So you want to teach English and are considering this “online”? Here is why that is such a great choice to make!
Learning Environment
The first thing you will need to prepare is your “virtual” classroom. This should give the impression of being a place of calm. A place of knowledge and somewhere your students can learn easily. Make sure that you have everything around you; whiteboards; computer; teaching resources and learning materials and aids. Make sure your family are not going to come in and disturb you during this time. It is the time your student has paid for your sole attention and there should not be any interruptions! This way you look as if you are ready to give a lesson and it automatically makes your student feel calm and confident with you. You will also hear this said many times but the most important thing is a fast and secure internet connection. No one wants a lesson where half of it is spent “buffering” and of course a stable pc or laptop because nothing is worse than a Tutor teaching from their phone; holding it up and it keep wobbling. This is guaranteed to make your student feel very queasy or leave you with a headache!
Opportunities to teach online
The opportunity to teach online English is huge. This is something that you can carry out anywhere in the world, so long as you have a good; efficient and fast internet service. You could be teaching from home most weeks and then if you have to travel or go away, you can factor in time for your lessons with your students wherever you may be. You can also fit this in around all family commitments; work contracts and other activities which make a normal 9 to 5 job just not for you. You also do not need to work for one Company. Provided you are able to arrange your work diary efficiently, you can work with many other Agencies. Most tutors enjoy the opportunity of working from home in a time frame that suits them. You can teach students from right across the world so it is possible that you will be teaching in the morning; afternoon; early evening or even later according to their and your Time Zones.
Lesson Planning
The best thing about Lesson Planning for Online Courses is that you can change these to suit your student; the country they come from and their culture. These are really important things to consider so that students are familiar with the type of lessons and the subject matter. Nothing should come as a surprise to them. It is important that you do plan your lessons as efficiently as possible because most of these Units are only for 30 minutes so the student will want to ensure that no time is wasted. Of course its important to look prepared from the beginning and so you should ensure you have a whiteboard; teaching resources to send and share with your student and look as if you are ready for the lessons.
Training and Keeping Teaching Materials up to date
It is essential that all Tutors keep themselves up to date when doing Online Training. This is because if you are teaching independently you may not have anyone to ask questions about or to ensure you are current. There are many useful and helpful websites to visit. One is, of course, the British Council website; and another is One Stop English – Language Learning continues for students but its important you remember that Language Teaching is also ongoing for all English online tutors as well!
Real Time/Live Lessons
You should not think that Online Teaching is without fun; connection or stimulation. You are not simply having a lesson like an email exchange. The Lessons are Live and “in real time” and so you will be taking a lesson as if you were talking to someone in your own classroom. This is why it has become so popular for both the teacher and the student. You would be expected to set some lessons and ensure reading is done before the lesson. Then it’s a time for instruction; consultation and exchange. At the end of the lesson, you should ensure that the student is happy and understands everything. You should consider setting Homework and preparation work for the next lesson. This way the student remains focused for you and comes prepared to your class
Specialised English lessons
It has become important to offer specialised English lessons. These can range from Business English to Exam English to English for very young Learners. Many parents like to subscribe to the fact that if their young children are learning one language, such as their own native language, then it is just as easy to learn a second one and this is why the demand for English for young learners is growing. You would be expected to teach them in a fun and interactive way. Lots of colours; music; stories and props ensure that the child comes to enjoy learning and doesn’t see it as a task. In fact this is also the reason why we limit Online English lessons for Young Learners to only 30 minutes at a time. If you want to teach special development English lessons such as Business English then you will find a lot of the resources are readily available online. Live English Lessons for adults are more challenging but also more rewarding as the adult student will come to you with their own ideas and will see the result they want to achieve.
Benefits
So to recap the benefits of being an Online English Tutor can be summarised here;
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Work from Home
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Hours to Suit you
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Students come to you willing to learn
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Meeting people from different countries
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Each student will require different things, each lesson is different
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Prompt Payment
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Access to Online Teaching Materials