 What is an ESL teacher? civilization and the increasing demand for English-speaking professionals especially in emerging regions in Asia and South America has brought about a new steadily growing sector called English as a second language in short ESL an ESL teacher is there for an instructor who works with ELL's English language learners Whose native language is not English? The goal of the ESL teacher is to help the students reach a certain level of fluency in English Both on a written level and on a spoken level ESL instructors are not to be confused with foreign language teachers ESL teachers do not share the same native language as their students and are specifically trained to offer explanations and a directed teaching style for non English speakers This kind of teaching style is especially focused on drills, repetition, demonstrations and visuals A lot of people think that ESL teachers only work with children. This is not the case In fact, the student age group can reach from kindergarten all the way to university level and even beyond to adult students You often encounter English learning academies that will focus on one certain age group for example, there are special institutions for only children or other institutions that focus on Business executives improving their skills for international business Communications therefore the role of the ESL teacher can vary dramatically from case to case And therefore requires the teachers to be flexible and easily adapting to new situations Generally speaking, you can find opportunities to work as an ESL teacher anywhere on the map even in your home country where students might include migrants or refugees However, most ESL teachers work in countries where English is not an official language Popular ESL countries include China, South Korea and Thailand in Asia The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia in the Middle East as well as South American countries like Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Colombia ESL educators might work in a classroom where they are the primary instructor Or they may cooperate with other primary teachers in a supporting role. On the other hand, ESL teachers often times have local supporting teachers who are in the classroom to help the ELLs in their native language to ensure smooth communication Many undergraduate and graduate programs do offer specialized teacher preparation programs to become a ESL instructor However, the most common way to become an ESL educator is to obtain a TEFL or TESOL certification through a specialized program However, it is worth mentioning that many language institutions around the world Both public and private are requiring a certification of at least 120 hours When asking teachers why they pursue a career in English as a second language, the responses usually come down to similar reasons Huge money-saving opportunities Living a comfortable lifestyle Being able to explore foreign cultures