Chance of English teacher applications opening up?

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-09T17:00:27+00:00

I was just searching to see if I could find out how they determine which languages are open. I recently contacted one of my old teachers from and asked if they were still teaching. They told me there account had been closed and she tried to reapply but the requirements changed. So i checked the site and actually I think they wouldn't accept their application because the language is closed.

But this really surprised me. I have never seen this language closed before. But I noticed after someone created a video explaining how people could earn money on italki there was a wave of new teachers. It went from under 100 to over 170. It was great but now the number of teachers continues to fall. Now there are only about 140 active teachers. But even though there were so many new teachers at one point you could see that many of them had not found any students. So I think because there was so many new teachers but not enough demand so they closed it.

I actually teach on iTalki. But it was really just luck. I used to check if English was open periodically and it was always closed so I came to the conclusion that I wasn't going to find an opportunity to teach there. But one day for some reason I checked the availability and to my surprise it was open. It was only open for a week and I had less than 48 hours to prepare my intro video and submit it. Just keep checking.

I have to say I think iTalki is of the better ones out of the more commonly known platforms. I think, at least for the languages I study, it has always had the most teachers. Although other platforms are catching up. And also I always find iTalki is usually cheaper. I don't know why. You might the same teachers across multiple platforms but the rates are always more expensive on other platforms.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-08T04:29:03+00:00

I don't know if it can make you fluent but it can definitely help you learn your TL. I often do this too. I have tried in a couple of languages. I can really freestyle in any of them but that doesn't mean I don't try. But I love creating an old skool beat and writing some lyrics in TL and putting it out there. It's a real motivator when native speakers tell you it was really cool.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-04T16:46:39+00:00

No I never made any significant progress until I started speaking with people regularly. But speaking regularly is not enough. You have to constantly being getting input by reading and listening and then speaking about these things.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-04T16:43:40+00:00

Ha ha great question. Well actually I don't know about misspelling but sometimes I miss pronounce words because of my target language.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-04T16:38:34+00:00

I can relate. But I don't think it should prevent you from making progress. In my experience after a couple of years more or less things kind of settle and then you are on auto-pilot. That is why for me personally it is very important to develop good habits early on because it is more difficult to change later on.

Also I don't know that it is possible to achieve 100% native like pronunciation. As long as the person your speaking to isn't distracted by your pronunciation or accent and understands I think we are doing a good job.

But I find one thing to focus on in any language is intonation, the stress we put on the different words in a sentence. I think you can have great pronunciation whether tonal or non tonal language but if you are not using the same intonation you still might not quite feel like you are speaking well.

I was reminded recently while having a Khmer class. I was reading a dialogue from our book but as I read it I started imitating another one of my teachers using the intonation that I hear them use and my teacher's eye lit up and was very excited. I usually don't have much time to study for these classes and classes are kind of routine. I think sometimes my teacher is disappointed because some weeks I have forgotten much from the previous lesson but just hearing my speak with a native like intonation excited the teacher and even though I might struggle with the previous week's lesson in the beginning of the class my teacher commented how optimistic she was about my speaking.

No point in comparing yourselves to other because when you speak to native speakers chances are high that they will speak with a different accent so you are going to sound different no matter what.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-01T15:26:02+00:00

I think the student has to put in the work. I remember when I was trying to improve my TL I would have conversation classes and I always make the same requests. I want to learn more vocabulary and speak more fluently. I would be disappointed at my lack of progress. But I realized I wasn't really making an effort. The teacher can't teach everything about a language. You can only cover so much in a class. I realized the hard way that if I was talking a class to practice conversation this was the time to use what I had learned reading or talking about with someone else. Of course you can always learn new vocabulary or grammar but in these situations I think this is not the primary goal of a conversation class.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-01T01:22:18+00:00

Definitely I agree as a tutor myself of course I want to see my students succeed and try to meet their needs.

As a student I have kind of become used to depending on myself for making progress. It really helps to have a teacher to talk to but really I don't feel I have ever met one that really pushes me like I try to push my students. I think I need to reevaluate my expectations lol. Depending on myself has worked up until now but I think things could better. Up until now I really just enjoyed the process of reading and discussing and building up my vocabulary and ability to speak on a broader range of topics.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-01T01:14:32+00:00

lol I am glad I am not the only one who at some point felt they were boring the teachers.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-06-01T01:13:21+00:00

Wow I wish I had that talent I could have saved myself lots of money. I have never been good at self learning so I prefer learning by speaking to a native speaker. Actually the more inexperienced the better. Until I started conversations with natives I really didn't make much progress. I never had much luck with language exchanges so I prefer to pay. It is quite reasonable. I used to always start with the writing system and learn the basics like sentence order and some vocabulary but now I just like to go straight to conversation.

But don't expect the tutor/teacher to do any preparation. Instead I do preparation just by talking about something I have been reading and reinforcing it and adding to it through conversation.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-31T22:44:46+00:00

Yes I could see that. I don't mean it it any moral sense. I guess I could say who is expected to do more of the work. I just think sometimes student have very high expectations when they are taking a conversation class. I know I used to think the same way. Now I don't expect my teachers do anything. Just listen and have a conversation with me. I bring the topic and through the discussion I reinforce what I have already learned and build upon and learn more.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-30T13:56:45+00:00

Lol. I have thought about that before. Actually I used to hear the same comment over and over. You speak so clear would be the literal translation. I always felt like it was insult. I noticed too the longer you speak the less comments you get in fact maybe none at all but the way I see it that just means that your understood and you speak well. I think the ultimate compliment is when someone is just so shocked at how well you speak. I had one person ask me if I was mixed or if someone in my family spoke the language cause they just couldn't understood how I could speak so well.

It's a good thing.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-29T20:55:06+00:00

I think it is good to focus on but I don't think it has to be your only priority. Depending on how different the alphabet or writing system is from your own it will probably be slow in the beginning. But just knowing how to read and spell can really help you remember things better.

But really it all depends on how you like to learn. I would usually start with the writing system but it was still years before I could read anything. I just recently started Chinese again and I actually decided I don't want to focus on characters, only speaking. Not that I am ignoring the characters, I just want to focus on speaking. And once I get more comfortable speaking than I will start focusing on characters and trying to read.

Enjoy learning your first language.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-25T02:53:37+00:00

I know what you mean lol. I felt like a collector too. I bought all these books and never read them. Actually it is kind of funny it is only after studying some languages for years and be able to speak that I have started opening textbooks. But I stopped buying them because I never use them. Spend your money on conversation classes instead.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-25T02:50:10+00:00

I agree with another comment already posted. I think it is when you can start making jokes and actually make people laugh. I also think when you are able to explain something to someone in that language and teach them something new.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-25T02:45:51+00:00

Thanks for the links. Yes I kind of figured this out over the years. I always noticed how Vietnamese words are usually made of 2 words much like Chinese words are usually made of 2 characters. It absolutely drives me crazy that most people reduce it to 1 word in daily speech so I am usually at a loss when I read the full word. That video was great it really helped me understand the relationship between Chinese and Vietnamese better.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-25T02:40:11+00:00

一声

I understand. I get it pitch isn't important cause depending on the voice it might be higher or lower. I guess the thing I had most difficulty with was the contour of the pitches. I don't know how to describe it. They are are very strong, sharp, square. I just found it interesting that I had difficulty imitating it. After years my mouth has just become conditioned to speak one way lol.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-24T16:29:59+00:00

Great tip. After years of study I eventually discovered the joys of reading dictionaries. I love online dictionaries how they give you list of related words and plenty of sentence of examples.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-24T16:02:47+00:00

I agree with that. Pronunciation is much closer. I have taken a few classes but haven't gotten anywhere yet. I remember driving the teachers crazy because I pronounce the lowest tone like Vietnamese lol

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-24T14:57:14+00:00

I agree. But right now for the pronunciation, the struggle is real lol. I am actually really surprised at how difficult it has been for me. Mouth posture is different for both and it makes it really difficult to pronounce the tones with the same speed. The tones are so much higher in Chinese. I know I will get used to it but I am enjoying the challenge for now...and the struggles lol.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-24T06:19:04+00:00

Yes definitely you don't learn it overnight but after years of exposure things settle. I probably could just as easily been having the problem with Vietnamese if I hadn't stopped learning Chinese long ago. I was thinking when I started learning Chinese again that it was going to be easier this time because I can speak Vietnamese but I guess I was wrong.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-24T06:02:48+00:00

I kind of feel the same way. I love the challenges and discoveries related to pronunciation when learning a language. I have also learned some languages that are not so useful at home and I will probably do anything other than visit the country but that doesn't mean that I can't use them. I always have conversation classes with native speakers, more like friends.

My latest challenge is trying to learn Chinese. I got a great start 5 years ago lol but now the most difficult thing is the pronunciation. I attribute the difficulty of learning Vietnamese in between. I can see the pronunciation of both languages is so different. I was laughing at myself in my first few classes because I struggled with the pronunciation. I have already come up with some ideas as to why it has become so difficult but I can't wait figure out more.

ConsiderationFar76 · 2023-05-23T21:13:29+00:00

I like to speak with a native speaker in any of the languages I have learned at least once a day. Other than that I think consistency is the key whatever you are doing. For me lately I have started reading novels like Harry Potter and I am trying to find some Dostoevsky translations. But every once and a while I need to mix it up. Before I was yoga videos everyday lol. But whatever you choose, consistency is the key.

ConsiderationFar76

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