Job Discussion Forums

[adtravels]

My girlfriend is thinking of doing a tefl before we come to bangkok in august in england there seems to many different types of qualification and a huge range in prices depending on if you do the course online, part time or full time as much as 500 pounds any reccomendations or advice?

[Kent F. Kruhoeffer]

Hi Adam:

You're right. There's a lot to choose from, and it can be confusing.

The general consensus of opinion is this: doing an onsite course is better, if you have that option.


Online courses *can* be worthwhile, but there are always 3 nagging questions:

#1. accreditation (it doesn't exist, really)

#2. the lack of hands-on, in-the-classroom training with most online courses, and

#3. the question of acceptance of online certificates by potential employers. i.e., Some employers flatly state in their job adverts that they do not recognize or accept online certs.


Having said that, I am personally still "open" to both forms of TEFL certification, since I believe firmly in furthering one's education - no matter how, where or how much it cost.

Since you're coming to Thailand anyway, I'd suggest letting her do a course right here. There are many decent courses available in Thailand, and they are generally much more affordable here than in other countries.

If you click on The Master Index sticky and scroll all the way down to FAQ 11, you'll find a long list of Thai & Distance courses (with direct links) to browse through.

A few of the more popular choices in Bangkok are:

CELTA at Elite or ECC
Text & Talk Academy
TEFL International

but there are other options too!

[adtravels]

thanks again for the advice i looked at sume options on ajarn and there was a new tefl college in sukumvit that was charging 26000 baht which seemed reasonable

[kenkannif]

Problem with new ones is you don't know how good it will be, or how employers will take to it until after it's been running a while. Also I've seen many courses set up, only to disappear a month or two later due to lack of students.

Generally you get what you pay for.

[Curious George]

Make sure you get a CELTA or the other one (cant remember the name) that is accredited through Cambridge (or the other major Uni (Oxford??)). They cost more but are accepted anywhere in the world.

The cheaper non-university accredited TEFL degrees are okay for some places, but a majority of countries won't accept them. More and more they are wanting the University accredited ones.

So, imo it's definitely worth the xtra money for the CELTA.

[kenkannif]

Err it's not just the CELTA and Trinity courses that are accredited by Unis, others are as well.

Most countries look at your degree first (generally TEFL certs are post grad quals) and then the TEFL. The majority of countries do indeed accept non-accredited certificates though, to say they don't is a tad silly and wrong. I'm sure the odd school prefers certain ones (as with the BC for example) but are often open to others if the teacher knows what they are doing.

[oxfordstu]

Isn't the CELTA generally more expensive, though? I remember researching it and they wanted well over $2000 ($2400 if I remember correctly). Plus they wanted to interview me over the phone and answer in-depth essay questions or some nonsense. I did it through TEFL International on Phuket. Signed up a week before I boarded the plane, and it cost about $1600. Great course.

[Phillip Donnelly]

As a former DOS at International House, I can assure you that the CELTA and Trinity certificate are more recognised than others, and on-line courses will probably lead to your CV being put at the bottom of the pile.
Having said that, experience is more valuable, of course, but given the choice between two newly qualified applicants, most DOSes will choose Mr or Ms CELTA/Trinity.
The course is quite short, but the cert will stay with you a long time. Do a good one!

[kenkannif]

I should have mentioned International House as well as the BC in regards to preference

[Sheep-Goats]

A good TEFL course will have three things, in order of importance:

1) Practice teaching with real students
2) About 120 hours of in-class time (that's usually four full-time weeks)
3) Accredation from a well recognized body

90% of the courses offered here in Thailand will meet the first two. If they don't (eg: online courses) you should write them off as a waste of your time and money.

Number Three is the subject of most of the debate about TEFL courses on this forum and around the world. One on hand, you can't argue that having the word Cambridge or Trinity on your certificate makes it more valid to employers. On the other, you can't argue that the CELTA and Trininty certificates are overpriced, and that in-general, you get a better deal education-wise from local country-orientates serious programs (which abound in Thailand -- Text and Talk and TEFL International both have great reputations and generally very satisfied TEFL students).

My reccomendation for those coming to Thailand, then, is usually this: If you plan to teach in Thailand only for a year or two and then go back home, get a Text and Talk or TEFL Intl. certificate as they'll get your feet directly on the right path for Thailand and save you a bit of cash over a CELTA (I don't know if you can get a Trininty certificate in Thailand yet). If, however, you plan to teach in several different countries, particularly those in Europe, and perhaps even make a career out of EFL (ugh...) then you should defintely go for a name-brand certificate -- and that means CELTA or Trinity.

[kenkannif]

^ What about for teaching kids? Do the add on course, or main course will suffice?

[Sheep-Goats]

[kenkannif]

^ I agree!

I'm pleased you also think the same as me, that kids teachers are generally more flexible than adult teachers (i.e. a kids teacher will find it easier to teach adults, an adult teacher will find it harder to teach kids).

Indeed them ladies can pretty much walk into a kids job, trained or not!