Here are some numbers from employer advertisements that I found:
In Taiwan On The Website Tealit 86% Of The Jobs Were For Teaching Children. That's 8 Out Of 10 Jobs.
In Japan On The Website Gaijinpot 85% Of The Jobs Were For Teaching Children. That's 8 Out Of 10 Jobs.
TEFL In China On The Website Chinacities 90% Of The Jobs Were For Teaching Children. That's 9 Out Of 10 Jobs.
In Korea On The Website Koreabridge.Net "Kids" Was The Most Mentioned Keyword By Employers And The 2nd Was "Experienced".
TEFL/TESOL Courses
Which do you think your future boss would prefer: training targeted towards teaching students at their school (mostly kids) or training focused on teaching adults?
Mostly kids.
Although...
You don't have to teach kids.
You can teach adults if you really want to.
I am not here to tell you to do that.
It's your choice.
But maybe you are wondering what it is like to teach kids.
Well, I found these well-spoken words by Sendaiben on Reddit.
"It takes a lot more skill to teach children well in my opinion..."
"Children, on the other hand, have no intrinsic reason to be there so you have to make the lessons fun and interesting. You also have to deal with their uncontrolled emotions and lack of social skills. Teaching young learners requires a huge range of skills and knowledge."
You could feel lost in that classroom since there are...
Students Who Are Bored
Students That Are Out Of Control
Students That Won't Pay Attention
Students That You Want To Murder
Students Who Don't Want To Be There
Students Who Use Inappropriate Language
Students That Are Talking When They Shouldn't Be
Students Who Won't Talk And Just Give You Cold Stiff Silence Like A Mime Would
Students Who Are Speaking Their Native Language
And Stress That Makes You Feel Like Your Head Will POP!
I had all the above problems after I took a mostly in-class course in 2004 before teaching in Taiwan and if you take an online course like the cheap one I did in 2016 you'll fair even worse.
So how do you solve those problems?
First off if your lesson is not interesting for your students then you will have a lot of problems like above. You have to create lessons that are fun, interesting AND educational (which isn't as simple as it sounds).
Second you need a clear system for classroom management that is going to work with your students.
TEFL course (for teaching kids in Asia)
TEFL course
With your average course you might be able to transfer 50% of what you learn towards teaching children IF you're lucky.
And that leads to problems like this...
"I am 8 months in and still get treated like an inexperienced idiot..."
These are comments from new teachers in Korea on Reddit.
"I'm 7 Months In And Still Feeling So Lost As A Teacher..."
"I Am 8 Months In And Still Get Treated Like An Inexperienced Idiot..."
"SAME. No Particular Guidance Knowing I’m A New Teacher, Just “Reminders” And Criticisms."
Don't expect your new school or any course to adequately prepare you either.
Since you are thinking about taking a course you should know that your average TEFL course is focused more on teaching adults and it will include a good deal of teaching theory, jargon and grammar study.
And in my experience those things aren't useful.
So what do you want?
Do You Want To Take A Course That Prepares You To Do Your Job?
Do You Want To Feel A Sense Of Control, Clarity, And Confidence In Your Classroom?
Do You Want To Take A Course That Is 100% Targeted At Teaching Who You Are Going To Teach?
If you want to get closer to a 100% then I can teach you the skills that you need to become a competent teacher.
"I have utilized some of his methods and games and have already seen some improvement in the kids' speaking skills and some massive improvement in their behavior." - Dwayne Melendez
The majority of the English teaching jobs in Asia are for teaching "children"