Category: Advice for Teaching Abroad

If you are applying for the EPIK program you are probably terrified about how the EPIK interview will go. Here is some advice from Neysha Bauer, an EPIK teacher who has been through the process before!

Last year was my first year in Korea, and my first year learning about the dreaded term “desk warming.” If you’ve not yet experienced desk warming season, then let this list be your guide during those awful bitter weeks when most expats tend to go a bit mad and lose their minds.

When you have a wide range of ages and English abilities in your class, it can be tough to come up with activities and lessons that are interesting to everyone. Material tends to be much too easy for some students, while completely going over other students’ heads, making it difficult to tailor lessons so that everyone is engaged and learning.

Introducing our latest teacher interview. This week we interviewed Stefanus who took the plunge and made his first steps into a teaching career by moving all the way to China to begin a teaching position. Read on to see what experiences he has had as a first time teacher in China.

Having the ability to speak the language in Taiwan, or in any location, will open up your experience so much more. I have lost count of how many times I have felt on the outside of a conversation being had in mandarin by my friends or people I know here. Jokes will be told that I don’t get, plans will be made that I hear about afterwards, locations exist that I cannot find. Worse than all of this is feeling like a burden to a group who want to speak mandarin but they have to keep explaining everything to me in English. I hate being that guy.

Handsome gents, it’s your turn for a style guide to the Korean office. After polling the male expat group, I’ve come up with a neat list to help you put your best foot forward. There’s no longer any need to stress over what to wear at the office!

Attention EPIK newbies! Today we’ll tackle one of your biggest worries, the dress code. The first part will focus on the women’s rules while the next installment will be just for the guys.

Last week, I wrote about the unique challenges of teaching large classes. This week, the focus is on the other end of the spectrum, teaching small classes. At first, it might sound like teaching small classes is easier. After all, you’ve got only a few students to keep track of, and classroom management ought to be a breeze. But teaching just a few students can be surprisingly tricky.