With the rapid growth of the online English teaching market, making money for English teachers has become much easier; Based on reports, English learners all over the world far outnumber native speakers so it seems that teaching English will be in demand for a long time; The growth of global communication and the popularity of English language teaching has led to the emergence of online English teaching jobs that can be an extra income source for both experienced teachers and also the naive ones. Scroll down & explore some practical ways to earn extra money teaching English with any skill level.
1- Get certified and make money
To earn extra money, you can join the WordUp Certified Coach Program which starts with an online course about the science of vocabulary learning and will be finalized with a multiple-choice test; Upon completion of the course and passing the test successfully, teachers will be granted certification and become entitled to a range of benefits and income opportunities. They can get an extra annual income of $2000 after joining the program.
2- Apply for online English teaching platforms
Online teaching platforms hiring English teachers are the easiest ways for teachers to get paid. They can offer you good money if you met all the requirements; Do you want to get hired by these companies? So make sure you have the essentials to apply for :
- An accredited TEFL or TESOL certification
TEFL or TESOL certification is a must-have requirement for almost all online platforms. You’d better spend at least a 100-hours course plus live practice teaching sessions on some internationally recognized TEFL/TESOL certifications. There are plenty of schools providing such courses that you can choose from.
- BA degree
The main requirement for getting the highest pay from online teaching platforms is having a bachelor’s degree, no matter in which field. Although there are some platforms that allow you to teach without a degree, always bear in mind that you won’t be able to get the highest pay.
- Native fluency
Many companies prefer native applicants from the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada, and finally South Africa. But If you believe that you’re fluent enough in English, you will definitely find your dream English teaching job. Just do not give up and embrace your failures.
- Previous experience
Having some experience in teaching English is a bonus for your online career path and it makes you eligible to demand more hourly pay; Any other experience can have a positive influence too (translation experiences, research experience, and even babysitting). There are also some companies that allow you to start from scratch with them.
- Sufficient equipment for teaching online
A laptop or PC, a stable internet connection, and a headset microphone are all you will need to start your online teaching career.
3 – Take private online English classes
There are a lot of students willing to pay any amount of money to have you as their private tutor. These students are the best choices to earn extra cash besides your normal crowded online or traditional classrooms. You can also hold small group classes using class management software or some other popular applications such as Skype, Zoom, Google meet, or else.
4 – Market your teaching skills
As the English teaching market is growing, the number of teachers entering this competition increases; You should be able to showcase your abilities in such a market to potential students and stand out from the crowd. There are some tips and tricks for marketing that you’ve better get to know about them. We’ve tried to cover the main marketing techniques for English teachers in an earlier post. There are some open marketplaces helping teachers to find students; LinkedIn is also a great place to connect with lots of employing companies and potential students. Do not underestimate the power of social media. If you want to be open to opportunities, you have to be friendly with them.
5 – Sell your English teaching materials
If you’ve managed to prepare high-quality teaching materials for your students through years of experience, why not make money by sharing your expertise with more naive teachers. There are online platforms that make the process of selling educational materials much easier; TeachersPayTeachers is the first online website that provides tons of resources for teachers organized by subject and grade levels; These resources are prepared by dedicated, experienced, and passionate teachers over years of experience. Unbelievable but there were some users who managed to earn up to $1 million on this site! (source)
You can prepare lesson plans, worksheets, study cards, exams and tests, presentations and all other sorts of valuable materials that you think can contribute to better English teaching; Who knows? Maybe you will be the next fortunate teacher to earn a 7-figure salary!
6 – Teach specialized English courses
One of the best ways for boosting your teaching income is by teaching English to different audiences; You can demand higher hourly pay by teaching English for different purposes:
- Teaching English to different age groups (kids, teens or adults)
- Teaching English to professionals (businessmen, medicals, academic paper writing for academics, etc.)
- Teaching English for international exam preparation (TOFEL, IELTS, etc.)
As you can see, there are lots of different strategies to add to your income as an English teacher; Although it’s not a lucrative job, you can take advantage of numerous opportunities available to you for developing your teaching career to make more money; You can even use different strategies at the same time: you can work for several companies, accept some additional private students, and also you can sell your materials for different students; you can choose a niche and teach to more professionals and also have your own teaching business. All you need to do is to be innovative and not put all your apples in one basket!
