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From redundancy to teaching English online: Yvonne’s TEFL story
After being made redundant in 2020, Yvonne decided to retrain as a TEFL teacher. She’s now found a job that she loves, teaching English online!
4.6 out of 5 based on 9,801 reviews
I’ve been interested in languages since school. I studied French and German at Glasgow University, where I gained an MA degree. I then moved south to Bath, and for many years, I worked for the local Tourist Board in various roles, promoting the city to visitors from the UK and overseas and liaising with local tourist organisations.
I loved my job because every day was different and never boring, and it brought me into contact with people from all over the world, many of whom didn’t speak English. I thought I’d be working in the tourism industry till I retired.
Why I chose TEFL
Then, 2020 arrived, and tourism stopped.
First, I was furloughed. Then, along with many of my colleagues, I was made redundant. I didn’t know what I would do next. All I knew was the tourism industry and the future there was looking bleak.
How I became a TEFL teacher
A chance conversation with a friend led me to think about TEFL, and I decided to look into it further. What I found out really appealed to me. I hadn’t done language teaching before, but I trained staff and gave talks to tourism students.I researched many companies and decided on The TEFL Org, mainly based on its accreditation. Even though I was slightly daunted by the prospect of going back to studying and completing assignments after so many years, I thoroughly enjoyed the course. It felt good to be doing something positive and keeping my brain active following my redundancy.
What I did next
I gained my 120-hour certificate in twelve weeks, and then in autumn 2020, I started looking for an online teaching job. What a minefield! There were so many companies around, and I read so many scare stories about bad experiences and scams on the internet – the more I read, the more confused I got! Eventually, I decided I had to stop procrastinating, so I took the plunge and applied to some of the larger companies that were mentioned in the hope that they’d be reliable.
Some rejected me immediately through their automated application system. I think this was because my more ‘mature’ age didn’t fit their profile of 20-30-year-olds, and, to be honest, I didn’t see myself as being able to act like a children’s TV presenter, which is what some companies seemed to be looking for. I think it was also the case of the vicious circle – they wanted applicants to have experience, but how do you get experience if no one will give you a chance?
I was becoming despondent and thinking that maybe TEFL wouldn’t work for me after all when I saw an ad for EF Teach Online (actually on the The TEFL Org Jobs Centre). I did my usual research into EF and liked what I found out - the fact that EF has been operating for 60 years, runs brick-and-mortar schools in several countries, and that I would be classed as an employee and would be supported by a London-based team.
I received a quick response to my application and was invited to an online interview with a ‘real person’ from the London office. The interview was very thorough but friendly, and a couple of days later, I was offered a job. I couldn’t believe it!
From then on, the onboarding process was quick and smooth, and if I could choose one word to describe the company, it would be ‘professional’. There is initial training, new recruits are given a mentor to support them, and there are weekly newsletters and regular webinars, plus an active Facebook community, so you feel you are part of a team.
Working for EF Teach Online
With EF Teach Online, teachers can decide what hours they want to teach and open up their online calendar. I currently teach Mondays to Thursdays from 9am -2pm (China is 7 hours ahead of DST), and my students are 5-11 years old.
Since I started teaching at the beginning of January, I’m pleased to say I’ve been almost fully booked. You are encouraged to open up your availability for 20 weeks ahead, as parents often like to make a block booking for a particular course module. I’m not sure why parents choose a particular teacher, but I think having a good profile on your Teacher page is very important, and I’ve seen similar advice from other teachers. There are a lot of teachers out there, and you have to have a USP and say something which will make parents choose YOU!
On my profile, I mention that I speak several languages, which appeals to parents because they know I will understand what learning a different language is like.
EF Teach Online asks teachers to have a plain, neutral background while teaching so that students are not distracted, but teachers can use props to enhance the lesson delivery. Each lesson is 1:1 and 25 minutes long, and the time flies by. After the lesson, teachers complete an After Class Report for the parents to give them feedback.
My typical day
My day starts with plenty of coffee and the arduous commute to my living room. The first thing I do is my Tech Check to ensure that my browser, camera and microphone are working, and then I’m good to go.
When I first started teaching, my stomach was tied up in knots before each lesson, and I kept asking myself why I was imposing such torture on myself. I wondered if I would have to go through this every working day, but before long, I realised it wasn’t happening any more, and I could relax and enjoy the lessons.
So far, my students have all been delightful young people, although, by the law of averages, I’m sure I will come across some more ‘challenging’ students at some stage! They never cease to amaze me with their language ability and their willingness to engage with a stranger on a screen.
Many of my students are regulars, which is great, as it means you have continuity and can build a rapport with your students. You get to know their individual personalities and little bits of information about them, such as what food they like or don’t like and what pets they have, which you can incorporate into the lessons. At the moment, approximately 75% of my students are regulars I see every week, and 25% are one-offs.
I look forward to spending my mornings in China and being fortunate enough to get a glimpse of my students’ lives and culture. I feel really proud of them when they do well in the class, and if you can have some fun with them and make them smile too, that’s a bonus.
If anyone had told me a year ago that I would be teaching English to Chinese children in the future, I would have said that they were crazy. But here I am, enjoying the challenges and satisfaction that each class brings. The saying goes that ‘when one door closes, another opens,’ and in my case, it’s true. I lost one job I loved, and I’m so lucky to have found another one.
Discover how you can start teaching English online like Yvonne with our FREE Guide to Teaching English Online.
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