Songs and stories are some of the most effective teaching tools ESL and EFL educators can deploy in just about any classroom level. This is especially true for kids who will not only pile up their stash of English words but will also improve their listening skills.  Language educators focusing on young learners often use a hybrid narrative form that melds different elements of songs, poems and stories

While China remains a good career destination for native English speakers planning to teach English abroad, it also poses a slew of challenges that might intimidate novice ESL or EFL practitioners. On top of travel and immigration hurdles, the language classroom itself constitutes a challenging environment, according to veteran educators who have first-hand knowledge of the field.

English is now the global language of business and the dominant language used in the Internet. There is now very little doubt that people in the future will work and communicate ideas in English. Given this certainty, the demand for ESL educators will not only spike up but will also be increasingly characterized by the use of different learning technologies. As this ESL employment scenario unfolds, the market for ESL resources will bustle with activity and fueled by spurts in the development of new and better teaching environments and methodologies.

If you already made up your mind to become an ESL educator and are on the prowl for a great ESL job, the likelihood that you will find the best career path for your current credentials, needs, and preferences largely depends on two things: your willingness to do your homework and your commitment to meet the work requirements and jump into the ESL bandwagon. The homework largely consists of doing exhaustive research online and probing friends or contacts within the ESL community. 

Teaching English as a second language is a division of education that is continually growing. Teachers wishing to acquire a job in education may be more likely to do so if they look for a job in an area such as ESL or ESOL. The competition for ESL jobs is usually not as stiff as the competition for regular classroom teaching jobs. If you prefer to work in a different teaching role, ESL can be a great pathway to eventually get another teaching position of your dreams. If you answer a school’s call when they are desperately seeking an ESL teacher, they will most likely return the favor at a later date and transfer you to another position in the school that suits you best.

I regularly receive emails from teachers asking whether certain teaching job offers are 'legitimate'. This interconnected world allows scam artists to thrive. As the global economic environment continues to change, the number of employment scams increases. In addition, the scams become much more creative and ingenious with their tactics. I would hope everyone follows a very simple rule when looking at teaching job offers or any type of employment offer: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is".

Professor Colin MacCabe of the University of Exter School of English says that to truly know a language, you must know something of the literature of a language.  Literature is intellectually stimulating because a book allows a reader to imagine worlds they are not familiar with. This is done through the use of descriptive language. In order to understand, the reader will create their vision of what the writer is saying. In this sense, the reader becomes a performer or an actor in a communicative event as they read. 

Visuals are a great tool to help with student comprehension as well as make your English Language Teaching (ELT) / English Language Learning (ELL) or any language classroom a more exciting place to learn. Unfortunately, not all schools are equipped for this type of learning but most schools will have a multi-media room that can be utilized on an "as needed" basis by their teachers. In addition, the lesson could involve graphics and images using less technology based methods for presentation.

When a school searches for a new ESL TEFL TESOL teacher for an open teaching position, they already have an image of the teacher they want. Every school has certain qualities they feel a teacher must have to be successful. Those qualities can be many things depending on the needs and location of the school. While the qualities that each ESL TEFL TESOL school considers important may vary, there are usually shared qualities that all schools would consider important to the job.

I wanted to talk about interviewing from both perspectives which are that of the ESL TEFOL TESOL teacher looking for a new teaching job and that from the TESL TEFL TESOL school looking for a new teacher to fill their available teaching position. Keep in mind that this is just my advice and opinion on the matter. You should decide what you find useful and what does or doesn't work for you.