‘Friendly attitude needed’ to teach English abroad

Posted 01 Jun 2010

An important part of an EFL teacher’s arsenal is a friendly and approachable manner, it has been claimed.

Honor Baldry, writing on The TEFL Blog from i-to-i, said that there are a number of attributes required of someone keen to teach English abroad, with enthusiasm and an open-mind two of the others.

A friendly attitude will make life easier for EFL teachers, Ms Baldry claimed, adding that it will also help one to make new friends in a country which they are unfamiliar with.

"No one wants a mean and grumpy teacher – while it’s important to maintain a degree of professional distance between yourself and your students, you’ll find them much more willing to cooperate in class if you’re fair, friendly and approachable," she added.

Those teaching English abroad also need to do their best at acclimatising to the new culture and environment they find themselves in, retired EFL teacher Ted Tucker stated on the TEFL Teacher Training blog recently.

Category: Teaching and Learning