8 Things I learned from teaching in Tokyo

I spent five years living in Tokyo, starting out as an English teacher in a language school. Teaching in Tokyo left me with thousands of memories and many lessons learned. Here are some of them: Food is better when shared. Having previously taught in China, I was used to the “shared” style of eating where […]

East Asia leads in latest global education rankings

One of Teach Away’s biggest placement regions, South Korea, has this week been named as the world leader in education, closely followed by Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong. The rankings were recently compiled by Pearson for the Economist Intelligence Unit and are considered to be the most comprehensive available, combining the respected OECD’s PISA tests, […]

The best places for cherry blossoms in Tokyo

Japan comes alive in early April celebrating hanami (“flower viewing”), when thousands of cherry blossom trees bloom across the country. For a newcomer to Japan, the effect is startling – streets transform into fluffy pink wonderlands, and every light breeze leaves pedestrians dusted in a shower of petals. Hanami parties are so ingrained in the […]

Top Teach Abroad Locations for Winter Sports

By Kathy Deady Teaching English abroad isn’t all beachside classrooms and sun-drenched siestas. Teach Away also places hundreds of teachers in countries where the mountains are the locals’ backyard and snow sports are a way of life. To mark the start of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, here are our top five teach abroad locations […]

Celebrating the Japanese Festival of Setsubun

Japan marks the beginning of spring on February 4th. Setsubun, which means “the division of the seasons,” is celebrated on February 3rd (although there is technically a “setsubun” for every season, the beginning of spring is the only one celebrated). Mame-maki To welcome the new season, one member of the family (often the father) dons […]

Choosing your destination

By Thiago Silva So you decided to step out of your comfort zone and explore other cultures while teaching English – now where should you start? While there is no right or wrong answer to this question, there are a few steps you can take to make your search more effective. One of the first […]

The Importance of Learning the Local Language while Teaching Overseas

By Adrian Palinic Genki desuka? How are you? This is the first actual phrase I put to use after stepping off the plane for my teaching assignment in Japan.  Without any real knowledge of the Japanese language, other than a month-long crash course just before arriving, I really didn’t know what I had gotten myself […]