Job Discussion Forums

kpjf · Joined: 18 Jan 2012 Posts: 385

Hi everyone,

Basically I’ve only just finished an MA in TESOL and wanted to do a CELTA afterwards which begins 6 October in my country, but I started thinking by the time that finishes I will have problems finding a teaching job come start of November. Anyway, I just happened to see a job by chance that someone withdrew from at the last moment. Long story short I applied for it, but that place needed me to start work ASAP. I accepted for the reason I write above, plus it is a university position with a very good salary for the hours I have to do (it is only 8 hours per week with no office hours). After this, my plan was to do the JET programme, but due to the contract of this job it would be more than likely impossible to fit in a CELTA before Japan.

My fear is that this experience as an untrained teacher will add up. Along with this 6/8 of the classes are simply conversation classes and those 6 classes are the same class just different groups (so I only need to prepare one lesson for all 6 classes) which I’m not sure is the best way to improve my teaching as a whole (I’d prefer to actually have to teach grammar, reading, writing, speaking, listening, not just speaking alone). I've just been told get the students speaking and do whatever I want to achieve that.

I think I accepted the job too quickly (I was basically forced to let them know immediately because classes had already started and didn’t want to turn down them down because the salary/conditions seemed decent) but wonder if I should have just done a CELTA, then tried to find a job elsewhere in November, so I wonder if it would be best just doing that. I just fear long term that it’s not good not having a CELTA and if I do the JET programme 2-3 years I don’t think you can fit in a CELTA in between that. Sure, it's an easy job with good salary and many would jump at the chance of this post, but my main criteria at the minute is good teacher development why I write this post.

Can anyone offer any advice? I just don’t want to have some years of experience with no proper training if that will affect me in the long-run when I could fix that now to benefit me in the future in spite of just starting this job with decent salary which may or may not be beneficial for my development as a teacher.

Thanks a lot in advance Smile

Xie Lin · Joined: 21 Oct 2011 Posts: 731

Did your MA TESOL program include a teaching practicuum in which your teaching was observed and critiqued? If so, I'd say you're good to go. Smile

.

esl_prof · Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2014 3:11 pm Post subject:

An MA TESOL supersedes a CELTA. If you've already got an MA, you don't need the CELTA to advance in your career. Of course, the CELTA may be a good professional development opportunity for you, but I wouldn't say it's necessary.

thomthom · Joined: 20 May 2011 Posts: 125

If you already have an MA degree in TESOL, surely that's actually better and more highly-regarded than a CELTA in the first place, so acquiring one on top of that would be overkill, in my opinion. I don't think you will be much more employable with both an MA TESOL and CELTA than you would be with just the former. Seems like you've already found yourself a well-paying, low-hour job, so what's the problem?
Remember also how much a CELTA costs. You might (if you're lucky) eventually find yourself getting paid, say, $100 more a month because you have one.. so then you'd have to work 12-15 months in your new role just to recoup the difference. Perhaps it'll be worth it if you want to work in ESL for a good 10-20 years.

kpjf · Joined: 18 Jan 2012 Posts: 385

Thanks for the replies. Maybe I'm worrying over nothing?!

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

kpjf · Joined: 18 Jan 2012 Posts: 385

suphanburi · Joined: 20 Mar 2014 Posts: 916

IF you are accepted into the JET program then you are seriously over-thinking it.

The CELTA is both unnecessary and not particularly appropriate when working in situations like JET where you are just an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) working with children and young learners. You would have learned a lot more from your "materials and media classes" or "assessment and evaluation" classes.

$2000 (cost of a CELTA) for a review of what you know and 6 hours of observed practicum is a bit pointless for someone fresh off of an MATESOL and going into JET.

.

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

nightsintodreams · Joined: 18 May 2010 Posts: 558

Pfft, this is the JET program we're talking about. Most JETs have zero teaching experience or teaching related qualifications and do just fine.

psychedelicacy · Joined: 05 Oct 2013 Posts: 180 Location: Beijing

This is madness. Am I reading this correctly? You have an MA TESOL yet want to supplement it...with CELTA?

CELTA is an entry-level qualification. That means that you could be a road-sweeper, do CELTA for a month, and get an ELT job, potentially. With an MA, you should have a deep and comprehensive knowledge of ELT. The fact that someone can possess a master's in ELT yet not feel confident about teaching nor possess any teaching experience just shows what a complete joke of an industry it really is.

Sashadroogie · Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2014 7:54 am Post subject:

Says more about the entry requirements for some MAs than the industry as a whole. How does one get a place on a Master's course in teaching English with no previous experience and no practical training in the course itself? As paradoxical as it sounds, the roadsweeper with a Celta stands a better chance of delivering some sort of effective lesson than somebody with some of the MAs floating about there...

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

This is a perfect example of why degree seekers should base their education decisions on a degree program's specific coursework and not just on the degree major itself. Additionally, many don't consider the option of including a practical component as an elective (i.e., taken from another university that offers it with credits transferred in).

In the OP's case, it was a missed opportunity; the past can't be changed. However, it's nothing that can't be resolved. He/she now needs to figure out what to do from this point forward.

suphanburi · Joined: 20 Mar 2014 Posts: 916

Sashadroogie · Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2014 10:11 am Post subject:

Celta doesn't claim to have the breadth or depth of a proper MA. But not all MAs, even in Tesol, have any teaching componant. A Celta will ensure a minimum teaching knowledge for entry into the industry, and doesn't claim to turn out finished teachers.

The JET program, from what little I know of it, so am open to correction, isn't considered a teacher-training but a recruitment program, and any on-site training will have little value outside Japan.