Ideas & Opportunities

For around two decades now, the large number of non-English speaking foreigners visiting the Philippine shores has prompted new job opportunities for the local residents. This “mass exodus,” especially of Koreans, saw the sudden rise of the need for English language teachers, or specifically English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers. English schools cropped up, some run by locals, and some by Koreans themselves.

This upped the Pinoys’ profile in the world as skilled speakers and teachers of English, making even those overseas want to enroll in English courses taught by Filipinos, this time in an online setting. The good news is, you don’t have to be part of a corporation to try your hand out in online teaching, as long as you are qualified, and you have a reliable internet connection.

 

Housewife and teacher

April Atienza, mom to kids aged 11, 5, and 2,  teaches English to Korean students five days out of seven. Her clockwork precision with her schedule enables her to spend time with her family, as well as teach.

At 4:30am, she wakes up her eldest daughter to get ready for school. By 5:00am, she sits down, goes online and teaches her first five students of the day. Afterwards she spends an hour prepping her 5-year-old daughter for school. The better part of the day is allotted to house chores, until it’s time to teach again, seven students this time. Come 8:00 to 10:30pm, she teaches her last five students for the day.

Health reasons prompted Atienza to try teaching online . “I used to teach Koreans at an English academy then held several online teaching jobs and editing IELTS part-time until I had to stop,” she explains.

One day while browsing online, she encountered an old student of hers, a Korean English teacher, who suggested that Atienza try her hand at teaching online. “That’s how it started. Since 2007, she’s referring students to me, and I also get students through referrals from my past students.”

Atienza started with six students which eventually grew to 20. “[It is] very difficult for a mother of three...but I have to keep going because (considering our) country’s (economy), if only one parent is working, the income is not enough (for the family’s needs). Now I have 17 students,” she says. Atienza charges P2,200 per head for 20- minute classes, P2,800 for 25-minute classes, and P3,300 for a half-hour class. This brings her an approximate of P40,000 a month in extra income for their household.

 

Her advice is to make sure to have a good PC, a fast internet connection, a headset, microphone, and a webcam; this last item is a must to make students more comfortable as it assures them that you are a legitimate teacher. April also recommends having a back-up laptop and internet access just in case. Further, it is a good idea to stock up on reading materials which are available in Korea so students will be able to follow the lesson plan.

 

Trust Matters

Atienza isn’t affiliated with an ESL company anymore, however, her students trust her and even refer her to their peers. “I do not need to advertise. I just make sure I do not ask for very high fees, which makes them very interested, try me out, then eventually keep on enrolling,” she says.

When recession hit, a few of her students had to let go of her services, but most remained. “I gave discounts and accepted pesos instead of dollars, just so they could continue studying, and I could still have students,” she says. Trust also plays a big part in retaining students.

“That's what I'm most proud of: my students trust me and they believe na kahit mag-refer sila ng isang milyon hindi ko itatakbo ang pera,” she explains. “I make sure that every minute counts--if they paid for a 25-minute class, I make sure that to the last second, it’s sulit,” she continues.

Although the work is rewarding, Atienza says that it has its share of challenges. Mostly, she cannot have holidays off because of the differences in holidays.

Most importantly, she says, “It's not just about speaking the [English] language, you should also know how to teach it.” All in all, she admits it’s a very convenient profession, if you can live without holidays, paid vacation leaves or officemates.  No matter that the setting is online, just like being a traditional teacher, it’s usually a vocation and not just a job.