Age, Sex, Race, Religion, Family

Teachers are like potatoes - they come in many shapes and sizes...

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Age, Sex, Race, Religion & Family - will I fit in?

This article is about whether your age, sex, race, religion or family circumstances as a teacher will affect your chances of getting a job. For an article on teaching sex and religion in class, see here.

In many parts of the world a teacher is held in very high regard and expected to display a high moral standard when it comes to both their professional and personal life. The moral standard they must live up to will depend on where they are teaching and not necessarily their own background. So, for example, whilst a teacher's private life and background might be perfectly acceptable in one country, it might not work so well in another.

Age

See the main article: Age Limits in TEFL Teaching

Most schools prefer younger teachers in their twenties. This is perhaps because they can pay them less and manipulate them more easily. However, there are certainly many schools which prefer older teachers who can often bring authority to the classroom as well as greater experience and style to the lessons. Although most jobs won't specify an age limit, it is as well to let the school know when you apply how old you are to avoid them turning round and canceling everything once you send a photo over for your visa.

Sex

This is only really an issue in certain countries. Male teachers are accepted almost anywhere (whilst being excluded from certain female only schools in certain regions). Female teachers have a harder time of it in places like the Middle East and Asia where the culture of the country treats them as second class citizens anyway. Job advertisements will usually say whether they are for one sex or another; if they don't then usually that means it doesn't matter.

There is unlikely to be any problem regarding being gay, but common sense again should prevail. In some countries it is just not an issue, but in others you will need to keep it discreet, if not very quiet, for obvious reasons.

Race

See the main article, Racism in TEFL.

This is the way it is: in virtually all countries White people stand a much better chance of getting a job and will have less problems than anyone else.

In some countries this may only mean that if you are Black or Asian you will be stared at in the street and the subject of curious comments. (This can happen to anyone in some remote areas where any stranger is the subject of great interest.)

In places like Korea or Japan, Black people will be the subject of a prejudice fostered by local perceptions of Blacks as violent and troublesome. Likewise if you are of Asian descent you will find it difficult to find work in Asia as the schools there want their English teacher to look "foreign" and some will not believe you are an English native speaker.

Most job applications ask for an accompanying photograph and this is where many non-whites are removed from the process, but if you are not white and do find yourself working for a school abroad, then be prepared for possible problems which may be more or less than you can find at home.

Religion

Much of the talk here is common sense. Whilst it is unlikely that you will be hired or fired because of your religion, you should simply not preach or try to find converts in the country you go to. Bad move. Practice your religion in private and never parade it.

Family

In most cases schools employ single teachers. There are cases of couples working together, but in general this is not recommended - see the main article, Applying as a Couple.

When it comes to teachers who are part of a family the situation can become quite difficult.

The first issue is one of economics. Most TEFL salaries are fairly low, especially in entry level jobs, and whilst they are enough for a single person to live on and enjoy themselves, they are (in most cases) simply not enough for a couple to live on, let alone a family.

Another issue is one of day care for children. In many cases teaching hours are outside the usual working hours so a teacher may well find themself working either early in the morning or, more likely, late at night. Sometimes there will also be split shifts. This means that if a teacher has children there will need to be some kind of babysitter or day-care available. Most schools won't provide for this and, in most cases, a teacher's salary will simply not be enough to pay for day-care or several hours of babysitting per day.