How to Get Hired to Teach Languages Online
Are you fluent in a specific world or critical language? Do you have a bachelor’s degree? Have you always wanted to teach and just haven’t been able to find a way to get certified?
There has never been a better time to get into this field. While colleges and school districts have cut programs, the need to be culturally competent has never been more important. As jobs move from place-based to the internet, having the ability to speak and communicate in another language has never been more important. Only 25% of all the people in the world speak English. As the need arises, so will the need for teachers of world and critical languages.
Here are a few tips to help you get hired:
First
You have to be passionate about the language you speak. Have you traveled or lived in a country where the language is spoken. Do you have stories to tell about the customs and cultures of the society in which the language is spoken? If so, you might be a great world language teacher.
Second
You have to like young people and believe that they can learn. Were you the youth league coach, a Sunday school teacher or babysitter? Have you been a camp counselor or youth group leader? If you enjoyed any of these experiences, you might be a great world language teacher.
Third
You have to have a desire to learn, over and over again. Teaching in the virtual world requires you to keep fresh. Technology changes often and each day more engaging ways to connect with students are born. If you tend to like to try out new things and you love to learn about other countries and technology, you might be a great world language teacher.
Teaching World Language online is more than a job, it’s a way of life, a calling! To be a great teacher online you must have the ability to learn – and the desire to keep learning. Sometimes this is frustrating, but most often it is exciting – especially when it translates to your learners speaking and communicating with others!
Sound like something you would love to do?
Here are a few steps start you down the path;
- Find the college or university that offers an intern certification.
- Find a job teaching the language in a school or online program
- Take the ACTFL Written and Oral Proficiency Test
- Take the Praxis II
- Apply to the Wilson College program