By Jon Duckett
Experienced TEFL teacher and director at TEFL Jobs World
By Er Komandante (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC-BY-2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons
Continuing our countdown of the 10 best countries to teach English abroad, TEFL Jobs World brings you the 5 best countries to teach English abroad in 2011.
5. Italy
Why Italy: Plentiful jobs, reasonable wages, excellent food, good climate and standard of living.
Qualifications: A degree in any discipline.
Main Employers: Private language schools in cities and most major towns, private students.
Highlights: Rome, Milan, skiing in the Italian Alps, the beaches in summer.
Drawbacks: Bureaucracy can make it hard for teachers, particularly those from outside the EU to get the paperwork to be legally allowed to work in the country.
4. Indonesia
Why Indonesia: Easy to find work, a culturally and geographically fascinating place.
Qualifications: Being a native speaker of English, a TEFL certificate can help.
Main Employers: Private language schools in Jakarta and Bogor.
Highlights: Bali and Lombok, the volcanic lakes of Sumatra, discover your own island off the beaten track.
Drawbacks: The threat of political instability and terrorism put many people off working here. Most of the jobs are in heavily populated cities. Wages are low compared to other parts of Asia.
3. Turkey
Why Turkey: Lots of demand for teachers, great climate, wonderful history and good food.
Qualifications: Being a native speaker of English, a TEFL certificate and/or degree can also help.
Main Employers: Private language schools in Istanbul, plus other major centres.
Highlights: Bars and cafes in Istanbul, cave homes in Kapadokya, Ölüdeniz beach resort.
Drawbacks: Many schools don’t arrange proper work visas for teachers so you have to leave every 3 months to renew your tourist visa. It’s not a place to save money.
2. South Korea
Why South Korea: A great place to save money, lots of job opportunities and a unique culture.
Qualifications: A degree in any discipline.
Main Employers: Elementary, junior and senior high schools, universities, private language schools and the EPIK programme. Seoul employs by far the most foreign teachers, but just about every town and city in South Korea employs native English speakers in both public and private schools.
Highlights: Easily saving at least $500 a month. Hiking in the national parks, dining out on Korean food in Seoul.
Drawbacks: Some private schools have a bad reputation of misleading teachers over pay and conditions.
1. Spain
Why Spain: Huge market for teachers, friendly culture, great climate, varied locations, wonderful food, beaches and mountains.
Qualifications: Being a native speaker of English, a TEFL certificate and/or degree can also help.
Main Employers: Private language schools all over the country, corporate businesses in Madrid.
Highlights: Festivals and fiestas throughout the year, Andalusia, San Sebastian.
Drawbacks: Can be difficult to earn enough money as many schools only employ teachers 15-20 hours per week, a lot of jobs are seasonal.