6 Ways to Make Your Life Easier as a TEFL Teacher

23 March 2021 • Guest posts, Tips

When you begin your teaching career, you need to create a work-life balance to enjoy your work and remain effective. It is very tempting to carry work home, read students’ essays and assignments when you should be enjoying quality time with your loved ones. 

Simplifying your life as a TEFL teacher requires you to remain focused, avoid distractions and create time for other activities and relaxation. This is how to make your life easier as a TEFL teacher.  

Organize your after-school activities well

You may choose to complete all your work in the school or carry some of it home. It is important to create a balance between school and your life. Engaging in a social activity after school can boost your energy when you get back to work. Identify some self-care tasks such as going to the gym, watching a movie, taking a walk with your pet, and so on.

Incorporating such activities into your daily routine can help you to achieve a healthier work-life balance. Don’t make the mistake of carrying too much work home the way first-time TEFL teachers do. This may make you less productive as you go to class the next day. 

Social activities are important for your well-being. However, this does not include taking time on social media. You may also take some breaks occasionally to go out with your family and friends to unwind. 

Delegate tasks

As per Essaygeeks, to make your life easier, you don’t need to do everything. Delegate some simple non-core tasks to students. Students will be willing to help you with classroom upkeep, such as organizing learning materials and preparing book reports. They can also help you to structure and beautify bulletin boards. 

Delegating can help you use your time better while in school, thus avoiding pileups and taking additional work home. Involving students in class strengthens your relationship with them and makes them feel appreciated. 

According to an expert assignment help service, you may extend delegation at home by assigning simple tasks to children where necessary. Getting support from others helps you create time for other non-professional activities and it makes you more productive. 

Define your priorities

As a TEFL teacher, having a to-do list is important. You may be driven by innovation, but you need to understand that your class time is very limited and you need to preserve some time for yourself. Instead of overworking yourself, you can use a virtual assistant platform to support your innovative ideas, such as information dissemination and collaboration. 

As a professional, you may feel guilty for failing to give students extra time, but you need to realize that you need to be effective. Develop a to-do list and manage your time well as you stick to the list. This may help you to avoid piling up tasks or getting overwhelmed.

Identify what is important to you, such as lesson planning, grading, and corresponding with parents. Identify the order in which you need to perform professional and non-professional pursuits. 

Be patient

Even if you have done a full TEFL course and done a lot of research in teaching, there are some things you will learn as you teach. Your first few classes may not be perfect, but you will improve as you gain experience.

Be patient with slow learners and learn how to develop a personal teaching style to accommodate all your students. The teaching strategies and methodologies differ from one teacher to another and a method that works for another teacher may not work for you. 

Plan on how to deal with restless students and those who are not willing to learn. Develop interesting styles to bring across grammar points for students to understand. How you respond to students’ needs depends on specific situations. Patience may give you solutions with time. 

Mind your language

Teaching the English language to non-native speakers can be quite challenging. You should express yourself in and clear and understandable manner. As such, the speed at which you speak to your students is important. Speaking slowly to your students is essential, especially if you are handling beginners. 

Although you may initially feel like you are undermining the students, they may appreciate your efforts. You should also consider word choice depending on your students’ level of understanding. Avoid regional variations, overusing slang and phrasal verbs.

Many of your students will be absorbing the content in English and translating it into their native language. Being a native speaker alone does not qualify you to be a TEFL teacher. For example, you must be ready to distinguish between direct and indirect pronouns and give real world examples as you teach. 

Collaborate with your peers and encourage collaborative learning

As an English teacher, it is important to pick some cues from other successful teachers. With the advancement in technology, you can find some quality teaching materials online and incorporate them into your teaching. This may save you time in preparation for your classes. 

Take advantage of the community around you to gather content. Join some online groups from where you can find insights, challenges, and ideas from other people. This may not necessarily substitute the in-person collaboration but it is meant to substitute your teaching material because you get exposed to new ideas.

You can also encourage students to work in small groups or pairs to discuss certain concepts as they solve problems. Students who may be coming from different cultural backgrounds may learn from each other and appreciate your efforts to encourage collaborative learning. 

In collaborative learning, you may begin by introducing a task as you prepare them to engage in a discussion. Give your students enough time to discuss the topic as you respond to their questions. Discussions may help you assess your students as you progress with your lessons, which may simplify your work.

Conclusion

As a TEFL teacher, you may want to make your life easier by taking control of your responsibilities. Balancing your work with social and family activities is necessary for you to enjoy your work and be effective. Adopt some or all the above-mentioned ways in your teaching career and you will have an easier time. 

Author Bio:

Sebastian Rice works as an editor and a copywriter with https://www.rushmyessay.co.uk/ in London for three years. Some of the topics that he loves to write in include inspiration, productivity, sports, human resources, education, and technologies. He dreams of being a bestseller author someday and also be a top-level writer in the academic field.