How to be an Online English Teacher

Introduction: If you have/ haven't read my journey on TEFL already, I am sure you're/ will be enjoying the journey and want to know more about it. For those, who might want to know, Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) involves teaching English abroad or online where English is not the primary language. An Online English teacher has great demands worldwide! Teaching English online is a flexible way of earning an income from the comfort of your own home. You can read more about my adventures in Fahadventure. 

Talking about the online teaching, it is absolutely possible to earn between $4 - $30/ hour on average and often, you get to decide the hours you want to work. If earning from home while travelling seems appealing to you,  this article with guide you on how to be an online English teacher. I'm presently teaching in platforms like Upwork and Native camp and you can see my profiles there for better insights.

When I was a Banker, I used to love travelling a lot and wanted to earn money while doing so.  So, I left my job and started my life as an ESL teacher online and increased my rate as I gained more experience. My average rate was between $4-$6 / hour  initially and I earn just a little over, according to my needs doing this part time. Nowadays, I have diversified my income sources, but here are some questions I had when I wanted to teach English from home.

1. Do I need to  have a teaching degree or license?  (No and Yes)

No -  you don't need to have a full-on teaching degree mostly but,

Yes -  you have to have some sort of  teaching qualification, like a TEFL  for some companies or at least some hands on experience (1-3 years).

Before you panic and worry about all the time and money you have to spend getting one, you can get a 168 hours level 5 TEFL certification (120  hours is standard and enough)  which I did and can be done online and at your own pace. It is much much cheaper than a degree and way faster. 

Quite a few of my friends have teaching degrees,  but the online English schools were more interested in their TEFL  certificates then their actual degrees! As far I remember, The TEFL Academy offers several courses online now at discounted rates, which come with a several video modules with specific training for teaching online. They are also endorsed by some reputed companies. TTA offers168 hours LEVEL 5  course that provides extra modules on online/ business/ 1 to 1 teaching (if you finish the course before the time limit. I got one!)  and specific training to ensure your application, resumes, introduction videos for recruiters is done right. You can have a look at my CV if you needed private esl teacher resume examples.

The great thing about this TEFL  compared to other providers,  is it specializes  in preparing you to teach both online and offline, as well as preparing you to teach English  as a second language. By the end of the course, you will have a strong understanding of the online teaching industry and job market, how to prepare your lesson plans and how to motivate your students in an online classroom. I will talk about it in future articles in details.

2. Do I need to be a native English speaker?  (No)

Contrary to popular belief, you don't actually need to be a native English speaker. Speaking English as a first language, you can initially demand higher rate,  but if you gain some experience, you can often raise your rate. I will write down about companies that higher non native English speakers to teach English online in a separate article.

3. What equipment and material do I need to have? ( laptop, internet, headset)

 

It really depends on the type of school and platform you teach on. Some online schools will require minimum internet speed (2 mbps reaching up to any amount maximum), specific RAM  and ROM preferences, operating system etc. Some will require you to know technologies based on Skype, Google meets, their own platforms like Native Camp etc. Some might demand a pair of good headsets or any earplugs as well. But all of them will ask you to keep a clean background,  noise free environment with casual decent dress ups.  most platforms will provide you the material as well. I personally teach with a notebook, which I sometimes use as a tab.

4. How much can I earn? ($4- $30 on avg)

It also depends on the type of organization you teach on. For most online schools, salaries range between $4-$30 on average per hour.  However,  if you have your own private students, you can set your own rate.

5. Can I do this part time?  (Yes)

The great thing here is for most companies, you decide how many days and hours you want to work! So if you want to teach English from home, you can work for a couple of hours for 1-2 days a week. This will help you earn extra money, on top of your day job.

6. Do I have to pay tax?  (Yes and No)

  Most online English School will sign you as an independent contractor, so you are liable for your own tax. So this means it's up to you to declare (or not) your income.

#tefl #tta #teaching #english #teacher #language #language #education #ielts #learning #teachers #school #training

Conclusion: Please inform me politely if you find any information misleading, irrelevant or outdated. Most companies change their policies, salaries periodically. I'll correct the information accordingly. Let me know for any guidance and find a sample introduction video, that got me this job!

HAPPY TEACHING!