Online school needs more English teachers

BACOLOD CITY – An online English school, 51 Talk, is hiring more teachers in the Philippines to reach its target of 100,000 home-based mentors for young Chinese learners in the next five years.

One of the three center-based facilities of 51Talk in the country is located at the Negros First Cyber Centre in Bacolod, where it held a press briefing and an open house on Friday.

Jennifer Que, 51Talk vice president for Philippine operations, said they have almost 14,000 Filipino home-based teachers, including more than 600 in Negros Occidental, mainly in Bacolod.

“Bacolod itself is growing and becoming bigger. Our target within five years is 100,000 home-based teachers in the Philippines,” she said.

Established in China seven years ago, 51Talk began its Philippine operations in 2012. Its first two center-based facilities are in Pasig and Baguio, followed by Bacolod, which opened in May, 2017.

Those who are hired undergo training before starting out as home-based teachers, either full-time or part-time.

Applicants should have a college degree and can speak English well, and should have the capability to do home-based teaching by having a reliable internet connection and a good computer set.

“The teacher needs a high-speed, wired internet connection because the lessons are all in videos,” Que said.

She said 55 percent of the applicants fail due to lack of wired internet connection.

Que said home-based teachers can earn between R30,000 and R80,000 a month, depending on how much work they put in.

Through a virtual learning platform, learners, mostly between seven and 12 years old, from various locations in China take live, interactive and fun one-on-one English lessons with teachers from the Philippines.

“They teach English for 25 minutes online to a child. The Chinese children with their parents pick the materials. I would say 80 percent of the talk-time would be from the student, the teacher just guides the child for 25 minutes,” Que said.

Based on the 51Talk Philippines’ company profile, this personalized approach to learning English has become a trailblazing strategy that has changed the online English as Second Language (ESL) scene as this makes English education more immersive, providing optimal talk-time to students during their lessons. (PNA)