Did you decide to try teaching on a whim or think it over thoroughly first? Did you spend a lot on a TESOL course? Did you know exactly what you were getting into?

The questions are legion, I know. I think you're like me--you have to sit down and do some soul searching. I've asked myself if this is 'my cup of tea' many times during my year-long stint in Thailand. I don't like it here--my students misbehave and cheat much too much for my liking. I've decided to try another setting and see how I like THAT situation. If it's M.O.T.S., I'll cut my losses and head back home.

TEFL takes patience, as students in the TEFL setting aren't surrounded by native English speakers. It's much harder for them to learn what we learned with hardly any instruction, comparatively speaking. Indeed, many students find it simply too hard and treat their English classes as an afterthought. This means they don't bother to practice outside of class, which makes my job even tougher when they show up to my classes not knowing 'me' from 'my'.

I'm not going to 'give up' on teaching if I DO head back to the USA. I'll simply get my master's degree in TESOL and come back to Asia and teach at a university. I'm betting I'll like teaching at an Asian university much more than teaching at an Asian high school. Maybe you would too.

Good luck!

RT