Willow – Maldives
Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger…
My job is huge. I’m trying to set up a school that can be run by one teacher/ administrator/ director of studies. Something that is self-explanatory and self-supporting. I have approximately 200 students on two islands that all receive 2 classes a week from me. I’ve managed to cut this into only about 30 classes a week – which is very high volume teaching, especially if you are the one to do all of the reports, scheduling, and developing a syllabus/action plan which includes having to completely restructure or throw out what was done before if it didn’t work.
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Study a TEFL course with TEFL Zorritos in Peru, South America and travel the world, live abroad and enrich people’s lives by teaching them English. A TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) Certificate is an internationally accredited and accepted qualification to teach English to people from non-English speaking countries. More questions? Head to our What is TEFL? page
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Some days are worse than others. This week has been filled with those days. I teach the courses in 3 months at a go. After 3 months I usually take a short holiday and then I take 2-3 weeks (depending on how much paperwork has stacked up) to review, do data entry, plan and reposition as well as make the schedules, certificates and end of term reports that are personal and meaningful for all 200 students.
I hate office work. I really do. This is the time that is the most difficult for me, since it’s a lot of Excel sheets, and data manipulation. How I dream of administrators! (God bless them everyone!) The most difficult thing about this time however is that because I’m not teaching everyone seems to think that I’m not doing anything. Every time anyone sees my face, they say, “When are classes starting? You’re taking holiday now? Relaxing time?” This is usually followed by my silent screams.
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Our TEFL Certificate course is held at the gorgeous Sunset Club in Zorritos. Sunset Club is a private club and hotel where you will study surrounded by palm trees and overlooking their stunning private beach. Our training site is located within metres of the ocean which provides a lovely breeze and a breathtaking view. The club has various swimming pools, bars, a restaurant, tennis courts, a soccer pitch and a playground.
Included in your TEFL course fee is lunch daily at Sunset Club for the duration of the course, as well as a private taxi twice daily from your accommodation to the club, as it is located approximately 15 minutes from the centre of Zorritos. You can also choose to stay at the club for the duration of course, which we offer in our Course Packages.
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There are few things worse than doing the parts of the job that you hate the most, that cause you more physical and emotional stress than anything else in your profession, and everyone around you thinking that you must be doing nothing.
As I looked at the calendar and realized that despite the fact that my more than one meter long “to do” list is only half finished, more than two weeks have passed and I really must get classes started by the end of 3 weeks. I began spending 14 hours in the office instead of the usual 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Then one night I just looked at the stacks around me and the tears came tumbling down. Fortunately, it was only a minor break in the dam and subsided after about 5 minutes. A long time ago, a friend said to me, “Let it out. You’re too tough. Sometimes we just need a good cry to get the frustration out.” It helped. I spent the next two hours writing a proposal for the use of a laptop for the position, with the help of a classmate and fantastic friend. Who knew that friends on the internet could be so loving and supportive? Here’s hoping something comes of it.
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GUARANTEED TEACHING POSITION IN CHINA FOR PARADISE TEFL GRADUATES:
- Round-trip airfare
- Accommodations
- Complete visa assistance
- Support network in place to help you get settled
- Competitive salary teaching oral English
- Positions starting in February & August each year
- Graduates must be at least 18 years old with no upper age limit
- Bachelor Degree NOT required
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Now, it’s only 11 hours into my day, but it’s been very productive and I finally got out the second island’s schedule to be reviewed by all departments. Now I just have to make all of the certificates from the last course and attendance sheets for the next course and I should hopefully be ready to start on Wednesday! Hooray!
I tell myself that this is like a second schooling experience. If I can accomplish what I set out to do on this job, then I can do anything in the profession. If whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, than I’ll be Superwoman when this finishes, and thankfully!
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TEFL Zorritos: What could be better? Study in a beautiful Peruvian beach town, great accommodations available, including delicious local food. Fully accredited 160 Hour TEFL course with a practical approach that provides you with 5 advanced certifications at absolutely no extra cost! And guaranteed job search assistance in whatever city/country you want to work, waiting for you when you complete the course.
Class sizes are limited, so don’t wait, make your reservation today!
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Ellie Saavedra Ryan