Meet Grace: Indonesian English teacher working in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

In this article, we’ve had a chat with teacher Grace from Indonesia, who just recently launched her English teaching career in Vietnam where she teaches English to young learners.

Launching an English teaching career overseas can seem overwhelming if you are just starting out. There are many challenges that need to be overcome before you are able to comfortably step into your new role as a professional English teacher.

However, with the right teacher training and support, you will have created a solid foundation that you can then start building your teaching career on top of.

Grace just recently decided to start her English teaching journey in beautiful Vietnam. She’s been kind enough to share with us some of her best tips on how you too can get started teaching English in Vietnam. Let’s hear what she has to say!

Grace’s interview:

💬 How long have you been teaching?

“It’s been about a month now. To be honest it was quite hard for me for the first week because this is my first English teaching job. However, my company helps me a lot through training and also discuss with me if I have any problems regarding my students or understanding the syllabus.”

💬 What made you decide to start teaching English?

“Basically I like kids and meeting new people.

When I was in senior high school I struggled a great deal with learning how to speak and listen, and I remember I was feeling so lost and confused because I just didn’t getting it. The teacher in my English class began tutoring me on the side, and she quickly realized that the root of my problem was that I was struggling to speak due to thinking too much about grammar. She began using simple sentences and told me that if I want to speak English naturally, I need to stop overthinking how to always use perfect grammar and just start speaking. This turned out to be exactly what i needed.

I’ve always been so grateful for her innovation and commitment to help me. Later on, I tried to teach English on an language exchange app for free. The students were able to understand my teachings well, so I decided that maybe I should try to teach at a school as the next step of my English teaching journey.”

💬 Are you currently teaching English in person or online?

“I currently teach English in person to young learners in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.”

💬 What made you decide on teaching English in Vietnam?

“I have fiance from Vietnam, so I decieded to move to Vietnam when the border reopened last March”

💬 What’s the best thing about living and teaching in Vietnam?

“Vietnamese (especially in Ho Chi Minh City) are so nice to foreigners and they really like learning new things. A lot of them even offered to teach me Vietnamese and in turn I teach them English through language exchange.

Things here also quite cheap so my cost of living isn’t that high each month. The students here are also very smart. They enjoy learning new languages and always try to speak English as much as they can. They also try their best to speak with foreigners. “

💬 What type of students do you prefer to teach and why? (e.g. adults, children, etc.)?

“I like working with children. My company offers 3 types of classes and I teach all 3 types (3-5 years old class, 6-9 years old class and 10-14 years old class). I can’t choose which one I think is the best because all 3 of them have their own characteristics.”

💬 What’s your best teaching memory?

“As I’ve just recently started my teaching career, my best teaching memories are from what I’ve been doing over the past the month. I like it when the students can understand, are not afraid of foreigners, and when they want to listen to their teacher.“

💬 What’s your dream teaching destination and why?

“Currently, my dream teaching destination is still somewhere in South East Asia because there’s generally not a lot of culture shock between South East Asian countries. Also, working in South East Asia allows me to live not too far from my home country – Indonesia.”

💬 How did you find your current teaching job?

“I found it on a job vacancy app called Glints.“

💬 What kind of teaching qualifications do you possess?

“I have a 120-hour TESOL/TEFL certificate from World TESOL Academy.”

💬 Would you recommend others to also pursue English teaching certifications like TESOL/TEFL?

“I absolutely recommend others to also pursue English teaching certifications like TESOL/TEFL because it’s really useful for finding ESL jobs in many countries.”

💬 How do you maintain your personal development?

“I always try to maintain my personal development by attending teacher training sessions, meetings, discussions, and watching teaching videos on Youtube.”

💬 What kind of tips do you have for teachers that are just starting out?

“My best tips for teachers that are just starting out are to always believe in yourself, learn your class and student situation, trust the progress, be eager to always learn new things, and also read and watch videos about teaching methods.”

💬 Do you have any tips for non-native-speaking teachers that can help them succeed in the ESL teaching industry?

“My best tips on how non-native-speaking teachers can succeed in the ESL teaching industry are to speak a bit slower if your students can’t understand you, don’t be afraid of making mistakes in class (your students are also learning just like you), don’t be shy or afraid to ask to expert teachers if you have any questions or even problem you face on.”

💬 Do you have any tips for people that wish to teach in Vietnam?

“A lot of the companies here in Vietnam will just help you to process your visa but they won’t pay for it. For apply for a work visa, you need:

• University degree (legalize by ministry of education, ministry of foreign affairs and the Vietnam embassy in your country of origin, translate it to Vietnamese and legalize by a notary)
• Teaching certification (legalized in the country where it was issued)
• Health check up (completed in the last 6 months before applying for the work visa)
• Police check (completed in the last 6 months before applying for the work visa from your country of origin or by the Vietnam police department)
• If you don’t have a university degree and/or teaching certificate legalized in the country who issued it, they will ask for a higher fee.
• For finding English teaching jobs in Vietnam, you can check on the Vietnam Teaching Jobs website, the Glints app and the Vietnam Works app.
• For accommodation, you can rent a room, house or apartment starting from 5 million VND per month.”

💬 What’s next in store for you?

“I believe that as long as I feel that I want to learn more about this field, I can enjoy teaching ESL because I really like working with kids. I want my students love using English as much as they love using Vietnamese.”

Conclusion

Many aspiring teachers wish to do what Grace has done, which is to make the leap and start teaching English abroad from the get-go. For some, it’s about getting a change of pace, while for others it’s about seeking a better quality of life.

Whatever the reason is, it is important to remember that there are a few steps that you are going to have to take if you wish to meet the minimum requirements for teaching English abroad. Every country has its own rules in place when it comes to the qualifications requirements for work permits and visas. Employers are also free to set their own qualifications requirements on top of these.

There is one thing though that they do have in common when it comes to requirements, and that is that you need to have undergone proper teacher training and certification. Without them, you’ll quite quickly realise that your opportunities are limited.

If you wish to teach in Vietnam, just like Grace, you are also going to have to make sure that you meet the other requirements set by the Vietnamese government.

A good first step would be to start your teacher training with our accredited 120-hour TESOL/TEFL course. Not only will the course allow you to develop the necessary skills needed to professionally teach English abroad and online, but the certificate is also guaranteed to pass through the authentication and visa process for teaching in Vietnam.

Teaching English abroad can be an exciting career path and a life-changing experience for both new and experienced teachers alike. If you do end up going down this path, just make sure that you are well-prepared before setting out.