teaching english

[sejvirgo]

hey ray, can you please give me some of the more helpful websites you found in regards to teaching english in prague. although i've just begun my career in nursing here in the states, i miss europe so much! i would love to move overseas for a year or so. any help you can give would be appreciated. thanks!

[BigRay]

In order to teach English in Prague, you first need to get certified. That is, you must take a (usually) four-week course to get your Teaching English as a Foreign Langauge (TEFL) Certificate. All schools hiring English teachers will require this certificate. In Prague, I have heard that it used to be fairly easy to get jobs without this certificate, but this is no longer the case. Many places at home and abroad will have teacher training courses that give this certification. Here is a list of some that are based in Prague:

Next Level Language Institute
www.nextlevellanguage.com
This is the place where I got my certification and I can wholeheartedly recommend them. The staff is extremely helpful and I am still in touch with them even now. The location can't be beat, either: just steps from the Prague Castle.

International House Prague
www.akcent.cz/training.php
International House is pretty reputable around the world. I think the Prague one is pretty good, but I have heard some dodgy things about their branches in other parts of Eastern Europe.

Prague Schools
www.tefl.cz/
I know people who took this course and they enjoyed it and thought it was worthwhile. That said, they were in class 12 hours a day and it was more expensive than the program I took!


Job Resources
Once you have a certificate, your best resource will be your school. The schools mentioned above will usually help you secure a job during the course. Also, many employers will recruit directly from the school and give presentations during the last week of the course.

There are plenty of jobs here. Don't be nervous about making a decision to come here without a job. In my opinion, it is much easier to come with no plan and figure it out here. It takes far less time than doing tons of research at home and never really knowing what is good and bad.

Another thing to keep in mind is that there are a ton of "backpacker" teachers here. By this I mean people who are travelling who basically decide to extend their trip by teaching English. This is the group that is largely drunk most of the time and whose main focus is keeping the party going rather than working. There are lots of horror stories of what these people do or the trouble they get into, and they always seem to blame it on Prague. I only mention this because this group makes a lot of noise and if you research things, you will hear more whining than positive things. But that doesn't mean that teaching here is bad. In fact, I know a ton of people who are doing it and having a great time both in and out of the classroom.

Some good links

St. James Language School - www.stjames.cz/index.php?section=teachers&lang=cz
This is where I currently work, and for the most part it is not bad.

Expats.cz - www.expats.cz
Message boards for just about everything aimed at expats living in Prague. Some good language school info here, too.

Dave's ESL Cafe: www.eslcafe.com
I think this site is a waste of time. It has been taken over by people who have nothing better to do than complain about everything. If you take a look, you will see what I mean. I wouldn't even mention this site, but you will likely come across it sooner or later.

If you have any other questions, just let me know, and I'll try my best to answer.

Cheers,
Ray

[sejvirgo]

Thanks Ray!! I'll check out these sites and let you know if I have any other questions. I appreciate your help!

S