Teacher is one of the most important elements in education. The quality of education is largely determined by the teacher effectiveness. Few would argue against that the view that effective teachers are a central resource for the quality and success of an educational organization, and thus attention needs to be given to examining teacher effectiveness as a key to guaranteed education quality. Understanding teachers’ beliefs and perceptions about the effective foreign language teacher is vital for successful teacher training programs. This small-scale study investigated the characteristics of effective English teachers as perceived by 40 teachers at the Center for Foreign Languages in Can Tho City, Vietnam with a self-report questionnaire consisting of four categories of English proficiency, pedagogical knowledge, organization and communication skills and socio-affective skills. Overall, the teachers indicated positive attitudes towards the required components of an effective English teacher. From the findings, there are important implications for training prospective English teachers. Continuous professional development is a valuable tool for helping academic staff advance in their careers and enhance their teaching performance. The current practice of English teaching certification in the Center’s training program proves to be practical and effective for improving teacher effectiveness.