As a TEFL teacher you may decide to work as a volunteer EFL teacher. You will have to take several things into consideration when choosing a volunteer programme.
The first thing you should take into consideration is the country you intend to do your TEFL teaching in. Research its cultural, political, and social structures – and always research your intended country BEFORE you commit yourself. You should look into the climate and physical geography of your intended country, for example: if you can’t stand sweating in the hot sun, you should avoid tropical destinations like Thailand.
The next thing you should take into consideration is the voluntary organisation that has organised the volunteer programme. Make sure that it is a well-established organisation: a reputable organisation should also have a mechanism in place that allows potential TEFL volunteer teachers to be able to communicate with former TEFL teachers. Again, research your chosen organisation BEFORE you commit yourself.
Although you will be working as a volunteer TEFL teacher, you should still take money matters into consideration. Ensure that the voluntary organisation will be paying for your flight to and from the country as well as any internal return transportation costs, e.g. from the airport to the town or village in which you will be teaching.
Enquire about how much of an allowance you will be given by the organisation: this will help you to determine how much of your own money you will need in order to supplement your daily expenses.
Determine if you will be required to pay for your own medical insurance or whether the organisation will be responsible for medical insurance as part of the volunteer programme: never go anywhere without medical insurance.
Another important consideration is the question of accommodation: will free accommodation to be provided as part of the volunteer programme or will it be subsidised accommodation. If it is the latter, how much of the rent will be subsidised by the organisation?
Finally, you should also take the following four questions into consideration:
How long do you want to volunteer?
What do you hope to get from doing volunteer EFL teaching?
How immersed in the culture do you want to get?
Are you really sure that you want to do volunteer EFL teaching?
These questions will allow you to choose the best volunteer position for you.
Read more: 7 Alternative Places To Volunteer Teach English As A Foreign Language