Qualifications Needed for Being an English Teacher in China

For prolonged periods of time, education in China has been intimately connected with the country’s complicated political culture. It has been greatly criticized because almost all the top-notch institutions located here focused on the stern teacher-centered training model. It put little emphasis on critical thinking and more on the rote memorization and examinations. Moreover, owing to the conservative nature, this country has effectually kept English away from its pedagogical system. However, recent studies have shown that the teaching methods in China must be changed and in order to move forward, English training is highly necessary here. 

There are many prominent organizations located here, which follow a detailed recruitment procedure. It identifies experienced and skilled individuals, who are willing to build a teaching career in China. These associations work to hire the aspiring teachers in the well-known schools, in accordance to their preferences. They continue to provide support until the expiry of the contract and aims to offer convenient job as well as living experiences to the prospective English educators. Let us now discuss the minimum qualifications that you need to have teaching career in China.

Essential Qualifications

Mentioned below are certain necessary qualifications, which would serve as an effectual answer to the most common question that crops up in an individual’s mind, that is, ‘How to become an English teacher in China?’

The individuals must have a bachelor’s degree in any subject. He/she must have either of the three certifications- TEFL, TESL and TESOL. TEFL stands for Teaching English as a Foreign Language, which provides the obligatory skills that one needs for teaching in countries, where English is not the native language. TESL is the acronym for Teaching English as the Second language, which helps one to teach the language to the immigrants, who are staying in English-speaking nations. TESOL stands for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, which combines the previous two trainings. Among the three, TEFL is the most accepted certificate. Finally yet importantly, the individuals should be a proficient speaker of English. He/she must belong to an English-speaking country. 

Individuals must have adequate teaching experiences; otherwise they would not be able to adjust to the diverse education environment of a foreign country. The aspiring trainers must have a professional outlook. He/she should be efficient and mature. The schools in China need teachers, who are extroverts and thus, could successfully communicate with the students. He/she must be easy-going, friendly and should have the capability of adapting to every difficult circumstance. The ability of facing challenges is a desirable trait, which every individual, who wants to build a career of teaching in China, must have.

Know The Truth Behind Teaching Jobs in China

There are lots of rumours regarding the English teaching career in China. Exploitation, possible deportation and scams, there are many things that make you scared. But, how can you be sure that they are all true? As I am, moved to China recently, I have faced all of them, but I am still working here.

Here are some of the things that you should know about teaching English in China-

1.    Anyone can be able to teach in China

China, being the most populated country in the world, always welcomes the western languages and the customs because they are thinking about the long-term effectiveness. What can make China more unstoppable? A second language may be. This is the reasons why most of the schools and the educational institutions are expensing lots of money to include English as the second language in the subject lists of the students. The parents are also getting interested to teach their kids English as it is the lingua franca of the world. Nowadays, the English teaching jobs in China are becoming plenty. You do not require any credentials to come up here and teach English, but you should be native speaker and should be looking like the foreigner. However, individuals having credentials are getting good salary. If you are an experienced teacher, do not compromise less than 20k to 30k RMB each month along with the housing allowances in the case of the international schools.

2.    You require a Z- work visa to teach English

Most of the companies will prefer you to give the F visa and you should walk away from it. The F visa is only good for the individuals who are eager to work for 60-90 days and you will have to leave the country when the tenure gets over. If they are planning to give the Z visa once you visit China, you can stay in the country for many years.

3.    Being an English Teacher will impact social standing
Always keep your head up! There is a great difference in the wages; the teachers are restricted within the foreign community for jealousy. The teaching professionals are able to take more time, have many benefits, and in some of the cases, the people of China are not only allowed to teach at the schools. Take it as the adventure. As the English teacher, you will get lots of social standing.

These are some of the great facts regarding English teaching in China. If you want to become an English teacher in China, you will get to bring all the credentials and also take help of the reputed teaching consultant that is providing the best teaching positions in China.

3 Points to Consider For Becoming an ESL Teacher in China

Teaching opportunities in Asian countries provide individuals with multiple career prospects. However, China has managed to receive maximum praises since past few years for providing the competent and highly skilled teachers with great options for placements. Each year, thousands of English teachers from diverse corners of the world apply for the ESL teaching jobs in the nation. But only the highly skilled and potential candidates are shortlisted and designated.

China mostly prefers the teachers from the foreign countries to ensure quality education for Chinese students. The teachers with strong grammatical skills are more likely to impart education among students in the best possible manner. It isn’t that daunting to find English teaching jobs for Americans in abroad countries. The job consultancies thoroughly help the foreign job seekers to have a hassle-free transition. 

Essentials for Becoming an ESL Teacher in China

•    Bachelor’s Degree

If you’re keen to get the designation of an ESL teacher, you should have a bachelor’s degree.  Bachelor’s degree is the minimum academic qualification that Chinese schools and the educational institutions in China demand. Besides the degree, the teachers should have commendable grammatical and communication skills.

•    Innovative Teaching Styles

The conventional teaching method of reading out an entire chapter with line-by-line explanations isn’t something that’s accepted in the Chinese classrooms. The Chinese schools usually demand creativity in your teaching styles that would engage the students. Opt for innovative teaching styles that not only help in increasing the attention span of the students but also enable them to grow their interest towards the subject. The English teachers in China usually strive to create a pleasant learning atmosphere so that they can deliver quality education to the students.

3.    Energetic Personality plus Professional Outlook

The Chinese schools are on the lookout for potential teachers who are friendly, extroverts and have the capability to interrelate with students. Besides these, the teachers should have great communication skills, maturity plus professionalism. He or she must have an energetic approach and great responsibility towards work.

Last Note

If you think you are eligible enough to bag great ESL jobs, consider hiring an experienced, trusted and reputable job consultancy without wasting time. The job consultancies serve as the reliable guides to job seekers. Besides arranging the online chats plus direct interviews with schools, the professional consultants also help the candidates to collect the Visa with ease. These consultants also arrange accommodations for teachers where they can stay after their arrival in China. Seek the help of the trusted professionals to bag promising teaching positions in China.

Brief Note on the Best Cities to Teach English in China

China, the massive country, full of cultural diversities unique dialects and comes with varying living and teaching conditions. Most teachers usually tend to gravitate towards Shanghai and Beijing but there are various other cities in China that comes with promising job opportunities for the Chinese as well as the foreign teachers.  The procedure of picking a place in order to live in China can be overwhelming specifically when you are approving to relocate for 1 year or more.  To make the decision easier, we’ve compiled a list of the best Chinese cities for teaching English. To know more in appropriate details, take a look at the following points:

Hangzhou

Are you keen to work and reside in an appealing, serene city rich in culture and history? If yes, then Hangzhou would be the right pick for you. Hangzhou is indeed a perfect blend of modernity plus antiquity. You can spend your free time by taking a walk around the Hangzhou Lake or by spending time in a traditional teahouse. You can also take visit KTV along with the Chinese coworkers and enjoy the evening with the pop songs. Since Hangzhou is surrounded by some of the big cities of China like Nanjing, Suzhou and Shanghai, it will become easier for you to discover much of China on weekends. This city is also home to numerous local schools, universities, ESL academies and many others. If you are keen to bag the promising teaching jobs overseas, consider the Asian countries especially China.

Guilin
Do you enjoy hiking and other outdoor activities? Are you keen to teach and live in a city or place where you can explore nature on weekends? If these are your desires then Guilin is the right match for you. This city is based in the province of Guangxi province. It takes just a few hours to reach Guilin from China’s renowned rice terrace fields. This beautiful city is situated on the famous Li River and comprises numerous mountains as well as scenic outlooks. Mountain biking, swimming in mud caves or partying in the expat bars are some of the activities prevalent in the city. There are limited scopes for the teaching jobs in this city as compared to Hangzhou but if you have that potential, you can easily bag a job for yourself.

The other cities that come with numerous teaching job vacancies in China each year include Harbin, Beijing and lot more. There are some trusted job consultancies that help the candidates throughout the formal processes. If you are keen to assure a smooth transition, seek the help of a trusted job consultancy.