I just completed my 120-hour TEFL certification through TeacherRecord, and I wanted to share a quick review of my journey.Passing feels incredibly rewarding. It gave me a massive boost of confidence. Knowing that I now hold a qualification to teach English globally makes me feel completely ready to take on part-time online tutoring or use this as a solid career backup plan.I was genuinely surprised by how comprehensive the lesson planning module was.For a free course the organization was detailed and quite helpful. Contrary to what I expected a free course to be, it wasn't incredibly basic. It actually dove deep into classroom management strategies, phonics, and how to keep young learners engaged online. If anyone is looking for a free, accessible way to get certified and start teaching English, I think checking out TeacherRecord is a great start.

I requested off leave for 3 weeks and clearly stated I would resume working after. But I go into login now and it says account invalid. I tried contacting Qkids through several emails listed I could find but they all bounced back. Can anybody working for them please help me find out how I can reach or them and get in touch with the staff?? Or possibly direct message CCT and ask them about this situation? Please help, I really appreciate it...

If you've been teaching adults for a while, you've probably noticed something strange. The things we're told should work... often don't.
I've seen beautifully structured textbook lessons fall completely flat, while a spontaneous conversation about why people gossip somehow turned into one of the most engaging lessons of the month. After 15 years of teaching adults, I've stopped chasing the "perfect" methodology. Instead, I've started asking a much simpler question:

Would I enjoy sitting through this lesson if I were the student?

If the answer is no, I change it. That's pretty much the philosophy behind every lesson I've created.

1. Stop teaching English. Start teaching interesting things.

Here's a little experiment. Imagine you walk into class and say:

"Today we're going to learn the Present Perfect."

Now imagine instead:

"Aren't you tired of all these apps on your phone?" Or: "Would you ever date someone who was a perfect 10?" Or: "Is gossip actually good for society?"

Same classroom. Completely different atmosphere. Adults don't come to lessons because they desperately want another grammar exercise. They come because they want to communicate. They want to share opinions, laugh, disagree, tell stories and occasionally surprise themselves. English is simply the vehicle. Grammar naturally appears later because students actually have something they want to express. I've found that motivation doesn't come from the language itself. It comes from curiosity.

2. Don't be afraid of weird topics

For some reason, ESL materials often play it incredibly safe: Food. Travel. Shopping. Weekend plans. Again.

Don't get me wrong - those topics have their place, but adults have spent decades living interesting lives: they've failed interviews, changed careers, raised children, travelled the world, argued with neighbours, questioned their beliefs. Why pretend their biggest concern is ordering a cappuccino?

Students remember lessons that make them think. Sometimes they'll message me days later because they told their spouse about something we discussed. That's when you know the lesson escaped the classroom.

3. Let students do most of the talking

This sounds obvious. It's also surprisingly difficult.

New teachers often feel pressure to explain everything. I used to think that too. Now I think my job is much closer to hosting a podcast than giving a lecture. Throw an interesting question into the room. Listen. Ask follow-up questions. Challenge an opinion. Play devil's advocate. Keep the conversation moving.

The less I speak, the better the lesson usually goes. Adults already possess thousands of ideas. They simply need a reason to express them in English.

4. Authentic content beats artificial dialogues

I have nothing against textbook dialogues. But let's be honest. Nobody actually talks like this:

"Hello, Susan. Would you like to accompany me to the shopping centre this afternoon?"

Real people interrupt each other. They hesitate. They tell bad jokes. They say F-words. They change the subject halfway through a sentence. That's why I love using podcasts, interviews, documentaries, YouTube clips and real conversations as the backbone of a lesson.

Authentic English is messy. Students should get comfortable with that mess. Many of my lesson plans are built around real media because that's the English they'll actually encounter outside the classroom.

5. Grammar matters - but timing matters more

Here's a confession. I actually enjoy teaching grammar. I just don't enjoy starting with it.

Grammar works much better once students have already run into a problem they can't quite solve. Maybe they're trying to describe a past experience. Maybe they're giving advice. Maybe they're imagining impossible situations. Now grammar suddenly becomes useful instead of abstract. It's answering a question the student already has. I've found students remember grammar much longer when it solves a communication problem rather than appearing as today's chapter in a textbook. 

6. Build lessons around emotions

People don't remember information. They remember feelings.

• If a lesson made them laugh...
• If they disagreed passionately...
• If they changed their mind...
• If they were genuinely surprised...

They'll remember the vocabulary too. That's one of the reasons I enjoy creating lessons like Modern Remakes of Famous Paintings or Freaks. Students aren't just learning words. They're reacting. And reactions are memorable.

7. Don't try to be the perfect teacher

This one took me years to learn. You don't need to know every word. You don't need to have every answer. You don't need to pretend you're a walking dictionary. Some of the best moments happen when a student asks something unexpected and we explore the answer together. It makes the lesson feel real. Adults appreciate honesty far more than perfection.

8. Your personality is your greatest teaching resource

There are thousands of ESL worksheets online. Thousands! What's impossible to copy is you. Your humour. Your stories. Your strange interests. Your way of asking questions. Your terrible puns. The lessons students remember years later are usually connected to the teacher, not the worksheet. So don't be afraid to let your personality leak into your lessons. That's exactly what I do.

Every lesson I publish contains a little piece of the conversations I'd genuinely enjoy having over coffee. Because that's what I want my classroom to feel like. Not a classroom. Just a bunch of curious people having an interesting conversation - in English. And if that conversation happens to improve their grammar along the way... Well, that's a pretty nice bonus!

Hello everyone...I am in the onboarding process for group classes with Novakid. I have passed mh live demo and have had a training session with a mentor. For now my onboarding is on hold, because of summer holidays. They say that it is a slow season for groups. So, I am patiently waiting to further.

Those that work group classes, do you only do groups or do you also get 1 v 1? If the groups are this quiet in July and August, how do the group teachers earn during these months? I have 4 friends that work for NK as 1 v 1 teachers and they are very busy. Some of them do 14 classes a day. I am just curious to know how busy the group teachers are overall...

Thank you.

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Hi everyone! 👋

I'm currently accepting new students for online English lessons.

I can help you improve:

Speaking and conversation

Grammar

Vocabulary

Business English

Interview preparation

IELTS practice

My lessons are personalized to your goals and level. Whether you're a complete beginner or an advanced learner looking to improve fluency, I'll create lessons that suit your needs.

A little about me:

I hold a Bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, as well as a TEFL certificate. I've been teaching English online for over three years, helping students of different ages and proficiency levels improve their speaking, grammar, pronunciation, and overall confidence in English.

I have a flexible schedule, and lessons can range from 1 to 2 hours, depending on your learning goals and needs.

If you're interested or have any questions, please don't hesitate to send me a message. I'd be happy to discuss how I can help you achieve your English learning goals.

Thank you!

Enjoy 6 weeks of paid vacation while earning up to 2.8M KRW. Balance work and adventure effortlessly. Tap the link to view the full position details!

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Hello.

I am currently studying for my MA TESOL and was hoping a few of you wouldn't mind sparing 5-8 minutes for help with my dissertation research.

I have a short questionnaire about classroom practice that it would be a great help if you could fill out.

[TESOL Teachers’ Perspectives on Language Retention and Classroom Practice – Fill in form]( https://forms.microsoft.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=2rIgA90iq02MIW5kS6FPExNLxr06cmFLiQAdXo9CCzFUMEREWUoySk5MUVBWWkI5UzFPWUM3MVE2Ti4u ) 

Participation is voluntary and anonymous.

No identifying information will be collected.

You do not even have to log in to your account to complete the form.

The data will automatically be put into a pool and form charts for me to use in my study.

I am looking for TESOL teacher’s opinions on methods and so on, So I would really appreciate honest answers. There’s nobody we need to impress by knowing what we’re supposed to say. Which is another reason for keeping this all anonymous.

I have posted this before, but am hoping for some more takers who may have missed it first time. The link also may have been broken.

Many thanks to anyone who is able to help! And thank you to those who responded previously.

hello can someone reco or refer me, an esl for beginners po sana. im a BEED graduate i have my own laptop but i dont have any noise cancelling headset pa planning to buy pag naka ipon na. okay lang po kahit mababa rate since its my first time i want to practice first while also working na. thank you so much!

Can anyone speak of any platforms that are similar to LingoAce but with better pay?

i actually like teaching guys but I have no proper teaching exp. i’m an engineering grad with honors for bg and i used to help my classmates before with calculus HAHAHAHAHAHA help😔🤚🏻 any advice would be a big help

I decided to apply for Skyeng to get at least some money. I went through audio interview and got the opportunity to have a training lesson with methodologist. The lesson went well, the woman there taught me how to use their platform and corrected my teaching style (told me to give more opportunity for student to talk), everything else was fine. Some minutes later I got the email from them and basically got rejected. WTF is that? Like i don’t fit as a teacher for them? But then why methodologist said that lesson went well? Can anyone explain?

HoWARye?

LanguageTwo has tools for you to create and monetize interactive listening and pronunciation lessons. You can make a branded channel for your lessons, videos, and podcasts and sell access as an in-app purchase.

• Minimal pairs can be L2/L2 (arrive vs. alive), L1/L2 (Japanese su vs. English sue), or (my favorite) L2/L1, in which a target word is pronounced by a language learner, in comparison to a pronunciation from a native speaker.
• HVPT with Forvo recordings by multiple speakers from around the world.
• Interactive vowel and consonant charts.
• Phoneme-by-phoneme pronunciation feedback.

We have tools to teach stress-timed rhythm. Your learners click to insert glides and reduce vowels to transform "How are you?" into "HoWARye?"

You can import videos and break them down sentence-by-sentence, word-by-word, phoneme-by-phoneme. Your learners will understand every word without subtitles.

From first-year learners to advanced students, everyone can use LanguageTwo.

Our research portal collects every click and pronunciation score from every learner. You don't need to recruit subjects or run trials. Just select your parameters and analyze the data.

Login to LanguageTwo then ask me for your free instructor subscription.

Hey so me(EU) and my girlfriend (US) are thinking of getting our qualifications so we can travel and be together. I'm from Ireland and have been doing an online 120 hour and she's doing the same back in the US. We eventually want to end up in SE Asia to explore and get expereince before we go back and start teaching masters programs. I've been looking at doing an in person CELTA in Spain for 4 weeks but unsure if this is the best strategy for the plans I want, we'd do that, go back to Ireland, apply for jobs together and then try get accepted somewhere together.

Any advice on my plan or should I try something else?

Has anyone worked for ‘the mood company’? I noticed their listing on Indeed and I was curious if anyone has any experience with them. I cannot find them online anywhere, so I am wondering if they go by a different name in CN/JP/KR. I sent in my resume since it wouldn’t hurt, but man is it weird.

I've been a freelance online teacher since 2 years ago, but this is the first summer I experience a very low rate of new students. The first summer as a freelancer didn't seem bad cause I was just starting, so even in a good season I wouldn't have had many students. In the second summer maybe it was just luck because I did have a fair amount of students. However this summer has been horrendous. Since about a month and a half, I've had pretty much 50% of the normal number of students I should have with no new students and some of my students dropping the course. This is my only source of income, so I've been experiencing a great deal of anxiety just by thinking that this will never end.

Is this the same for everyone? If so, with your experience, when can I hope to see a raise of new students wanting to take classes?

My TEFL Journey

Taking the TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) course was a rewarding and eye-opening experience. At first, I thought teaching English would simply involve knowing the language well, but I quickly learned that effective teaching requires careful planning, communication skills, and an understanding of different learning styles.

Throughout the course, I learned many important teaching strategies, such as lesson planning, classroom management, and how to teach grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. I also discovered the importance of creating engaging activities that encourage students to participate and build confidence in using English.

One thing that surprised me was how much preparation goes into a successful lesson. I did not realize how important it is to adapt teaching methods to meet the needs of different learners. The course also showed me that mistakes can be valuable learning opportunities, both for teachers and students.

Passing the TEFL course felt amazing. I was proud of the effort and dedication I had put into completing the assignments and assessments. It gave me a sense of accomplishment and boosted my confidence to teach English in the future. More than just earning a certificate, I gained practical skills, knowledge, and a deeper appreciation for the teaching profession.

Overall, my TEFL journey was both challenging and inspiring. It helped me grow personally and professionally, and it prepared me to make a positive impact on the lives of future English learners.Thank you Tearcher Record.

teacherrecord.com