It is a little known part of TEFL history that many techniques we now use for teaching were originally designed for self-defence.

The first TEFL boom was in late-Franco and post-Franco Spain, a time when anti-American feeling was running high on both sides of the political spectrum and attacks on foreign English teachers were common. The management at early chains like International House therefore had to invent things that were mainly to protect the teachers but could be later justified as for pedagogical purposes. For example, chairs with flaps were originally designed to slow down students who suddenly lunged out of their chairs to attack the teacher, whilst also making a sound of the student’s possessions crashing to the floor to warn the teacher that an attack was coming.

The Peace Corp then polished up some of these techniques for people teaching in some of the dodgier parts of the world, techniques that were then borrowed back by International House when they opened their Pyongyang and Mogadishu branches.

Below is a list of TEFL-specific self-defence techniques, a mix of the original Spanish ones, the Peach Corps ones, and some of the my own ideas

 Many typical TEFL gestures are derived from king fu and/ or tai chi and can be used for self defence. Examples include the hand over shoulder gesture for “past”, the two extended fingers for “work in pairs”, the crossed over arms for “change chairs” and the actions to “Head Shoulders Knees and Toes”.

 Cut up copies of Communication Games can be thrown into the air to distract students who are attacking and allow the teacher to escape, a bit like a magician’s puff of smoke. This works particularly well with sets that are different colours from each other. Ones that have been laminated can also be used as weapons.

 You can also distract attackers by training your students to mingle or change pairs at a second’s notice in response to shouted out orders like “Find someone who!”

 While students are busy doing something else, sneak up behind them as if you are monitoring their output and attach the back of their clothes to their chairs with bulldog clips.

 Do the classic TEFL squat in front of your students while you are talking to them and tie their shoe laces together while they are distracted by your error correction.

 If a student shouts an insult in English as they lunge for you (surprisingly common), shout out a word from your marking code such as “Tense!” or “Preposition!” to distract them for that vital second or two, allowing you to disable them or flee.

 Always monitor from the corner of the classroom, preferably also building up a defensive perimeter of chairs or tables between you and the students.

 Changing pairs at least ten times every class should keep students far away from the potential weapons such as compasses that they have in their pencil cases.

 You can slow attackers down and/ or warn you they are coming by placing stuff on the floor between you and the students. Subtle ones include bits of blu tack and drawing pins, but some teachers have been known to construct an entire wall out of Cuisenaire rods.

 OHPs can be quickly spun round to blind your attacker.

 Whiteboard magnets can be used to fix a student to the whiteboard until the police arrive.

 Make sure you have always built up a charge of static electricity to be used in self defence by always shuffling along like an old man in slippers and wearing cheap nylon shirts from Asda.

Any more tips?