How To Stay Motivated As An EFL Teacher

Join a global community of over 200,000 TEFL teachers working throughout the world! Enrol me!

Being an EFL teacher is a dream job, but it’s still a job. We can speak about the importance of student motivation until we are blue in the face but EFL teacher motivation is equally important. Without motivated teachers our classrooms would be dull places indeed and our lessons would be limp and ineffective. As EFL teachers we need to balance our needs with the needs of our students and employers, and sometimes this can be difficult.

Our students demand our attention during the lesson and our time before and after our lessons to plan. Our employers ask for paperwork or overtime, often without extra pay. Plus there are the usual demands on our time which are not related to work. It’s no wonder that sometimes EFL teachers can feel like they have no time for themselves and so become unmotivated in the classroom.

It’s important to look after yourself to avoid burnout, which is a very real thing. So here are a few tips from some teachers who have been in the game for a while to help you stay motivated as a teacher.

Top tips to stay motivated as an EFL teacher

  • Go beyond the coursebook

There is no need to stay glued to the coursebook. Take some time away from it and indulge in CLIL lessons, webquests or excursions. Getting out of the routine of everyday grammar and language can help you keep positive about your lessons.

  • Teach something besides English

English is everywhere so there is no need to stay focused on English language lessons. You can teach anything and incorporate a language aim into your lesson.

  • Learn from your students

Turn your classroom around and give yourself a break by letting your students be the teachers. Let them choose their own topics or assign them topics or language points but otherwise let them go wild.

Upskilling yourself is a sure way to keep your motivation levels high. Make sure you are always challenged by keeping up to date with the latest research and teaching methods.

  • Read

Get some downtime from prepping and marking and take some time for reading. Reading an English novel will remind you why you love the English language so much. Or you can read a TEFL magazine, book or blog to get your creative juices flowing.

  • Get involved in development

If you are looking for ways to better your teaching, why not give a workshop for more inexperienced teachers? This will remind you how good you are as well as give you an outlet for your knowledge.

  • Take a break

You don’t necessarily need a holiday but you definitely do need some time away from the classroom when you can focus on yourself. Take the afternoon or weekend off from work completely and unplug for a while to recharge your batteries.

Get Social

Follow us on social networks, join our newsletter - get the latest news and early discounts

Sign up to our newsletter

Follow us on social networks, sign up to our e-newsletters – get the latest news and early discounts

Accreditation Partners

The TEFL Academy was the world’s first TEFL course provider to receive official recognition from government regulated awarding bodies in both the USA and UK. This means when you graduate you’ll hold a globally recognised Level 3 (120hr) Certificate or Level 5 (168hr) Diploma, meaning you can find work anywhere and apply for jobs immediately.

Product added to your cart

You have added to your cart:

Request call back

    Please leave your details below and one of our TEFL experts will get back to you ASAP:

    captchaType characters on the left:

    Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

    Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

    Thank you! Your message has been sent!

    Download the TEFL World Factbook

      Please enter your details in order to download the latest TEFL World Factbook.

      Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

      Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

      Thank you for downloading the TEFL World Factbook!

      If the TEFL World Factbook did not download
      > Click Here To Download <

      Download the Online Teaching Guide

        Please enter your details in order to download our Online Teaching Guide.

        Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

        Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

        Thank you for downloading our Online Teaching Guide!

        If the Online Teaching Guide did not download
        > Click Here To Download <

        Download Prospectus

          Please enter your details in order to download our latest prospectus.

          Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

          Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

          Thank you for downloading our prospectus!

          We hope you enjoy reading our prospectus, we have tried to make it as useful as possible! Please get in touch if you have any questions.

          If the prospectus did not download automatically
          > Click Here To Download <

          $
          $