Teaching English abroad is always an adventure, but the adventure takes on a new meaning when teaching kindergarten. You may recall one of my colorful experiences from my previous blog post "Teaching English Abroad: The Evils of Spinsterhood (According to Kindergartners)." Here is another experience from my Korean adventure for your enjoyment: I think it was in November when ...
Japan has embraced many areas of Western culture, while with anime and karaoke are just a couple of things North Americans love about Japan. For those of you who are fascinated with the Japanese culture, teaching English as a second language in Japan could be the perfect entree to immerse yourself into a place where ancient traditions and practices ...
Here at Oxford Seminars, we get asked all the time about what it's like to be in a certain country, or where the best place to teach English abroad is. These are tough questions to answer because each country and region has its own charm and reason to visit for a week or stay for a few years. While the ...
Each year as December 31st rolls around, we have an opportunity to revisit our past year to consider our accomplishments, remember our moments of exhilaration, and ponder our ups and downs. We reflect on moments of awe, wonder, sorrow, and joy. As we parse these experiences and how they’ve impacted us, we can begin to look ahead to the ...
With the largest landmass of South America and nearly half of the population of all of South America, Brazil is a colorful mix of history, race and traditions. Being one of the largest countries in the world, Brazil has big cities and big destinations whose names are legendary. The Amazon dominates the northern part of the country, which contains ...
Teaching abroad has amazing potential to changes lives. Living among different people, learning their traditions and speaking their language can expand horizons like nothing else. Growth most often involves challenges, and as our instructor Corinne Toffan explains, culture shock is one of them. Culture shock isn't a unique phenomenon - it happens to everyone. From one of our instructors ...
Christmas is a widely celebrated holiday throughout the majority of English-speaking countries. However, some countries that do not speak English as their first language have begun to celebrate the commercial side of the holiday as well. Take China, for example. In the 8 years I worked there, it became more and more common to see people celebrating Christmas - even ...
Japan was my first ESL teaching location, and as such, it will always hold a special place in my heart. Interestingly, new teachers abroad find that social activities are as much a part of the job description as teaching English. Not to belittle the obligatory dinner outings, field trips, and seasonal parties, but the school undōkai soon became my ...
Our Job Placement Advisors have experience teaching abroad and have been to where you are or hope to go. In this video, Allison explains what it was like to go from a small town in England to a big city teaching English in Japan. She also worked as as a teacher trainer and a corporate English instructor. As she explains, her ...
Reactions are split when I tell people that my first ESL job was in Mexico. There are those that gasp and ask how I survived, and there are those that express desire to experience a little Latin culture themselves. Even for me, Mexico conjures up ...