China now top ESL country?

China now getting good ratings?

http://jimmyesl.com/teach-english-abroad/the-best-countries-to-teach-english-abroad-in-2015/

1. China
2. South Korea
3. Colombia
4. Vietnam
5. Japan
6. Taiwan
7. Ecuador
8. Chile
9. Saudi Arabia
10. Thailand

Of course this is just opinion and seems to be rated based on a mix of pay, work conditions, local culture, and otherwise interest.

Tips for working in China.....

http://jimmyesl.com/teach-english-abroad/teach-english-china-essential-lowdown/

"If you are interested in teaching English in China, then I may be able to help you find a position  through my company..."

Hmm...not sure how objective this article is after reading that.

For North Americans with no qualifications, maybe

1. China - I'd go to sunny, warm, touristy southern island of Hainan, where there's over 8.5 million people but the island's huge and the air's pretty clean. Google it.

2. South Korea - I've taught here since '02 and lovin' it on Jeju since '09. Nuff said.

3. Colombia - I've heard more positives than negatives from people who've been there, against popular perception of drugs and crime. I daydreamed a bit about it but never seriously investigated it. I might though, in the future.

4. Vietnam - Most onliners rave about it but the three I've met who taught there and have returned to Korea to teach more have talked about the petty theft, the sticky weather and the illneses they've suffered. I'm hesitant.

5. Japan - I've visited this country six times over the years and it has almost broke my bank, certainly I went overbudget every friggin' time. I would consider a few places I haven't visited and may be worth my time: Hokkaido to the north I've always wanted to visit and would consider for a year or two; Okinawa to the southernmost part would be a blast to try and live a mostly plant-based centenarian diet (I'd shop for the locals' heavily relied upon purple sweet potatoes and that Okinawan swill that locals there drink that's totally different than main island Japanese sake, as it came from Thailand several centuries ago and it is sipped by even the golden oldies. I'd try to go native for a year or two there, living with some 70+ year old as a boarder).

6. Taiwan - I am enthralled with what I've heard from travellers over the years about the east coast. My websearching has confirmed every impression I've had about the majestic and rugged coastline and smaller cities I'd appreciate living in, though I'm of mixed minds about the summer typhoons that would rock us pretty much every suimmer slam on category 2+ (yikes!). I was on geoje Island in '03 when the strongest typhoon in 48 years hit South Korea in Typhoon Maemi and the island lost power for six days (a staggering effect when you consider Geoje is the WORLD's #1 urban area for shipbuilding in terms of total value of contracts yearly, given two of the greatest global heavyweights in Samsung and Daewoo build their ships there).

7. Ecuador - I was IN LOVE with the prospects of moving to that country back in 2007-08 with a couple of raving recommendations for yearlong spring-like weather in condensed walking mountain urban areas, though the food put me off (though I home cook mostly),

8. Chile - The thought of hot peppers and the tasty Chilean wine I've enjoyed at ridiculously low prices since SK and they signed a free-trade agreement (literally overnight wines from Chile flooded the Korean market and I buy 10,000 Chilean red wine that's better than most Californian reds hereabouts, and make the French ones not worth the price I used to pay without batting an eye).

9. Saudi Arabia - I have a cyclical infatuation with living in a compound in the desert there and banking a ton for a 2-to-3-year stint before heading back home and set myself up for a new and investment-needed new arc to my life. if I thought I'd be safe with fresh vegetables and fruit galore and savings in the six-figures over two or three years without sacrificing my present lifestyle and with students who cared about learning and I wouldn't feel at all that my life or job or freedom was threatened, then heck I'd be there tomorrow morning. I actually applied for one job in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq when there was a job ad online for an experienced ESL instructor with CELTA training. I wonder if I would have accepted if they had replied to my email app.

10. Thailand - I have spent a month there and LOVE the food, LOVE the culture of respect for cats, LOVE the cost of living and the weather as long as I have an air conditioner in the room that I sleep in, LOVE the ease of transport and the chill. The problems I've faced when researching the idea of teaching there have been the work visa hassles, the salaries, the working conditions, the violent stories that surface from time to time (and time) as well as the student level of skill and commitment. Thailand seems like a place to HOLIDAY for me, as it was, and not an ideal place to teach. To be in the top-10 but at the bottom seems totally apt to me. I think I'd enjoy a year or two there teaching if I brought savings and had low expectations as to my impact on students' progress. It seems like such a great place for a newbie with no education or experience or career expectations in teaching to rock a year or two before heading home. The gap year teachers are getting the best it has to offer imo.

Is there not a single European country? Spain? Czech Republic? Poland? I've been tempted to research job ads from those countries, though I've never gotten to the point of applying. And how about Indonesia or Malaysia? I've heard personally great things from the former and online some nice reviews of teaching in the latter.

Well, I ehard Europe pays crap wages for ESL and isn't worth it.  I mostly look at the places where you can live a good lifestyle rather than take a vow of poverty. 

According to what I have read, China has 300 million ELL's. 300 million is almost the population of the entire USA! For 300 million English language learners in China, that means a lot of opportunities for Native English teachers. That beats the hell out of Korea and Japan.

China has the most possibilities.  Tutoring isn't illegal either.  I left Korea two years ago at the top tier of public school, after working there for 8.5 years.  My starting salary with benefits was more than the highest I could make in Korea. And a raise every year. No 'top tier' crap. And no lack of opportunity for tutoring if you wanted it. 

Well, I ehard Europe pays crap wages for ESL and isn't worth it.  I mostly look at the places where you can live a good lifestyle rather than take a vow of poverty.

Spain and Poland are worth it if you can land a decent job. Germany and Italy are  almost slave wages for esl though

Well, I ehard Europe pays crap wages for ESL and isn't worth it.  I mostly look at the places where you can live a good lifestyle rather than take a vow of poverty.

Spain and Poland are worth it if you can land a decent job. Germany and Italy are  almost slave wages for esl though

It could be that my friends didn't get a decent job, but both of them only make about 1000 euros a month, no housing included.

China has the most possibilities.  Tutoring isn't illegal either.  I left Korea two years ago at the top tier of public school, after working there for 8.5 years.  My starting salary with benefits was more than the highest I could make in Korea. And a raise every year. No 'top tier' crap. And no lack of opportunity for tutoring if you wanted it.

What kind of gig did you go for?

I went for a training school. I get wed and thurs off. I have 8 classes a week. Six are 2 hour classes and 2 are 90 min. Six of my classes are on sat and sun which can be killers but the rest of the week is a breeze.  For me, after working in public school and being on my own for 8 years, being resocializsd and accepting that not all humans are reasonable or honest have been the lessons I've had to learn. This is just regarding behaviour of coworkers and not the company itself.  The kids are great. Parents are awesome but can be pains and salary so good. But after two years I'm thinking of switching to a private school with international curriculum. Different in that I would teach same class every day and I'd have weekends and two months off.  And I'd finish teaching at 1030 every day.  Oh and more money.

(which may just be an image that isn't true when you get there?)

Nope. I've been to China many times. It's dirty, chaotic, noisy, and polluted. Air there is terrible to breathe. Which is why I haven't been back, even for vacation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZBnJYuen5E

So I took care of myself. Bought three smart air purifiers and got water purifier.  I wear a mask during polluted days which is improving.  Look i live in Beijing but I chose to live south which affords me a bigger apartment with less chaos and cheaper.   I find it hard to believe 29 million people live here until i try transportation on weekends.   Didi taxi has become my best friend, cheap and great for avoiding crowds.  I found I saw more people daily in my small town in Korea than in Beijing.   Linked in is all the rage in China. Get your resume out and look for jobs there. Also we chat has some job posting groups as well. Get we chat and I'll add you to mine and then invite you to groups l

Is there not a single European country? Spain? Czech Republic? Poland? I've been tempted to research job ads from those countries, though I've never gotten to the point of applying. And how about Indonesia or Malaysia? I've heard personally great things from the former and online some nice reviews of teaching in the latter.

If you don't have an EU member passport, a British passport, or if you're not at least part of the British Commonwealth then finding EFL jobs in Europe will be extremely difficult. Some countries such as Spain usually want you to be in the country and ready for an interview as they tend to post most of their jobs on paper ads rather than online. The wages don't really pay well depending on the country but the hours are usually good.

3. Colombia - I've heard more positives than negatives from people who've been there, against popular perception of drugs and crime. I daydreamed a bit about it but never seriously investigated it. I might though, in the future.

I spent 2 years teaching in Colombia before coming to Korea. The pay is crap but the cost of living is cheap. Overall the quality of life is better there: less hours, less stress, more vacation time (6 weeks of vacation during the school year plus 7 weeks off between years). Of course they have their own cultural differences that are just as frustrating as here, so nothing's perfect.

The perception of drugs and crime are just that, perception. Sometimes there's more to life than chasing the mighty dollar (not directed at you in particular, but what I notice about many of the foreign teachers in Korea).

2. South Korea
3. Colombia
4. Vietnam
5. Japan
6. Taiwan
7. Ecuador
8. Chile

Awesome! I've considered Chile and Ecuador for quite a while, though many advertised jobs are low paying and there seems to be quite a volunteer teaching dynamic there.

Colombia though, man, that I hadn't considered and this ranking INTRIGUES me.

Yeah, yeah, drug wars in some towns I'm sure. But still,... I wanna hear more...

Colombian barley and fava bean soup:

itok=RNMbPv68

He didn't mention Hong Kong or Singapore. Two of the best paying countries for TEFL and pretty nice to live in.

He didn't mention Hong Kong or Singapore. Two of the best paying countries for TEFL and pretty nice to live in.

I thought you had to have education degrees and other advanced degrees to work there.  I think this article perhaps referred to those with bachelors degrees only or bachelors with a TESOL certificate?  I'm curious with some of China's issues nowadays, is it still number one?  Can you still make a lot there?

This link talks about it:
http://www.thedigitalcrusader.com/teaching-in-korea-golden-days-gone/
(...but I'm not sure how accurate it is; it's just someone's blog.)

http://jimmyesl.com/teach-english-abroad/best-places-teach-english-2017/

He didn't mention Hong Kong or Singapore. Two of the best paying countries for TEFL and pretty nice to live in.

This is what makes this forum so valuable.

Wonderful knowledge like Singapore being the best paying country for tefl.