Job Discussion Forums

[gloomyGumi]

if a brit looks down on a yank, tell him you'll stick a pixie in his crumpet.

[Sashadroogie]

He'll just fix you with a withering look and tell you to keep yer hands off his crumpet if you know what's good for you...

[billy orr]

Joking apart Thailand Reb, I agree totally with sashadroogie. The CELTA is well worth doing and you won't find a better place to do it than iti in istanbul.

[gloomyGumi]

[spiral78]

gloomy, I thought you didn't yet have a certification? My mistake?

[gloomyGumi]

[_smaug]

I did my TEFL (no CELTA) in Prague with Oxford Trinity.

Now, I don�t consider myself to be slouch where hard work is concerned � okay, who does? � but I completed my masters in education entirely after school hours and on weekends while teaching fulltime in an American public school. So, I know something about so-called intensive courses.

But there�s a difference between courses which are necessarily �condensed� and those which my colleagues from the UK call �intensive�: They seem to place a pragmatic emphasis on the �tense� to no apparent educational purpose other than to test a candidate�s mettle.

Not that there�s anything wrong with testing mettle � and I�m not necessarily making a value judgment � I�m just saying it�s there; it�s an element in UK systems that American candidates ought to be aware of.

[jamessmart50]

I'm a CELTA trainer.

You can do the CELTA course at ITI or British Side and they're both very good indeed.

Not many people fail the course, but you do have to put in the hours.

I don't see why most trainers would be British, there's no reason why that would be so - you need to have completed a DELTA, is basically all. I don't see why it would matter anyway.

Good luck!

[Sashadroogie]

_smaug does have a point. American trainees and newly-qualified teachers do have tendency to be totally crestfallen upon hearing any lesson feedback that doesn't give unlimited praise. Not all of them, of course. That would be a gross generalisation. But when handling feedback, I and others have noticed that rather than giving the information straight to them, much more sugar-coating is needed when the feedback is negative. However, for positive feedback, most of us draw the line at using the gushing hyperbole that seems to be the norm at home that many of them are expecting.

[spiral78]

I think it's appropriate that we don't tell them that their lessons 'rocked,' or feel the need to re-inforce how 'special' they are in general or particular.

Consider: trainers are necessarily modelling the kinds of communication and behaviours that good teachers use with adult students (working with children is obviously a different matter).

I've seen European students quite taken aback at the (to them) overblown enthusiasm and praise heaped on pretty ordinary language learners by young American teachers. The students can perceive this as inappropriate and insincere, because it can be so far outside the normal range of communication here.

"Hey, you did really great! You're a star with the third conditional now!! Fantastic job!!" .....when the student knows perfectly well that he/she doesn't entirely understand the form and still isn't sure when or how it might be used. (I am aware that there is a grammatical error in the example above. It's a pet peeve of mine.)

I'd say that this is a part of the re-calibration one makes in international contexts, to better fit into the norms of a new culture.

[lydia.bainbridge]

I'm following this thread with great interest because I am currently floundering in a CELTA course (not in Turkey) and would appreciate some help.

First, to address some concerns, one of our tutors is from the UK and the other from Latin America, and I see a tremendous respect for differences between various Englishes. I was in fact critiqued for overpronuncing "bottle" because it wasn't a natural pronunciation for me.

Our tutors out clearly not out to see us suffer and in fact have been very supportive. I don't know if this is typical, but we have our own well-equipped workroom and access to supplies and resources and a reasonable schedule.

I have been having some difficulty following the course and not sure if I'm even able to at this point. If this sounds cryptic, it's a reflection of my confusion. If any one of you trainers or experienced teachers would be willing to PM me or invite me to PM you, I would very much appreciate a chance to try to sort out what's going on. I'm not up for making this a public discussion.

Thanks in advance.

[_smaug]

[spiral78]

[Sashadroogie]

Nope, don't get that point at all. lydia.bainbridge has said that the tutors were supportive, so don't know how that could be read as if they are going out of their way to make anyone feel as though they are floundering. And as for DELTA training centres, they exist all over the world and are not run exclusively by British educated trainers. As though that is relevant : (

Too many assumptions going on there. But I'll venture one of my own. The CELTA trainee is probably feeling overwhelmed by the intensity of the course, as do many other trainees. Nothing new there. To suggest this confusion is due to some sort of sadism on the tutors' part (on account of them being British) is ... OK I'll stop now before total descend into silliness.

Lydia, I'm not a CELTA trainer, but have plenty of experience of training courses and newly-qualified teachers. If you need an ear to bend, feel free to email or PM. Though I'd recommend your tutors should be your first port of call.

[_smaug]