Job Discussion Forums

[sultaneh]

Hello,
I'm new to the forum and to teaching as well. I love to travel and I am hoping to work overseas, away from America.

I have a bachelor's degree but I haven't gotten any TEFL/ CELTA yet. I am still in America now, but I would like to travel to India for a bit, and then start teaching someplace (maybe India or Tibet, or doing volunteer work, or else maybe Eastern Europe or S. America).

Any advice on what certification I should get? Is the CELTA the gold standard or should I go for a generic sort of TEFL in Latin America?

Last, does anybody know if Americans can teach in Italy or Spain these days? I would love to teach there as well.

Thanks and I'm happy to have found this group!

[christine13]

From what I understand, if you are a US citizen, it is super-difficult to work legally in Italy (and probably Spain, but I'm not sure). I was interested in working in Italy, too, but if you don't have a claim to an EU passport or Italian citizenship, it will be very difficult to get a visa to work there. I'm not an expert (never been there yet), but that's what I've found out so far.

[sultaneh]

[christine13]

[denise]

Complaining about how few people have responded isn't the nicest way to get a response! One possible reason for the discrepancy between number of views and number of replies is that we don't know until after we've clicked on the link and read your post what, exactly, it will be about. The title is a bit vague. So we click and read and then perhaps realize that we don't have answers to your questions.

Your questions have been asked and answered many times here. If you do a search, you can find easily half a dozen recent threads on the benefits of different certificates, especially the name brand vs. generic debate.

d

[sultaneh]

ya i guess this isn't a forum, like for discussion or anything, silly me!

[nickpellatt]

Hi

I was one of the people that looked in and didnt reply. I do spend a lot off time on this forum...too much really. I didnt think I really had much to say that I hadnt said on threads all over the first page that talked about TEFL courses. Not meaning to be rude ... but I had probably written the same reply about TEFL courses and didnt want to write it again when it is there on another thread.

To answer that question ... CELTA or the like is the minimum entry level qualification for most jobs...more information on courses can be found by reading through some of the other newbie posts.

Ditto with working in the EU. Im a UK citizen so I dont have the same worries and am not talking from experience...I have read lots of threads here that do suggest working in the EU is very difficult to do. This can be confirmed by reading some job ads for the EU...they normally ask for EU passport holders only.

I would imagine there are lots of volunteer gigs in India ... dont personally know any...again another reason I didnt reply...havent got an answer for you...Tibet is less likely though IMO. At some times getting permission to visit is restricted ... teaching is highly unlikely IMO.

going back to the TEFL cert though .... there are many threads about generic certs ... most people say good things as long as they offer 120 hours study an 6 hours of observed teaching practice. Some people suggest you should take the course in the country you wish to teach ... others (me included) suggest you should take it in your home town if possible...Its rare to see someone suggest taking it in an unrelated country...which is what it seems you suggest by going to Latin America...

My advice would be to see if you can do it locally first...and I see no reason to do it in Latin America unless you want to work there...thats just me though.

Im sure no one is being rude by not replying ... many of these queries have been answered many times though...just an hour browsing through threads will answer questions for you. You might then come back with more specific queries people are more inclined to answer then.

Good luck though! and welcome to the board

[sultaneh]

Nick,
Thanks for your reply, and for the welcome!

thanks also for the info on Tibet. I didn't realize it was so hard to visit there at this time but I guess it is because of the Chinese having taken it over.

I am thinking of doing the CELTA here in North America, and then applying for jobs elsewhere. I agree also that it doesn't make sense to take it somewhere else, because of the cost of getting there.

The information on my questions probably is buried around in many different posts, some of them contradictory.


I actually found a book at the library, after posting these questions, that has been very helpful, it's called "Teaching English Overseas" by Jeff Mohamed.
It has answered all my questions so far, except it was written in 2003 so it doesn't have current information in it. That's the advantage of asking questions on this forum, is that you get up-to-date information from people who are out there in the field so to speak. plus it's a nice way to 'get to know' new people.

Thanks to everyone who replied!

[justcolleen]

[sultaneh]

[nickpellatt]

My suggestion for taking it locally isnt based only on cost, although the cost of flights and accomodation will probably make it more expensive to take in another country.

My view is this ... When I have arrived in new countries (China/Kenya) I have often arrived tired, and in the case of China ... with bad jet lag. Add to this the excitement of a new country and culture, new foods, new places to explore, and new accomodation. Twin this with the course experience, which many people describe as 'the most stressful 4 weeks of my life', and I feel you are making the course harder than it needs to be.

If you can take the course in your home environment, or at least a familiar one, you are increasing your chance of doing well on the course, making the most of the tutors experience and mentoring, and actually enjoying the experience.

I loved my course month ... I really learnt a lot, and I felt more enthusiastic than ever about teaching. This was hugely down to having a support network to make it easier, and taking the course in comfortable and familiar environment. This is really a key thing to consider in my opinion.


PS - Tibet may or may not be difficult at the moment ... I dont really know, but I know at times visits can be restricted there. An American teaching there?? Sounds unlikely to me

[sultaneh]

Nick,

Thanks, you bring up some good points about why it's better to study in a familiar environment. I am thinking Toronto would be best for me, because I've been there many times before and I love the city. I do want to go to Egypt, but I also can see how it could be hard to do well there. After all, the point of taking the course is to succeed, not just to have fun in the city where the course is.

Ya I will have to see how things develop in Tibet, I probably won't be able to do the CELTA until October, so maybe things will have gotten better in Tibet after a while....

[sultaneh]

[naturegirl321]

TEFL certs help you as a teacher, but in some places, like Peru, they won't help you get jobs. Teaching in TIbet, um, very hard to get a visa to go there. India, there's little work as well, sometimes phone companies need people, but don't many.

If you want info on Peru, I' can help you in that area.

Three big certs are Trinity, SIT and CELTA. BUt if you want to go generic, that's fine too, must make sure that it has 120 hours and 6 teaching hours.

Of course you can teach in Spain, I'm not being sarcastic. There are legal ways. I posted links on the Spain forum. I'll PM you with info as well. France as well, Norway Finland too.

[naturegirl321]