Is teaching English online worth it?

Can you earn a living teaching English online?

Is it easy to find online jobs for teachers of English?

With demands for online tutoring jobs rising over the last few years, many people are now thinking of teaching English online. Aspiring teachers, high school students, and even full-time employees are getting interested in online English teaching jobs. In short, people with skills in the English language and communication find this to be a profitable source of income. We tried to find answers to many questions that arise in the minds of the budding online tutors looking for online English teaching jobs. 

How can I become an online English teacher?

Becoming an online English teacher is easy if you are a native English speaker or have proficiency in the English language. Some apps and websites give tutors opportunities to use their platforms to get students. At first, you need to get registered as an online tutor and choose English as your subject. You can even teach English as a foreign language. Once you get approved as an online tutor, you can start teaching English online. 

Different apps or websites have different rules. Some might only connect you with students and you can take classes on Zoom or G-meet. Others might let you connect with students only through their platforms.

How do online teachers get paid?

Some platforms might allow you to set your own fees. Also, there are apps or sites that have fixed fees for each subject for the students by the company. Most of these platforms charge some percentage of your fees. The method of payments can be anything Paypal, bank transfer, or even physical checks, etc.

How much do teachers make teaching English online?

Teaching English online is one of the most demanding jobs, especially after the outbreak of covid-19. The income of an online English tutor varies based on the experiences and qualifications of the tutors. On average, online English teaching jobs can fetch you anywhere between $12 to $30 per hour. Besides, some companies even offer incentives or bonuses. However, you must know that the fee structure varies from company to company. Also, the more experience you gain as an online English tutor, the better your chances are to earn more.

Can I teach without a certificate?

Many companies allow only tutors with teachers’ certificates or TEFL or ESL certificates. But some even allow college students or others with proficiency in English to teach English online. Besides, many companies offer online English teaching jobs to native English speakers to teach non-English speakers to communicate in English. Therefore, teaching English online is one of the most popular summer jobs for many college students. 

Basic requirements for teaching English online are:

• Proficiency in English (native speaker or C1 OR C2)
• Laptop or Desktop or Smartphone
• High-Speed internet 
• Will and skills to teach others
• Good communication skills

How do I start teaching English for beginners?

If you want to teach English to beginners, then you need to follow a few steps to create the best course and curriculum for the students. 

• Start from basics like alphabets and phonetics.
• Your course must be divided into 4 categories – Grammar, Vocabulary, Phonetics, and Spoken.
• Grammar should include Parts of speech, Sentence structure, Tense, Subject-verb agreement, Types of sentences, Opposites, Synonyms, Idioms, Phrasal Verbs, Punctuation, and Voice.
• Vocabulary should include lists of commonly used naming words, action words, and describing words.
• Phonetics must help the students know how to pronounce different words.
• The Spoken part is there to encourage students to speak in English. So, there should be extempores, debates, role plays, mock interviews, and teaching intonation.

Online English teaching jobs can fulfill your desire of becoming a teacher as well as earning a lucrative income. This is also one of the best online jobs for teachers of English. But you can only succeed in teaching English online if your method of teaching is simple and easy-to-understand for all. So, if you think you have what it takes to be an online English tutor, it’s the best time to get moving. With so many opportunities around, you must remember the famous quote:

“Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them.” – William Arthur Ward