How To Get Hired As A Teacher Now!
There are numerous reasons why teaching is an extremely rewarding career choice, and here are a few:
1. Job Security
A career in teaching is one of the most crisis-proof jobs because communities will always need teachers even during an economic recession. We've seen the impact on unemployment during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and with schools across the globe switching to online education, teachers remain in high demand. This time of quarantining at home is a blessing in disguise for those thinking about switching careers to teachings or getting that side experience and extra income by teaching or tutoring online.
2. Job Satisfaction
Despite the daily challenges teachers face, a number of surveys indicate that the vast majority of them are satisfied with their job. For example, the School and Staffing Survey by the National Center for Education Statistics showed that nine out of 10 teachers were either “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their teaching career. Factors contributing to high job satisfaction include the ability to make a difference and recognition from colleagues, students, and staff members.
3. Making a Difference
Being able to make a difference in students’ lives and see the impact you created directly is one of the best feelings. The daily “aha” moments they witness from students are the most rewarding as teachers typically reported. Seeing students finally understand something and make a breakthrough after struggling allows teachers to experience the direct impact of their work on a daily basis. This keeps them motivated and constantly reminds them of what their purposes are.
Getting a dream job as a teacher is not as difficult as you think. Indeed, there are many factors that determine your chances of success in your application: your teaching experience, educational background, certifications, the subjects you are interested in teaching, and so forth. While you can certainly improve on these areas in time, you might just need somewhere to get started with or take your career to the next level. Here are a few things that you can do now:
1. Boost Your Resumes
- Demonstrate your passion for teaching: Clearly communicate your teaching philosophy, values, and belief about education, and your desire to help students in the career summary section of your resume.
- Education and Credentials: This includes a list of your degrees, certifications, and your GPA, and should be emphasized on the top part of your resume.
- Accomplishments and related experiences: This helps you stand out from other candidates with similar educational backgrounds because job-related experiences are unique. Brainstorm and write down the accomplishments you received and the qualities you have related to the field of education for employers to see your value.
- Use keywords: Employers may be looking for industry-specific words in applications, such as teaching and learning, online education, peer tutoring, ESL/ESOL students, TEFL, K-12, etc. Because employers usually process a large number of resumes, they might have implemented a screening system that automatically searches for the keywords. Therefore, the more relevant keywords, the more likely that you would stand out.
- Refer to sample resumes: Take full advantage of the online resources that have example resumes in certain subject matters, and use them as references or a guideline for your resume.
2. Apply for Positions in Big Cities
Big cities generally have more opportunities because of higher turnovers. The pay rate can also be significantly better than in many suburban and rural areas. Prioritizing and keeping your eyes open for positions in the right location sometimes makes all the differences.
3. Apply on the Right Platform
The key to landing the right job for you is to apply on the right platform. At the end of the day, great teachers simply can’t be defined by the qualifications above. You are all unique individuals with different life experiences that directly impact your teaching styles and interactions with students. Each of you is a whole package. Therefore, where and who you are exposing yourself to is crucial. The right job site would be the one that is resourceful enough to match your qualifications with suitable educational institutions. Sounds too good to be true? Well, it’s actually just one click away.
Among all the public job boards online, Teach Away is one of the most reputable job boards featuring international teaching jobs with English-speaking education organizations, public, and private schools. What is unique about Teach Away is that it is the only partner that serves all school types across the globe, including Pre-K/ECE centers, K to 12 schools, Language schools, Online Teaching, and Governments/Ministries of Education. You’ll find exactly what you are looking for.
4. Network and Reach Out
Never stop networking, even during the lockdown. It is probably the easiest way to reach the jobs that you’ve always wanted. You never know what opportunity is waiting for you after you reach out to your current connections in the education industry, such as your friends, professors, colleagues, and family members.
During social distancing and self-isolation, online social media platforms are always your best friends. LinkedIn is the perfect platform to navigate and search for potential connections with backgrounds and experiences you value, and even Facebook can be a valuable place to do so. Sometimes simply a message or a phone call carries all the surprise.
5. Consider Online Teaching Jobs
Online education has never been more popular due to COVID-19 pandemic. Most schools ranging from K-12 to colleges and universities worldwide have either closed or canceled in-person classes and transitioned to the online and virtual instruction. For example, the largest “online movement” in the history of education took place after the Chinese government instructed students to resume their studies through online platforms, with approximately 730,000, or 81% of K-12 students continued their education via the Tencent K-12 Online School in Wuhan.
There are various ways to teach online, including traditional online tutoring and modern video lessons creation. For native English speakers, these are the most common ways to teach English as a foreign language online. Learn more about the difference between the two here. To help you get started, check out the top online tutoring platforms to teach English at home. If you are enthusiastic about creating educational short videos and spend hours scrolling through Tiktok, Instagram, or other short-form video apps, you might be interested in becoming an ESL Video Content Creator with BlaBla Edtech, a great platform to teach English with videos. Learn more about BlaBla and what it has to offer.
6. Prepare for Interviews
Opportunities will only be there for those who are prepared. Even if you are not called in for an interview, always be prepared to answer some of the potential questions that would come up if you get a callback. Do research on the specific institutions and schools beforehand. Employers value those who are interested in teaching with them specifically, so make sure to get the message across. Think about the questions that you would ask the employers you are interested in to showcase your knowledge and skills, including the work culture and why the employers enjoy their jobs. Avoid asking questions with obvious answers that you can find online.
