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Q:
Hi Pam and Igor,
I have a student who is interested in teaching English as a second language but is unable to obtain education further than Grade 12 at this time (financial reasons). Is there any opportunity for someone without a teaching certificate? He has taught some people from Korea while they were here in Canada, so he does have some experience. Asked by Jacquie Thom
A:
Sure. He could teach at any language academy. There are thousands of them all over the world. At my school in Spain there were dozens of academies, and most of the teachers filling the positions didn't have certification. Actually, the more popular teachers were the younger ones who could share the American ways and customs. The academies cater to all sorts of locals from school kids to business professionals. Simply being a native speaker of English counts for a lot at a language academy. If he can narrow down a little bit where he wants to live, he can zero in on some academies in the area or city there and begin applying.
Q:
I read your article that was published in CX. I myself am taking two foreign languages and hope that someday I will also be able to travel abroad. My plans for college are to major in foreign language (education) and international marketing. I had noticed that you had gone overseas to teach which interested me greatly. I was wondering if you might give me some hints as to how I could get started on such an endeavor. I speak German and Spanish. I'm eager to hear from you.Thanks again. Asked by Brian Walk
A:
Our initial reaction is to suggest that you also take some TOEFL classes or even some basic education classes when you are in school (maybe cut down on electives and fill in with education classes) so you will be certified to teach English to non-native speakers of the language. This may open more doors for you for teaching overseas and, quite possibly, get you into an international school in Germany or Spain or South America.
If you are certified to teach Spanish or German, you will have to rely on the schools overseas which offer those programs (my hunch is that French is offered more than the other languages). And usually a local person is hired (cheaper) to teach the host language to the students. Teaching at an international school would be in English, however your language skills would be necessary outside of school or for helping the administration deal with the host country and local staff. Our friend Erik Richardson is a language wizard. He mastered Bulgarian quickly and is presently in Indonesia. The school sent him to an intensive one-on-one language course this summer to improve his language ability and he is instrumental around the school on a day-to-day basis.
Q:
Was it ever dangerous on your travels? - Asked by Beth Robertson
A:
Pam:
I was only physically scared once or twice in all the time I was overseas. Once was in Portugal while walking down a very narrow fish alley in a coastal town. Sharp and enormous filleting knives were being used on all sides, there were mounds of fresh fish to be prepared for market and there was barely room to turn around. I became claustrophobic in a big way and knew that an enormous arm was going to come out and haul me off into one of the closed doors.
The other time was when I attended a gypsy festival in the south of France. Heaven knows why we decided this would be fun. We were going to camp out on the beach and, luckily for us, we found a large hospice tent set up by a local church. I entered that tent on Friday night and didn't come out until Sunday when we were leaving. It was SCARY! I saw enough just sitting in the tent watching the people coming in and out to know that I really didn't want to see more of what was on the other side.
Igor:
Most crimes in the places where we lived were against property, not people. We were robbed in Bulgaria while we were at school. Someone was probably scoping out our house, watching our schedule. We were robbed about an hour after school began. Our neighbour said there were three robbers and they split up and searched the house looking for nothing but jewellery and gold (which they found because we had everything in our top drawer!). They disappeared before the police arrived. Apparently they had a portable radio that was tuned to the police channel to warn them in advance.
However, the violent type of crime is much lower abroad compared to the United States. In Japan, for example, gun-related violence is 0.5 per cent of the U.S. level -- that means it's practically non-existent. Personally, I feel quite safe almost everywhere because of the strict gun control laws in most foreign countries. Yes, they can steal your bags at the airport, but it is very unlikely that someone will confront you with a weapon. In Spain, people are out on the streets until 3 in the morning and nobody cares.
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