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Teaching Abroad
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Take a look at all of our teach abroad programmes.
Teaching abroad is an excellent way to earn a good income on your gap year or career break. Many people wrongly believe that it is necessary to go on training courses beforehand in order to find work teaching abroad (the most common qualification for teaching abroad is the TEFL - Teaching English as a Foreign Language - certificate). In actual fact finding jobs teaching abroad is perfectly possible without having to have such qualifications before you go. Real Gap can help arrange jobs teaching abroad in both China and Japan. With these programmes, full and comprehensive training for teaching abroad is included and, by the end of your teaching abroad training, you will be fully prepared to teach English.
Most travellers decide they want to do some teaching abroad do so because they want to really challenge and push themselves on their gap year. The prospect of teaching abroad in an alien culture is a daunting one, but the sense of achievement you gain from teaching abroad is immense. One of the common worries for anyone considering teaching abroad in somewhere like China or Japan is that they won't be able to speak the local language. It is generally agreed that the most effective way of teaching languages is to conduct the entire class in the language that is being learnt. This method of teaching abroad forces students to ask questions in English, rather than being able to rely on speaking in their native tongue.
Teaching abroad, whether you plan a future career in teaching or not, is an excellent experience to be able to put on your CV as well. Prospective employers are sure to appreciate how challenging teaching abroad. Teaching abroad requires confidence and excellent communication skills - and the overall experience will definitely stand you in good stead later on in life.
If you want to do some teaching abroad the big decision to make is where you are going to do it. Real Gap's ‘Paid Teaching English programme in China' includes a four week training course in Beijing and, when you finish, a paid placement in one of China's top private schools. (The eaching abroad qualification you gain at the end of your training is the English Language Certificate in teaching English as a foreign language).
Learn Mandarin: During your teaching abroad training in China you will also receive tuition in Mandarin so that you can speak the basics with the school children once you start teaching. Aside from the teaching abroad aspect of the programme there are all kinds of cultural and social events organised, such as meals out and visits to local markets. The emphasis of teaching abroad with this programme in China is to teach the students both conversational English and also all about British culture. If you choose to do your teaching abroad in China it will be extremely challenging but also hugely rewarding. China is a fascinating country and an obvious benefit of teaching abroad there is that you will also have plenty of time to explore some of its amazing sights - such as Tiananmen Square and the Great Wall of China.
Japan, although very different from China, also has an extremely different culture from our own - and is another fascinating country in which to find work teaching abroad. Real Gap's ‘Paid work in Japan' is extremely flexible in that it is actually possible to apply for all kinds of jobs in Japan, not just teaching abroad vacancies. However, learning English is extremely popular in Japan and there are plenty of language schools in which to find work there teaching abroad. The work placements in Japan are extremely casual and flexible, meaning there is ample opportunity to travel and explore the country when you're not teaching abroad there. The main office for Real Gap's ‘Work and Travel' Japan programme is in Tokyo, and it operates a dedicated job search service to help you find work while you're out there. |
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If you don't need to earn money on your gap year, but would like to try your hand at teaching abroad, another option is to do some teaching abroad on a voluntary basis.
There are opportunities for teaching abroad as a volunteer in many countries all over the world. To give just one example, you could teach English abroad to children who have been orphaned as a result of the Aids epidemic in Kenya - and Real Gap has similar volunteer programmes with a teaching abroad element in other parts of Africa, Latin America and Asia. These projects really make a difference to peoples' lives, (including the volunteers teaching abroad), and you will gain a huge sense of personal achievement from teaching abroad in these circumstances.
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Volunteer Abroad
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