Average teaching salaries, cost of living, top tourist attractions – even the weather; basically, everything you need to know before booking a ticket. 

Teaching English as a Foreign Language is a good idea for so many reasons. It allows you to travel and expand your horizons. It will challenge you, intellectually and emotionally. It will introduce you to new people, new cultures, and new ways of thinking. And, best of all, you’ll earn money while living your best life!

So if you’re keen on travelling, get a TEFL course under your belt, hug your mom goodbye and start packing your bags. You don’t even have to pick one destination – you can teach online and work from anywhere that has an internet connection. You can decide how many hours you want to teach, when you want to teach, and how much you want to earn. There are not many jobs which offer the degree of flexibility that TEFL does, so the question is maybe not Why should I teach English abroad? but rather When can I start?

*This is a collaborative post