April 2006
Easy as ABC
Use your native language to earn some extra cash
In a day and age when English is considered the international language, our capabilities as native English speakers are worth their weight in gold. In our last “Red Tape” column, we gave you some tips on how to spruce up your German. This month, we look at how to put your command of English to good use. Whether you intend to make a career out of teaching or are just looking for something short-term and think it would be a rewarding way to make an extra buck or two, consider the opportunities of work as a freelance English teacher here in town—they’re in relatively high demand.
“A lot of people need English for work, some want to learn it to keep up with their children learning it in school and, of course, there are leisure learners who find it an interesting hobby and take it with them while traveling to countries where it’s spoken,” says Briony Beaven, English-language teaching consultant and CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults) course director at the Münchner Volkshochschule.
Almost all English-teaching opportunities in Munich are freelance-based. To maximize your chances of finding a job (and a better paying one, at that), some sort of TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification is advisable. Only one TEFL certification is offered in the city, the CELTA. Awarded by the Cambridge ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) division of the University of Cambridge, the CELTA is the world’s most widely recognized certificate of its kind. CELTA holders are certified to give English instruction to adult learners anywhere in the world, be it at further education establishments or through in-company language-training programs. (Most international, private elementary schools, such as the Bavarian International School and the Munich International School on the other hand, require their teachers to hold a university degree and a government-issued teaching certificate.) CELTA training is offered only once a year at the Volkshochschule, as a full-time, five-week course covering teaching theory and practical training. Mornings are devoted to lesson planning, while the afternoons are spent teaching English students in classrooms, under supervision. This year’s CELTA course runs from June 19 to July 21 and costs € 1,400 (For inquiries about late registration, call Tel. [08106] 345 56.)
Although TEFL certification is certainly an advantage, it’s not mandatory everywhere. If you don’t wish to become certified, there are a number of language schools in town, such as Inlingua, Berlitz and arCanum AKADEMIE, that provide their own training.
“Whether we employ someone depends on how well he or she is able to explain the grammar, to create a learning atmosphere and to present the lessons in a way that students can best absorb,” says Stefan Koelbel, managing director of the arCanum AKADEMIE.
Rates for teaching English vary between € 15 and € 40 per hour, depending on your experience and the route you choose to take into teaching. If you prefer to name your own price and if you want the extra flexibility of planning your own classes, you could consider private tutoring. Try advertising in local papers, or check out the job opportunities in our “Classifieds” section (p. 44) or at
www.lehrersuche.de.
If you’re looking to further yourself professionally as an English teacher, apart from brushing up on your grammar, it’s worth looking into MELTA (Munich English Language Teachers’ Association). This is a useful resource for teachers looking to improve their technique, to network with other teachers, to find jobs and to gain access to teaching conferences. For more information, visit
www.melta.de.
