Are you a South African teacher wanting to teach English online? Are you looking for online teaching jobs hiring South Africans? opportunities to teach English online in South Africa. However, it takes some determination.
There are lots of issues that South African online teachers face teaching English online but sometimes they are not looking in the right places. There are online teaching jobs out there for you!
Why is it so hard for South Africans to teach English online?
If I had a dollar for every South African teacher who questioned why it was so difficult for South Africans to teach online, I’d be able to buy a few coffees to say the least!
1. non-North American accent
One of the reasons why South Africans have a hard time finding online teaching work is because many companies are looking for North American speakers. This is because, particularly in China, the market wants a neutral North American accent.
Therefore, South Africans have an almost impossible time getting hired with the larger online ESL companies like VIPKid & Gogokid.
2. non-Native speakers
While there are many South Africans who are native speakers of English, there are also a wide range that are not native speakers of English. Perhaps, they grew up speaking many languages at home and do not speak English at a fluent, idiomatic level.
Don’t get me wrong, South Africans can be native speakers, but this is one of the issues perceived by online English teaching companies which results in not hiring South African teachers as a general rule.
3. Poor internet connection & load shedding
Internet stability is notoriously poor in South Africa and because this is an online job, your internet connection speed as well as stability is of utmost importance. If your internet is unreliable then you will be unreliable and a liability for the company.
Load shedding, or load reduction, is a protocol conducted throughout South Africa as a way to respond to unplanned events that protects the electricity power system from a total blackout.
You can imagine that this is a less than ideal situation for online English teaching!
Companies hiring online teachers from South Africa:
Cambly
Cambly is a marketplace platform for conversational English with adults. Cambly offers the opportunity to teach any time of day, anywhere in the world! All you need to do is open your schedule, take calls and talk in English. Sounds great, right?
Cambly Requirements:
- Native English Speaker
- No degree or experience required
- TESOL / TEFL certificate (recommended)
Hiring Process:
- Fill out their online application
- Submit a 2-minute intro video
- Get approved by Cambly
- Create a profile
Cambly teachers make a little less than most of the large online ESL companies because you are paid by the minute and it is more free talk than structured teaching. You make $0.17/minute which works out to $10.20/hour. There are no minimum hours required and you create your own schedule!
Landi English
Landi English uses the Oxford Community Press curriculum and offers a platform for teachers to teach online with a fixed and stable class schedule. They pay between $10 – $18 / hour and require a minimum of 12 hours of teaching each week.
Landi Requirements:
- Neutral accent and speak English at an idiomatic level
- Bachelor’s degree or above
- TESOL/TEFL/CELTA certificate
- Teacher experience preferred
- Strong communication skills
Hiring Process:
- Submit your CV/Resume
- Interview & Contract
- Online Training
- Orientation
- Complete your Profile
- Start teaching!
South African teachers can apply to Landi if you fit the above requirements. Many South African teachers have positive reviews about working with them and they seem to have a positive reputation with many online teachers.
Amazing Talker
Amazing Talker is a marketplace for language teachers. They connect teachers from various languages with students looking for a tutor. Amazing Talker allows you to set your profile, schedule, and class rates! They are flexible and do not require a minimum number of hours.
Requirements:
- Native English Speaker
- Fluent in English
- English teaching experience
- TESOL / TEFL certificate
Hiring Process:
- Register by clicking “Apply to Teach” on their website
- Read through their information and then Apply.
- Create your profile which consists of:
-Information, Introduction, Resume, Price Setting, Introductory Video and General Availability - Invitation for interview & mock lesson
Lots of South Africans teach English on Amazing Talker and it can be an amazing way to start building your online teaching business since you are more in control of what you charge and what you teach.
South African tutors on Amazing Talker claim to be able to charge between $9 – $15 / hour.
Palfish Free Talk
The Palfish Free Talk course is the only option for South Africans. You will not get hired as a South African to the Palfish Official Kids Course. The free talk platform allows you to set your own rate and you can make between $10 – $30 / hour.
The free talk platform is just that, free talk, through a live streaming process with groups of children. There are also 1:1 classes with no curriculum or time constraints.
Requirements:
Hiring Process:
- Download the Palfish App
- Choose your avatar
- Complete your self-introduction
- Record a self-intro audio clip
- Fill in your payment information
The Palfish free talk program is great for South Africans that want to teach from a mobile device, enjoy flexible hours, and creating their own schedule as well as those wanting to teach all ages.
iTalki
iTalki is another platform or marketplace where online English teachers from South Africa can create a profile, list their classes and charge what they want. iTalki has the students looking for classes so if you are able to be specific in how you can help students learn, iTalki might be a great platform to check out!
You can apply to be a professional teacher or a community tutor. To know the differences, check out this page for further information.
iTalki Requirements:
Professional Teacher
- Bachelor’s Degree
- Native speaker of C2 in English
- CV / Resume
- Further certificates in English will help your application
Community Tutor
- 18+ years old
- Native or C2 in English
Hiring Process:
- Apply
- enter some information about yourself
- Upload your profile photo (Photo Guidelines)
- Your language level (Language Requirement)
- A written introduction highlighting your skills and your teaching method
- A video introduction of yourself
- Any supporting documents – ***Only for professional teachers
Lots of South African online English teachers are successful on iTalki! Click the apply link below to get started.
Final Thoughts & Tips
As you can see, there are options out there if you are a South African teacher wanting to teach English online. Sometimes it takes some digging, perseverance and dedication but you can be successful.
If you want to have the best chances of getting an online English teaching job as a South African, work on the following:
1. Build an attractive resume
Your resume might be asked for several of the above companies but also in many places that you apply. Make sure that you have a clear and concise resume that showcases your education and experience.
You can use a simple, free tool like Canva to get started building a resume from a template.
2. Make yourself marketable
The more certifications and experience you have the better. However, it isn’t always possible to wait and you might need a job soon. Getting your TESOL from International Open Academy will be a valuable thing to have when applying for jobs teaching English online for South Africans.
3. Persevere & don’t give up
There is a great opportunity out there for you, as a South African online teacher but some have to search. more than others.
Keep looking an applying to various companies, and using websites like these to filter your search.
South Africans can be very successful teaching English online. These companies are hiring and are worth a shot at applying to.
Let me know in the comments below if you have anything to add!
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