Many teachers feel they are underpaid and over worked.
What can teachers do to improve their circumstances?<!--break-->
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Comments
Nik Peachey
TE Team
http://nikpeachey.blogspot.com/ http://quickshout.blogspot.com/
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blairio
There are a number of options missing:
I think that these are more realistic compared to the ones given.
blairio
If teachers are overworked why would the solutions to this include more work?
If teachers feel underpaid and overworked they should either quit the profession or join a union.
teacherM
adrianita
I believe improving teaching skills is as important as getting better qualifications, however, as a teacher, one should consider teaching as something to do for a living, since teaching is not often a way to live at large.
Henry1977
Having worked abroad and in the UK for years, I've found that private teaching gives the greatest rewards.
If you're disciplined with both yourself (good time-management and marketing skills are important) and your students (set clear boundaries regarding payments/cancellations) you can certainly make a good living.
As more and more people go online, the internet provides easy options for teachers to cut out the middleman and get better rates of pay. These range from simple listings sites such as www.gumtree.com to dedicated tutor sites such as www.thetutorpages.com where you can really sell yourself as a teacher.
You'll also need to build up a good collection of teaching materials yourself, since you won't be able to access any at a school. However, with the internet being what it is today, nobody can complain about not having access to quality materials. I find free sites such as www.breakingnewsenglish.com very helpful for topical and interesting one-to-one lessons.
laxman_gnawali
Around the world, teachers' circumstances are similar: they are overworked but are underpaid if we consider the responsibility and accountability they have. Despite this reality, this condition should not sidetrack us from our noble profession. I would like to share how we can change our circumstances.
Each of these activities gives you something more than money: they boost your confidence.
Regards
Laxman from Nepal
AndyHB
I think that the 2 best options - of those given - are to improve one's qualifications and one's teaching skills.
However, one problem of the former can be that of becoming out-of-date. 20 years ago, I did an academic year's TEFL course that was designed for qualified teachers - thus doing away with the need for teaching practice as we had all been observed during our teaching degree courses and our probationary year(s) and allowing us to spend more time on studying phonetics, the History of ELT, grammar, etc.. At the time, we were told that it was a CTEFLA-equivalent qualification. Now, however, some hundreds of hours of teaching later, I am told that it isn't a CELTA-equivalent qualification.
ahmedfadi
Ahmedfadi
Morocco
Nowadays i see many teachers who are concerned only with the salary ( be it low or high).Of course there are reasons why they think so.The cost of living increases tremendously and the prices are going up hugely so one can hardly survive in this capitalist world.Being underpaid and overworked can disappoint a teacher .However, one should always bear in mind that enjoying what we are doing is a key success no matter how hard are the circumstances.Thinking about how to improve your teaching and delivering lessons are more important to me than how much i get. if all your students get good results by the end f the school year, that's the great reward( money)one can get in this life.
mceupc
Dear Colleague ahmedfadi,
I entirely agree with you.Despite recognising strong reasons for teachers to feel disappointed nowadays, we will be more likely to overcome the difficult circumstances if we upgrade our skills and keep being committed, dedicated to our profession.
We have to reflect on our daily tasks, on the learners' reaction/feedback, modify some teaching attitudes, make the learners aware of their learning strategies so as to overcome difficult circumstances. By doing so, we certainly attain our goals in personal and professional fulfilment.
Best regards,
Maria do Céu