As with any industry English language teaching is full of specialist terms and acronyms that mean nothing to those outside the industry. This article will take you through some of the most common terms used to help you prepare if you are considering entering the English language teaching industry. I use the term industry, as private language schools exist worldwide generating considerable incomes – some of the larger organisations are franchised on every continent.

Firstly acronyms, here are some of common ones in use today:

TEFL – means teaching English as a foreign language. TESOL is teaching English as a second or other language. A distinction exists between those students who are learning English because they are now living in an English speaking country and those that are studying English as part of their education. These latter students often need English to progress in their careers. Other acronyms exist along the same lines, such as ESP – English for Specific Purposes; this labels courses with a particular focus, for example, it may be a course for nurses and therefore the course content will use medical contexts and vocabulary to teach the students. One particularly large area of ESP is Business English, having a business background is a great asset to have for an English language teacher. (more…)