Can I teach English online without knowing another language?

Interested in teaching English online, but worried you might struggle if you can’t speak your students language? Don’t be! You don’t need to speak another language to teach English online, in fact most online companies won’t even ask you if you can speak another language and if you do they’ll encourage you to only use English in your lessons anyway.

When it comes to teaching English online, the main qualification employers will look for is a TEFL certificate, without a TEFL certificate you’ll struggle to find an online teaching position. Some employers might also require you to have a degree, but there are lots that don’t so it’s definitely not a strict requirement.

Getting TEFL qualified is super straight forward and you can get qualified completely online so you don’t even need to leave your house to gain your TEFL certification.  All you need to be able to get TEFL qualified is a fluent-level of English – easy!

Initially it can seem super difficult to teach someone when you not be able to fully communicate with them, but it’s not! When you’re teaching English online it’s super important to use props and visual aids to help your students learn.

The type of props you’ll use will depend entirely upon your students ages and abilities. If you’re teaching young children it’s a great idea to have a print out of the alphabet, flash cards, a whiteboard and hand puppets or stuffed toys to help them learn. When it comes to teaching adults, you might need to change this slightly depending on their level of English. If they already have a good level of English you might not actually need any props at all.

Download our FREE How To Teach English Online Guide for more info on how to become an online English tutor!

Take our 2-minute teaching online quiz to find out if you’re eligible to start earning from home as an online English tutor!