The greatest thing about teaching in Prague is the students. Depending on how well you choose your school, teaching in Prague can bring you into contact with some amazing people. You may teach some 'public classes' of six or so people within the school itself, but mainly you'll be travelling to the workplace of individuals who are often heads of industry or successful in whatever field they work in. I taught a newsreader, the director of a film studio, directors of the national bank to mention but a few. Even those who are less 'important' can be equally fascinating and a rich source of Czech history, Prague culture, local information and general good advice. Many become friends.
You'll quickly get to know Prague in a way that people with conventional office jobs never do. Armed with nothing more than an address and a map, you'll be expected to locate your next job and calculate the quickest and easiest route with only minimal help from your school. You'll see parts of Prague that no tourist or ordinary expat ever will.
Though you will work bizarre hours - often early mornings and early evenings with nothing in between and lesson planning till midnight - you will have free time when others are stuck in their nine-to-five. You'll learn more about your own language than you ever did at school and probably learn to love its richness and complexity.
So long as you are prepared to face the downsides, teaching can sometimes feel as though it's not really a job at all - just a pleasant way of meeting new people.
17/05/2008
Travel Passes
It's not an exaggeration, Prague public transport is the best. Cheap, efficient and reliable, travelling around Prague and the Czech Republic is a joy.
If you are staying in Prague for longer than a month, save lots of money by buying a Travel Pass. You'll need the appropriate form (available at ticket kiosks) and a passport photograph to obtain your pass, but after that it's simple; just return to the ticket office , give them your pass and ask for a new ticket.
I buy 30 or 90 day tickets, depending on how much I'm moving around I'm doing and what I can afford. Avoid Mustek ticket office - it always has long lines of customers.
DON'T try to get away without buying a ticket. Ticket inspections are frequent and discrete. Almost everyone I know has been caught without a ticket (by accident or design) and the on-the-spot fine well exceeds the price of a 30 day pass. Apart from freeing you from the concern of getting caught, having a ticket means that you are helping keep the ticket prices down and this enviable transport system running.
If you are staying in Prague for longer than a month, save lots of money by buying a Travel Pass. You'll need the appropriate form (available at ticket kiosks) and a passport photograph to obtain your pass, but after that it's simple; just return to the ticket office , give them your pass and ask for a new ticket.
I buy 30 or 90 day tickets, depending on how much I'm moving around I'm doing and what I can afford. Avoid Mustek ticket office - it always has long lines of customers.
DON'T try to get away without buying a ticket. Ticket inspections are frequent and discrete. Almost everyone I know has been caught without a ticket (by accident or design) and the on-the-spot fine well exceeds the price of a 30 day pass. Apart from freeing you from the concern of getting caught, having a ticket means that you are helping keep the ticket prices down and this enviable transport system running.
16/05/2008
Getting qualified
To get any decent job in Prague, you will need a certification, and they aren't cheap - expect to pay around £800 for a month course plus another £400 or so for accommodation. You only want to do this once, so it's important to choose the right training school. There is lots of info on the web about the merits of different schools and it's worth ploughing through them all to find the right one.
I went to INTESOL Prague and can highly recommend it. It is small, professional, yet personal enough to feel that they are really working towards getting you placed in a good job. I did teacher training in Britain just two years before I came to Prague, and the month-long TEFL course was a short, intensive version of what I'd spent a year doing to qualify as a secondary school teacher.
Don't expect it to be easy. I could never understand the many people I know who did the course with no real intention to teach. It's a hard, nerve-racking month. Learning to teach is an exercise in public humiliation and it's almost certain that someone will end up in tears. Living in shared accommodation with the other student teachers can be both a blessing and a curse. They are great for the emotional and educational support you'll need but a nightmare when nerves and tempers are already at breaking point.
Things to look for and ask about:
I went to INTESOL Prague and can highly recommend it. It is small, professional, yet personal enough to feel that they are really working towards getting you placed in a good job. I did teacher training in Britain just two years before I came to Prague, and the month-long TEFL course was a short, intensive version of what I'd spent a year doing to qualify as a secondary school teacher.
Don't expect it to be easy. I could never understand the many people I know who did the course with no real intention to teach. It's a hard, nerve-racking month. Learning to teach is an exercise in public humiliation and it's almost certain that someone will end up in tears. Living in shared accommodation with the other student teachers can be both a blessing and a curse. They are great for the emotional and educational support you'll need but a nightmare when nerves and tempers are already at breaking point.
Things to look for and ask about:
- How many students are on the course
- How many study hours / how many teaching hours
- What kind of qualification (though as long as it is a recognised one, don't worry too much about which one it is)
- What facilities do they provide
- What is the age group of the other students (you don't want to be everyone's 'mummy' or 'daddy')
- Will they help you find a job / place to live / whatever else you need
Teaching - the downsides
The first thing you should know about teaching ESL in Prague is that the number of teachers available far exceeds the number of teachers needed. Having said that, it's not difficult to find a job because so many teachers leave.
The problem with the ESL industry is that many 'teachers' are in fact young travellers who use teaching as a means of earning some cash before moving on to their next port of call. It's a bit like bar work in Britain - considered a casual, often informal, form of employment with low pay and a high staff turnover. Fine if you are a student looking for a bit extra spending money, not so good if you are a professional with rent and bills to pay.
Despite your qualifications, experience and earnest remonstrations of sincerity and commitment, most language schools will still treat you, at least in your first year, as they do everyone else. This means, in effect, that they will expect you to turn up late, or not turn up at all, leave half way through the year without giving notice, and fail to understand even the basics of English grammar. This is a job where you have to prove yourself by what you do, not by the bits of paper attached to your c.v.
So your first year to be more or less difficult depending on how wisely you choose your school. First year teachers are given the lowest pay, the least accessible students and unreliable and unsociable hours.
You will be exhausted from the hours you work, though you will only be paid for the small fraction of your working day when you are actually teaching. Holidays, instead of being a thing to look forward to, will be another concern because you probably won't get paid for them.
Half of the people you meet will tell you that they are a teacher, though you may doubt that they can spell their own name or define the word 'noun'. Quite often, despite visiting many students, you won't speak to another soul all day as you travel from job to job, alone.
Don't worry, there are many upsides to the job, and it will get better. Just be prepared.
The problem with the ESL industry is that many 'teachers' are in fact young travellers who use teaching as a means of earning some cash before moving on to their next port of call. It's a bit like bar work in Britain - considered a casual, often informal, form of employment with low pay and a high staff turnover. Fine if you are a student looking for a bit extra spending money, not so good if you are a professional with rent and bills to pay.
Despite your qualifications, experience and earnest remonstrations of sincerity and commitment, most language schools will still treat you, at least in your first year, as they do everyone else. This means, in effect, that they will expect you to turn up late, or not turn up at all, leave half way through the year without giving notice, and fail to understand even the basics of English grammar. This is a job where you have to prove yourself by what you do, not by the bits of paper attached to your c.v.
So your first year to be more or less difficult depending on how wisely you choose your school. First year teachers are given the lowest pay, the least accessible students and unreliable and unsociable hours.
You will be exhausted from the hours you work, though you will only be paid for the small fraction of your working day when you are actually teaching. Holidays, instead of being a thing to look forward to, will be another concern because you probably won't get paid for them.
Half of the people you meet will tell you that they are a teacher, though you may doubt that they can spell their own name or define the word 'noun'. Quite often, despite visiting many students, you won't speak to another soul all day as you travel from job to job, alone.
Don't worry, there are many upsides to the job, and it will get better. Just be prepared.
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