Are There Jobs For Online English Teachers?

Let’s face it, everybody and their uncle is teaching English online these days. And while teaching English online might seem like a dream job, if all the students already have teachers then it doesn’t make sense to get involved, does it? Because we were worried that the digital world might be running out of space for all the teachers who are now popping up all over the place, we decided to crunch some numbers to find out if there is any space for those of us who like the idea of teaching from our couches. Let’s ask the question, are there jobs for online English teachers?

How many people are learning English?

Globally, in 2020 there are an estimated 2 billion people learning English. In China alone, there are 300 million English language learners. Even in the US, 10% of the learners in the public school system are English language learners. What does this mean? Clearly, there is a need for English language teachers.

So far so good.

But why now?

Online learning is widespread

In China, there are roughly 100 000 jobs for English teachers opening up every year. However, there is still such a shortage of teachers, particularly in the rural areas, that since 2013 China has been trialling online English lessons in schools. In other words, online teachers are streamed to a screen inside a classroom. Clearly this brings more opportunities for online English teachers. 

Learners are ready for online learning

Young Learners and teens are already digitally savvy – more so than most of us adults. As a result, there are more likely to be attracted to online learning than ever before. The need for mainstream education to keep up with these digitally-inclined students means that many schools and institutes are more and more incorporating digital educational resources into their lessons. While online learning is unlikely to replace conventional education in a bricks-and-mortar building, the use of technology and thus online teaching is highly likely to increase even more.

Read more: The Boom of Online English Teaching and Why You Should Be Doing It

Currently there is a huge demand for teachers

At the moment especially there is a huge need for online teachers simply because the online learning and teaching industry is booming. With restrictions in many countries, learners are turning to online learning to keep up with their academic workloads, while parents are looking for online tutors to teach the subjects they are not familiar with.  

Digital learning is the new normal

No matter our thoughts on the subject, recent global events has seen that digital learning has taken a front seat in education. Aside from the challenges that we have encountered, many people have realized that this might be the way forward. While this won’t see the bricks-and-mortar schools and universities closing their doors, it will mean a huge increase in the way digital elements of education are incorporated into mainstream learning.

Read more: 5 Potential Problems in The Online Classroom and Their Solutions

More online schools are opening

Because of the current situation, new online schools are opening every day. Yes, we will admit that there are a few teaching platforms that are quite saturated at this point, which means you may be put on a waiting list or you may not get as many teaching hours as you’d like. But all you need to do is find the younger schools and newer platforms and you should have no problem considering there is no shortage of students. Or you can even try to find your own students if you’d like. 

As you can see, there are a fair few reasons why now is the time to teach English online. We’re not saying everyone can do it – because not everyone can do it – but if you’ve been thinking about it then there is no better time than now to do it. The TEFL Academy has got you covered when it comes to your TEFL qualification, FAQs, concerns and anxieties, resources for your lessons, top tips to get you an online job, and even practical teaching experience. So really the only question left is, what are you waiting for?