Do you have to teach English in only one country?
Submitted by Amanda Cathey on 08/05/2016.
Question Details
I'm thinking of teaching abroad as a career in the future, but would like to teach in many different countries, maybe moving to a new country every few years or so. Is that something I could do, or are you expected to stay for long periods of time in the same country?
Answer
Of course! Just make sure you get a TEFL / CELTA certificate that's internationally accredited / accepted worldwide (most are... so not a huge concern).
Personally, I taught for 6 months in Costa Rica, did a summer camp for Korean kids outside of Washington D.C. (they were doing a full immersion camp in the U.S.), then taught for 2 years in Madagascar.
Talking with my CELTA trainers as well, I found that a lot of them had taught in multiple countries.
Just to add to this- I have a friend that's teaching abroad as a career. he's taught in Taiwan, China and now he's thinking about moving to Estonia! He even got a Master's in Linguistics last year as an investment. You can definitely turn teaching abroad into a career and move countries as often as you like!
If you have at least a BEd. and valid teaching license, you can look into International School jobs. These contracts are usually 2 year terms, and they offer better pay and holiday time than an ESL job. Depending on the school and location you could be working within a Canadian, American, British, or "International" (IB, PYP, etc.) curriculum, but there is always training available if you're unfamiliar with it. I'm currently a Grade 2 teacher at a bilingual school in Germany, but got my start in Korea (taught there for 3 years before getting my teaching license). If you're new to teaching, I would definitely recommend EPIK in Korea.
Yes. Most people do not stay in a particular country for more than a few years. Since you are probably leaving family and friends behind in your home country, people do not expect you to stay forever.
I know someone who taught in Egypt, Spain, and Turkey.
I had several friends who taught in South Korea, Chile, Costa Rica, or Taiwan after teaching in Japan.
English teachers are sought after in many countries, so you have many options. The hard part will be choosing where you want to live.
Europe can be a great gateway for teaching in multiple countries. I personally taught for an academic year in Madrid, Spain. Afterwards many of my friends continued on to nearby countries including France, the Czech Republic and even the United Kingdom to continue teaching in the classroom or at summer camps.
Happy exploring!