Should TEFL Teachers be Friends with Students?

        Applying for the TEFL certificate and becoming an international English teacher seems like a very interesting job as a foreign English teacher, chatting with students from all over the world, watching cool movie clips, listening to songs, discussing interesting topics... .... this all sounds too good to be true, but it's not, it's really as fun as it sounds. Who doesn't want to have a job that requires you to talk all day and encourage others to talk too? You won't find any foreign language teacher sitting behind a computer all day, that's for sure.

        Creating a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere conducive to conversation and communication takes hard work. Not everyone wants to speak their minds or contribute their little, it is the teacher's job to help every student participate equally. In order to do this, TEFL teaches us that we need to convey a friendly image in the classroom, one that is interested in students and their lives, not just for paychecks.

        So we need to be friends with students, which begs the question: how friendly should we be? Should we go to the bar with our adult students after get off work? Hang out with our students on weekends? Ask about their personal lives? Or should I limit polite talk to the first five minutes of class, and then become harsh and indifferent?

        To be honest, that's a tough question to answer because it's a fine line between being frosty and being overly warm and friendly. If you don't achieve this balance, you may find that your English students feel uncomfortable contributing in class, or that they feel comfortable and feel no need to do any work.

        The best advice TEFL can give you on this tough subject is to start strictly. It's easy to become more lenient and permissive over time, but harder to become stricter. At the beginning of the semester or the first class, make sure the classroom rules are clear and strictly followed.

        As you get to know each other better, you will become more relaxed about homework and other things, but first get your students in the habit of doing what they are asked to do. Of course, this does not mean that there is no time for fun and games, but there is time and place to work and time and place to play. Apply for the TEFL certificate to teach you more teaching skills.

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