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I saw an english lesson on a blog somewhere (can't remember where so can't credit it - sorry) where the teacher had them write all their excuses and then did some correction exercise using the written sentences. Some were just absurd... the typical "My dog ate my homework" to "I was a...

Zdrasti uchitel sim. I don't know how popular Russian is to learn as a language in China, although there is a Russian district in Beijing, and I guess in the border cities it is probably quite popular. Let me know if you come to Beijing, I want to improve my Russian. Poka!

Hi Jack, I only really advocate doing a CELTA or equivalent as this has become the de facto standard for most jobs in TEFL now, and therefore will give you the greatest choice of jobs and locations. (It may seem expensive, but it is really worth the money). If you haven't completely made up your min...

1. I can't claim to know the full range of materials which are available and many may be better suited than others. In many cases you will have to adapt the materials anyway. Personally I like the New Cutting Edge series because the ideas it contains and questions it provokes have fuelled much conve...

I think so. Demand is still on the rise. More universities are offering courses with English as the language of instruction. More parents are sending their students to international schools. Speaking English is about as important in getting a job these days as being able to use a computer! This dema...

I hate to discourage anybody, but never met a teacher without this problem.
I would try to find out why... perhaps get them to write their excuses in French.
You could offer a reward if they all do it (a 5 minute video at the end of each lesson).
Just some ideas.

It may depend on the company you are applying to, although I prefer a conventional CV. However, if the CV contains the necessary information and is laid out in an easy to follow format, then the actual format or design is unimportant.

For one thing it probably depends where you are teaching. In the more remote settings it may be less safe. I teach in Beijing and it seems fairly safe here, although there are always risks anywhere. Seems to me that actually the gender imbalance is attributable to some men being attracted to China b...

Your student probably has a lot of fossilised mistakes in different grammar areas. I would suggest collecting a few examples in a particular grammar area and then focus on one grammar point at a time. You could also record her and have her listen and correct her own speaking. She may not realise the...

As Briona says the grade is somewhat unimportant. Obviously if you have a Pass A or Pass B, you'll probably mention it in your first few gigs, but then it'll be all about what you have done since then. I was told only 5% get Pass A, a further 20% get Pass B. There were some people on my course who h...

Hi I'm not Lucy, but can perhaps help:

Try the CELTA
http://www.studycelta.com/english-teach ... uth-africa

Maybe it's not cheap, but with it you should have few problems finding work.

My advice is no, don't do this. Firstly their certificate does not appear to be worth the paper it's printed on. Make sure you get a CELTA or Trinity Certificate or something that is seen as equivalent. These are more readily recognised the world over, and give you an upper hand as there are still m...

Seems to me if China deported all the teachers working here on illegal visas without CELTA or the Trinity Cert (or anything equivalent), I would be a lonely ex pat able to call whatever salary I liked (within limits). :D But ok, so you don't need a certificate, and you'll get paid the same as someon...

A real hour is 60 minutes... that one is simple. An academic hour depending on the institution is either 40, 45, or 50 minutes. There seems to be no global understanding on how long an academic hour is. As I understand it, the idea was initially that in a real hour only this time was actually spent ...

Possibly. Generally that region want a CELTA/TrinCert, min. 3 years experience and sometimes a MA. That said I had a friend who got a job in Saudi straight off his CELTA with only a BA. Part time jobs don't seem to come up so much, but you may find one if you tell them what you're looking for. I thi...

Pictures, a ton of pictures and visual aids. If it's one to one - load the pictures on a computer maybe. Actions - show actions and get them to repeat the action when you say it, then get them to say it by doing the action. Cartoons/comics - for doing dialogue. Alphabet - pictures of the letter, wor...

Try these guys... http://www.hometohome.es/pages/hometohome
I'm sure I've seen them advertise for spring camps (Spain) before.

No... you would be required to do the whole course to get the certificate.

There are many factors to take into account when deciding whether to let someone go. You say this guy has worked there for some time, so do you know your legal position? You may need to tread carefully with longer serving employees. Secondly, is it going to be easier to train this teacher or recruit...

But who has to pay for it? That's my only objection to it.