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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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 Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 3:43 pm Post subject: USA equivalent to certs |
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I've read a lot about OTS, CELTA, DELTA, and PGDE however, what are the American certifications equivalent to those?
I'm a teacher in the US that has passed the exams and I have a teaching license. In the US we are certified for the state that we teach in and not for the entire country, so does holding a QTS for my state the same as the European certs?
(Yes, I did use the search function to attempt to find the answers before posting) |
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BadBeagleBad
Joined: 23 Aug 2010
Posts: 1186
Location: 24.18105,-103.25185
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 4:08 pm Post subject: Re: USA equivalent to certs |
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| RedDinosaur wrote: |
I've read a lot about OTS, CELTA, DELTA, and PGDE however, what are the American certifications equivalent to those?
I'm a teacher in the US that has passed the exams and I have a teaching license. In the US we are certified for the state that we teach in and not for the entire country, so does holding a QTS for my state the same as the European certs?
(Yes, I did use the search function to attempt to find the answers before posting) |
Certifications such as CELTA and DELTA are strictly for ESL teaching, whereas state certifications are for content area. These are really two different teaching markets. Being certified in your home state, and having a degree in Education, qualifies you to work in international schools, not language schools. These jobs usually pay more and are more stable. If you want to teach ESL then you will probably want to get a TESOL certificate of some kind, it really is a totally different kind of teaching. |
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 9:51 pm Post subject: Re: USA equivalent to certs |
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| BadBeagleBad wrote: |
| If you want to teach ESL then you will probably want to get a TESOL certificate of some kind, it really is a totally different kind of teaching. |
Ah...I see. Thanks 
So I'm getting a M.S. in TESOL and then I will take the state exams which qualifies me to teach ESL in a state within US. Will the ESL cert then be the same? |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 11:51 pm Post subject: Re: USA equivalent to certs |
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| RedDinosaur wrote: |
Ah...I see. Thanks
So I'm getting a M.S. in TESOL and then I will take the state exams which qualifies me to teach ESL in a state within US. Will the ESL cert then be the same? |
NO. The masters programs that I have looked at and the one I took all tended to focus on the theoretical side of ESL/EFL.
The CELTA/DELTA focus on the practical side of teaching EFL/ESL (boots in the trenches so to speak).
What (students) do you want to teach when you go abroad?
B.Ed, teacher's license = k-12 schools (although in Asia you can easily do ESL if you want to (public schools, private schools, government schools, language academies (why would you want to?) or international schools).
Those with a BA., MA/MS TESOL usually head for the tertiary sector (university lecturer). Typically, the work loads are lower but the remuneration is also usually less than found at the better international schools or even the top end of public school pay scales for foreign teachers.
In all 3 cases, ESL academies. international schools and university lecturer there is a generally growing demand for teachers abroad who are native speakers of English and suitably qualified.
The HIGHEST demand for teachers is in Asia (have a pulse, degree, teacher's license, under 50 years of age = chance of a job within 90 days = 100%).
The best pay scales are typically found in the middle east. (competitive market but decent jobs for qualified individuals).
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 1:02 am Post subject: Re: USA equivalent to certs |
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| tttompatz wrote: |
NO. The masters programs that I have looked at and the one I took all tended to focus on the theoretical side of ESL/EFL.
The CELTA/DELTA focus on the practical side of teaching EFL/ESL (boots in the trenches so to speak).
What (students) do you want to teach when you go abroad?
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I have a bachelors in education (technology/engineering) and right now I'm going for a master's in ESL + certification. I'm also currently a full time teacher so I was hoping that the practical experience could be covered even though I'm not teaching ESL at the moment.
I'm hoping to teach in Hong Kong, Japan, or Korea in secondary or maybe (a big maybe) uni level. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 2:18 am Post subject: |
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Teaching licenses are the American certs for K to 12.
For CELTA and DELTA, those are international, but the SIT course is American, so that might be it.
| RedDinosaur wrote: |
I have a bachelors in education (technology/engineering) and right now I'm going for a master's in ESL + certification. I'm also currently a full time teacher so I was hoping that the practical experience could be covered even though I'm not teaching ESL at the moment.
I'm hoping to teach in Hong Kong, Japan, or Korea in secondary or maybe (a big maybe) uni level. |
THen you could teach at intl schools. You usually need two years experience though.
What is your teaching license in? technology and engineering? Do you also have an ESL cert? The more certs you have the better the chance you have of getting a job.
For uni level, to teach EFL, you'll need teaching experience in the subject you want to tech.
Last edited by naturegirl321 on Fri Jul 01, 2011 3:15 am; edited 1 time in total |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 11:07 am Post subject: |
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The approaches and methods research indicates are useful in language teaching and learning are, for the most part, widely disparate from those usually used to teach content subjects. It really is a different field.
A CELTA offers candidates an opportunity to do hands-on practice teaching with feedback on how you've done. It's invaluable. Shifting from one type of teaching to another trips up quite a few experienced teachers; I've often seen experienced content teachers struggle in language classrooms. |
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
THen you could teach at intl schools. You usually need two years experience though.
What is your teaching license in? technology and engineering? Do you also have an ESL cert? The more certs you have the better the chance you have of getting a job.
For uni level, to teach EFL, you'll need teaching experience in the subject you want to tech. |
My cert is in tech and engineering but I don't have an ESL cert yet. I will probably get it done w/in the year. To get it I need to pass an exam for language proficiency- http://www.languagetesting.com/assessments_academic.cfm#
Would that be the same as CAE (http://cambridge-english-advanced.cambridgeesol.org/exam-overview)? |
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 3:34 pm Post subject: |
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| spiral78 wrote: |
The approaches and methods research indicates are useful in language teaching and learning are, for the most part, widely disparate from those usually used to teach content subjects. It really is a different field.
A CELTA offers candidates an opportunity to do hands-on practice teaching with feedback on how you've done. It's invaluable. Shifting from one type of teaching to another trips up quite a few experienced teachers; I've often seen experienced content teachers struggle in language classrooms. |
Ah.. so CELTA is similar to student teaching/internship then. I do get practical experience through the M.S. TESOL program I'm in (http://www.gse.upenn.edu/degrees_programs/tesol). Although I'm not sure if it's similar to CELTA. Maybe I will get CELTA afterwards just in case but I'd rather do CELTA YL. I do like high school learners best.
So I guess this is the CELTA route http://thnewyork.com/celta |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 3:38 pm Post subject: |
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| RedDinosaur wrote: |
My cert is in tech and engineering but I don't have an ESL cert yet. I will probably get it done w/in the year. To get it I need to pass an exam for language proficiency- http://www.languagetesting.com/assessments_academic.cfm#
Would that be the same as CAE (http://cambridge-english-advanced.cambridgeesol.org/exam-overview)? |
no, it's not the same as CAE. That's for non native speakers to prove their English skills. Like the TOEFL.
What you would need to do is follow the reqs to get an ESL cert in your state. It's kind of like the Praxis exams.
But since you already have a cert in Tech and Engineering, just look for jobs in that field. Could you teach Science or something similar to that?
Teaching Tech and Engineering in an intl school to English speakers is WAY different than teaching EFL to non native speakers. YOu need to decide which path to follow because the certs and such are different. |
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BadBeagleBad
Joined: 23 Aug 2010
Posts: 1186
Location: 24.18105,-103.25185
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 5:38 pm Post subject: |
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| spiral78 wrote: |
A CELTA offers candidates an opportunity to do hands-on practice teaching with feedback on how you've done. It's invaluable. Shifting from one type of teaching to another trips up quite a few experienced teachers; I've often seen experienced content teachers struggle in language classrooms. |
Absolutely! I taught in Catholic and public elementary schools in the US for 5 years before starting to teach ESL and it is not the same at all. Maybe you could find a part time job, or do some volunteer work teaching ESL to get a feel for how it is different. But I would still recommend a certificate of some kind, not so much that it is a requirement most places, but so that you can do a decent job. I am not saying that is the case with you, but sometimes people come here and want to know the bare minimum to GET a job, but aren�t particularly worried about actually being able to DO the job once they get it, and some of the answers are addressing one, while some are addressing the other. |
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BadBeagleBad
Joined: 23 Aug 2010
Posts: 1186
Location: 24.18105,-103.25185
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 5:39 pm Post subject: |
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| RedDinosaur wrote: |
My cert is in tech and engineering but I don't have an ESL cert yet. I will probably get it done w/in the year. To get it I need to pass an exam for language proficiency- http://www.languagetesting.com/assessments_academic.cfm#
Would that be the same as CAE (http://cambridge-english-advanced.cambridgeesol.org/exam-overview)? |
Are you a native English speaker? If so then you don�t need to take one of these exams. Even if you aren�t having gotten a 4 year degree in an English speaking country is often enough. |
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 3:02 am Post subject: |
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| BadBeagleBad wrote: |
| spiral78 wrote: |
A CELTA offers candidates an opportunity to do hands-on practice teaching with feedback on how you've done. It's invaluable. Shifting from one type of teaching to another trips up quite a few experienced teachers; I've often seen experienced content teachers struggle in language classrooms. |
Absolutely! I taught in Catholic and public elementary schools in the US for 5 years before starting to teach ESL and it is not the same at all. Maybe you could find a part time job, or do some volunteer work teaching ESL to get a feel for how it is different. But I would still recommend a certificate of some kind, not so much that it is a requirement most places, but so that you can do a decent job. I am not saying that is the case with you, but sometimes people come here and want to know the bare minimum to GET a job, but aren�t particularly worried about actually being able to DO the job once they get it, and some of the answers are addressing one, while some are addressing the other. |
I'd like to get a job and teach well  I will see how much field work my master's provides. Afterwards I will decide if CELTA will be necessary. Currently, I'm searching for fun ways to teach the boring aspects of English that don't involve rote memorization. |
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RedDinosaur
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 3:09 am Post subject: |
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| BadBeagleBad wrote: |
Are you a native English speaker? If so then you don�t need to take one of these exams. Even if you aren�t having gotten a 4 year degree in an English speaking country is often enough. |
I am a native English speaker. I was born and raised in the US. However, my goal is to teach in HK, Taiwan, Korea or Japan. I fear that b/c I have a Chinese face, potential employers will think that I cannot speak English and would prefer a "white face". |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 10:28 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| Afterwards I will decide if CELTA will be necessary. Currently, I'm searching for fun ways to teach the boring aspects of English that don't involve rote memorization |
A CELTA would give you lots of ideas on how to do this |
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