The Truth about TEFL Part 3: Selling yourself via Skype

Picture by Jakob Montrasio via Flickr

TEFL job interviews are all about one thing: Skype. Occasionally employers may be in the UK during their recruiting period but for the most part your opportunity to impress them with your

There are a few things it’s important to remember however, if you want to become a Skype interview pro.

personality and suitability for the job will be a virtual one. Many people dread Skype interviews, unsure of how they should behave comparably to face-to-face interviews, but once you’ve gotten a few under your belt they’re an easy and effective way to connect with potential employers with little cost to either party.

1.       It’s still an interview so don’t get lazy. You still need to dress like you would for an interview and take care with your appearance – no top half only, no ‘smart casual’ wear. This is your only chance to make an impression and you don’t want to blow the deal before you even open your mouth.

2.       Do your preparation. When an interview is going to take place in your house, it often feels like the urgency is removed. Do not trust this feeling – you need to isolate a block of time before the interview to read up on the role and refresh yourself on what you wrote in your application. Remember that you won’t have the travel time and the pre-interview coffee shop time that you would with a traditional interview. It’s possible to have notes by your laptop for a Skype interview but you don’t want to be obviously fact checking every few minutes.

3.       Think about your body language. Even over a video link the way you present yourself can say a lot about you to an interviewer so it’s as important to consider your body language in a Skype interview as it is for a face to face meeting. Make sure you centre yourself on the screen and sit a sensible distance from the camera – you don’t want to be overly close but you need to be in range of the microphone. Most importantly make sure you look directly at the camera rather than the picture of the interviewer or of yourself, to maintain good eye contact.

4.       Be aware of the pitfalls of the internet. A lot of places that hire TEFL teachers aren’t renowned for their strong internet connections or good wifi coverage so it is quite likely that there will be a problem with the connection at some point in the interview. Obviously if you have prepared your setup properly this won’t be your problem but there are a couple of things you can do to minimise the damage; firstly, make sure you speak slowly and clearly to ensure you remain audible even if the connection becomes faulty and secondly try and minimise the amount of moving you do – the less work the system has to do to maintain a clear picture the better.

5.       Act natural. Lastly, behave as you normally would in an interview. Try to resist the urge to reference or joke about the nature of the process – it might be novel to you but they do it everyday. Trying to keep yourself in a normal interview mindset will also hopefully stop you being too nervous about the different format and should help you to come across well to the interviewer.

Had a good or bad interview experience on Skype? Let me know below. If you missed the first two parts of my series on TEFL you can find them here.

The Truth about TEFL: Debunking the misconceptions

Having just returned from a year in Spain teaching English as a foreign language I've decided to let the rest of you benefit from my experience in order that you make the most informed decision possible about this major career choice. Don't get me wrong, there were many things I loved about my year abroad and I will cover the positives as well as the negatives over the coming months, however to start with I want to dispel some misconceptions that people might have about the industry.

 

First of all, You can’t go wherever you want – certainly not if this is your first job in the field. You will be at the mercy of the market in terms of location and you may find that there is a small market for EFL in the area you have your heart set on. I wanted to find a position in Germany, but ended up in Spain because that’s where all the jobs were.

As a result of this, It’s not a good way to fund your travelling – unless your idea of travelling is to stay in one place for nine months at a time. A TEFL contract is the same as any other contract and schools are looking to recruit staff for classes that take place throughout the school year. This means you will likely work five days a week, 6 or 7 hours a day. It is very difficult to fit travelling around this, even at the weekends and due to the long summer holidays, you receive very little time off during the year. 

That’s because It’s not a paid holiday – in any way. Contrary to popular belief, TEFL teachers actually work pretty hard and usually in residential areas. Forget beaches and big cities, you’re far more likely to be living in a small town with minimal entertainment and transportation. The fun and excitement of living in another country wears off after about three months and then it becomes just another job, only one in a country where you don’t speak the language.

Speaking of language, You don’t automatically become fluent in a language just because you live abroad. This misconception is a biggie but in actuality, it takes very little knowledge of a language to get by day-to-day. If you want to become fluent, you need to make friends, take classes and talk for extended periods of time as often as possible. You won’t learn a language by magic osmosis unless you have an audiographic memory.

However it’s not all bad because many of these things lead to my last point which is that You can save money as a TEFL teacher – even though the salary is often very low. I saved about a third of my money overall simply because I lived in a very small town with low rent and nothing to do.

I hope that this has helped dispel any misconceptions for those of you thinking about going into TEFL. Stay tuned for the second part of my TEFL series, on job applications, next month. Let me know in the comments if you have any further questions or suggestions to add.

The Guide to Workwear part 2: Teaching in Trousers

Picture by Tinker*Tailor loves Lalka

Welcome to part 2 of our workwear series aimed at those of you starting in the education sector- whether public or private, training or teaching. Some of you may recognise Hannah's name from the great guest post she wrote for us earlier this year (read here if you missed it). Hannah is starting on the job teacher training at a primary school this year but has been working in schools for a while now and is amply qualified to provide advice.

As a primary teacher you have to be smart, fun, practical, professional, fashionable (you’ll get the girls’ respect for this) and comfortable all at the same time, which can be hard to achieve!

 I will be starting my in-school teacher training very soon and so I have had to purchase a teacher’s wardrobe. The key is finding the right trousers. They have to fit all the above requirements, excepting the ‘fun’ one perhaps, as your top can do this all by itself. I found a gem pair of trousers in New Look (so I bought two pairs). They are black (practical, smart), with a tapered leg (smart and fashionable), turn ups (fashionable) and a reasonably (but not too) high waist (fulfils all the requirements). 

However, they’re perhaps a bit, how do I put this... manly-looking.  So the top becomes important. Just choose what suits you, but make sure it’s bright, fun and pretty. And definitely not low cut- as a teacher you’re always bending over to have a look at children’s work and you don’t want any prepubescent boys having a peek down your cleavage. Cardigans are must too, but please not granny style. If your top is patterned, wear a plain cardigan, if your top is plain you can get away with a patterned cardigan. Avoid floral patterns though; you’ll end up looking mumsy not professional.

Shoes should something plain and simple with a quirk, like a bow or a flower. But make sure you can clean them of drops of PVA glue and smears of paint, so avoid patent or suede. I would also wear flats, unless you find heels exceptionally comfortable.

If you're already in teaching and would like to add your advice to Hannah's or if you are just starting out and would like some sartorial advice please feel free to comment in the space provided below!

Finding Your Silver Lining

 Hannah is a friend from university, one of the first to take the scary steps into the adult world. I asked her to write us a post about her experiences over the last year to show people how uncertainty and changing your mind can be extremely positive forces sometimes. She is an extremely talented writer so I hope you all enjoy this post!

So I’ve got a degree, quite a good one actually- I am a Cambridge Graduate. But I didn’t spend my summers selling my soul to Deloitte, or working for free at a top law firm, or anything particularly useful. I think of myself as a creative, socially aware sort of person and I certainly don’t want my person to be defined by my degree and the university I attended. So what do I do with that degree?

When I was in my final year of university I decided that I would put off all the life-changing career decisions and do a Masters in Material and Visual Culture at UCL. I got the place, and had the enthusiasm to give it a good shot. I found two good friends to live with and a cheap flat on a council estate in Clapham. I thought I was sorted.

Then I had the induction day for the course and had a realisation, as it turned out, the first of many. I didn’t want to do all that work, all that reading and pointless study and discussion. Not after three years already. So I gave that up after quite a few tears and a long discussion with my mum.

Next step... being bored and poor in London, which isn’t fun at all. I felt isolated, lost, a fish out of water. In London you have to fight to feel welcome, fight to turn the daily grind, the grime and the distance into a meaningful experience. And I didn’t have the inclination or the money to take arms.

I looked at the career options for those with a degree in Social Anthropology. PR and Marketing were quite near the top of that list so I thought I’d give that a go, I talked myself into it and really thought I’d be alright at it. I’d wear a pink pencil skirt and Topshop heels to work, buy a Starbuck skinny latte at lunch and join a yoga class. So I went to a recruitment firm that could find me an internship and ended up joining a small private tuition company as an intern. Supposedly I was their ‘marketing’ executive and they would be giving me a job in 3 months if I was any good. It turned out I was free labour; the latest of many interns. The company consisted of two people who shared a unit on with a chap starting his own company producing and selling organic ketchup. And they were running out of money.  

Then it was October. My Nan had a severe stroke. I didn’t want to be in London, I wanted to be at home with her. So I left within hours of it happening. This wasn’t a decision I had to think through; my Nan had lived with me and my parents at home for 7 years and she was more important to me that anything else in that moment. I visited her in hospital every day.

But this horrible shock made me question my career path. I talked to the nurses and got to know the people on the ward, and knew that I didn’t want to be stuck in an office or working with stuffed shirts. I needed to do something useful, to be part of a community that shared my principles. So while I was at home I volunteered at a primary school. Just to see if I liked it, which I did.  I went back up to London with my parents and moved out officially. I’m not usually the sort of person who makes off the cuff decisions, but at the time I just needed to get out.

On Boxing Day my Nan died in hospital. The teacher I was working with at school bought me some daffodils growing in a pot to cheer me up. Everyone was so supportive, and I felt I had found my place at last. I decided to stay. And then the school agreed to have me there to do the Graduate Training Programme to become a teacher. I’d just like to add that this is not the easy option. The school is in a tough area, the children are far from perfect, and some come to school at four years old not really knowing what a book is, or how to use a knife and fork. There’s no getting away with being a mediocre teacher, if you want to engage this children you have to be exciting, open minded and understanding. It’s a challenge!

I’m also lucky to have friends who did not go to university. They do not have degrees and yet they have a life that is based not on income or status but rather friends, family and enjoyment. When I came back from London my friends got me through a phase of confusion. I also have friends who were in the same boat as me which helped a lot. If you are stuck knowing what to do with your degree, I recommend talking to someone who doesn’t have one. These people taught me how to be grounded.

So what have I learnt? Life teaches you stuff. It’s not a matter of ‘finding your way’ or ‘choosing the right path’ or all those rubbish clichés. You’ll decide one thing, and life will change your mind. Something that’s outside your control can happen at any moment. My advice would be, if you don’t like what you’re doing, don’t feel stuck. Just give it up and trust that eventually you’ll do something you really do like. I don’t expect I’ll be a teacher for ever, but for now it suits me just fine, and hopefully I’ll be a good one.