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jcwin228
Joined: 16 Sep 2009
Posts: 4
Location: Yonago, Japan
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 Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 3:15 pm Post subject: How to choose a TEFL certificate course |
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I did the TEFL course with Bridge TEFL, and I was pretty satisfied. It was not a requirement for my current job, but I'm sure it helped me get it.
Are TEFL certificates effective? To read my experience and advice, go here
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 5:40 pm Post subject: |
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Welcome to the boards! THis is a question that comes up with some regularity, so thanks for taking the time to address it.
A couple of thoughts I'd add:
You say:
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It was not a requirement for my current job, but I'm sure it helped me get it.
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I respect your decision to go that little bit further to get more than the requirements. Bear in mind, though- a lot of places a certificate IS required. In many places that require a cert, the one you did (60 hours at distance) isn't accepted as a cert.
It sounds like you did your homework, knew what you needed for a job in the area where you wanted to work, and made an informed decision. Well done. (A lot of newbies go the "fly by the seat of your pants" route, which often causes problems.)
I just wanted to chime in about the importance of doing that research beforehand, though. The cert you chose, while not expensive, does cost money. It would stink to get it, then learn that employers in your chosen destination weren't going to recognise it.
I also had a look at your blog. Good stuff, and keep up the good work. Nonetheless, you say:
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If you�re planning to teach English in Japan, or anywhere else for that matter, you basically just need to be a native speaker and have a college diploma, but it might be worth your while to get a TESL or TEFL certificate. |
I've never taught in Japan, but have heard this is accurate. About Japan. The "anywhere else for that matter" could be pretty misleading, though. I've taught a number of places where requirements include a teaching qualification; frequently a presencial cert with observed practice teaching. The native speaker thing is open to some debate as well- but I have to say that a well-trained non-native often does better than an untrained native in the markets I've been in. Degree requirements vary as well. Some places you don't even need one. Other places you ned one related to what you're proposing to do.
I guess I'm being nit-picky, but here's why. I work in a capacity that involves receiving teaching applications. Pretty much every day, I get emails telling me that "I'm a native speaker with a BA." No background, no training, no teaching experience...in short, no reason to even consider hiring this person.
Your blog has a lot of good info in it- but I did worry that by overgeneralizing, you might misinform some newbies.
Best,
Justin |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 7:12 pm Post subject: |
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If you�re planning to teach English in Japan, or anywhere else for that matter, you basically just need to be a native speaker and have a college diploma, but it might be worth your while to get a TESL or TEFL certificate.
This is not true for the region in which I have worked for 12+ years - Europe. The reason is simply that the vast majority of newbie-level teachers in this region have a CELTA or equivalent, and anything less puts you at the bottom of the heap, job-wise.
The standard for this region is 120 hours on-site, including supervised teaching practice with real students. CELTA is the name brand, though there are some generic on-site courses that also meet the standard.
Any newbie who is reads your blog and expects that a 60-hour on-line course will be sufficient in Europe will have been misled.
Sorry for the strong words, but the job market here is tight all over, and the start-up costs here are considerable. It would not be doing anyone a service to mislead them into thinking that they can come on over with a 60-hour online cert and expect to get a job. That candidate may very well find him/herself out the cost of flights, accomodation, time, and trouble. |
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denise
Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish
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| Posted: Thu Oct 08, 2009 12:48 pm Post subject: |
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I agree with Justin and spiral78 about the potential for misinformation. People with no experience or teaching qualifications need to do what they can to separate themselves from the masses of other inexperienced & unqualified newbies, and doing the bare minimum, or flat-out skipping the certification process because it might not be required, really won't help them stand out in a crowd. Places that will hire any ol' smiling white face (with many schools wrongly assuming that "white" = "native speaker" = "good"), regardless of that person's ability to teach, aren't exactly the most desirable jobs.
The more you put into the training process, the more you get out of it. That could well mean spending more, taking a longer course, etc.--and the time and money are obstacles to many people. Really, though, a one-month, full-time, in-person course isn't too much to ask of people. How many other careers are there out there where you can get started with just one month of training?
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Chancellor
Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Posts: 1337
Location: Ji'an, China - if you're willing to send me cigars, I accept donations :)
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| Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 1:11 pm Post subject: |
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| denise wrote: |
| Really, though, a one-month, full-time, in-person course isn't too much to ask of people. |
Actually, it is too much to ask. Some people actually have jobs and what you're telling them is "Quit your job, go take this month-long course that would almost never get you a job in your home country and hope maybe you'll be able to find a job somewhere overseas." It's just plain idiotic to ask that of people - especially in the middle of a global recession. |
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denise
Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish
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| Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 1:36 pm Post subject: |
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| Chancellor wrote: |
| denise wrote: |
| Really, though, a one-month, full-time, in-person course isn't too much to ask of people. |
Actually, it is too much to ask. Some people actually have jobs and what you're telling them is "Quit your job, go take this month-long course that would almost never get you a job in your home country and hope maybe you'll be able to find a job somewhere overseas." It's just plain idiotic to ask that of people - especially in the middle of a global recession. |
I'm going to overlook the fact that you've basically called me an idiot and respectfully disagree. Yes, the money can be hard to come by, and yes, people may have to re-work their schedules to find the time, and yes, ultimately, they will have to quit their jobs, pack up, and move. It's a career change and a major life change--I do expect people who want to get into this field to prepare themselves. I worked for two years to save up the money for my TEFL course. There are faster ways, and there are cheaper ways, and if the end result produces a quality certificate, then fine. But cutting corners--financially or time-wise--can end up hurting people when they go job-hunting. And if anyone goes into this with the mentally that you've quoted--"hope that maybe you'll find something overseas," well, they didn't do their research. Nobody should go into a TEFL course as blind as you've suggested. That mentality reflects a wee bit of... idiocy.
I've had the occasional thought about life outside TEFL--hypothetically, what might I be doing if I hadn't gotten into this field? Well, a whole lot of nothing, if I wasn't willing to get trained to do something and then make a plan and save up the money to do it. I'd still be sitting in my office job in the US making photocopies and transferring phone calls.
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 3:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Actually, it is too much to ask. |
You make your own decisions. I'm not telling you what you should do, or should have done. But, if it's too much to ask, why have so many of us, and so many of the applications I receive each day, done just that? Frankly, if it's possible for others, and not for you, it looks to me like they really wanted to, and you didn't.
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| Some people actually have jobs and what you're telling them is "Quit your job, go take this month-long course that would almost never get you a job in your home country and hope maybe you'll be able to find a job somewhere overseas." |
Spare me the high horse about having a job. We all have jobs. I had a job before I decided to do TESOL; yes, I had to quit that job to go overseas.
So I'm not recommending that you do anything you wouldn't do anyway- if you're going to teach overseas, I presume that quitting your previous job in your home country has to come into it.
All I'm recommending is that you stay in your previous job a little longer, and save the $$ to do a month course while not working. If it's too much to ask, how come I managed it? So did virtually every overseas teacher I know.
And...
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| hope maybe you'll be able to find a job somewhere overseas |
Do your research. If you're not satisfied with the odds of finding a job overseas, don't do it.
BUT...the odds are really pretty good. With a good cert, there are a LOT of places where the odds are near 100%. With the economic recession going on, that's pretty good. Better than most training programs I know.
Best,
Justin |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 4:03 pm Post subject: |
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Actually, it is too much to ask. Some people actually have jobs and what you're telling them is "Quit your job, go take this month-long course that would almost never get you a job in your home country and hope maybe you'll be able to find a job somewhere overseas." It's just plain idiotic to ask that of people - especially in the middle of a global recession
To my personal knowledge, literally hundreds of newbie teachers do exactly this every year in Prague alone. Most do find jobs and spend at least a year or two enjoying the job to some degree or other.
It may not be for you, but you're not the only brand of would-be TEFL teacher out there. |
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Chancellor
Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Posts: 1337
Location: Ji'an, China - if you're willing to send me cigars, I accept donations :)
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