Job Discussion Forums

[spiral78]

This general topic has been the focus of a great deal of discussion on three other threads, so clearly is of some general interest here. Interestingly, there also seems to be some confusion regarding the relative value of all possible quals.

From my standpoint (BEd., CELTA equivalent, related MA, near 20 years experience, and over a decade teaching at graduate and post-graduate level, have been on numerous hiring committees over the years), here are the GENERAL desirable quals, with some notes for Asia:

ENTRY LEVEL: Any old BA + (for Vietnam and much of Asia) any old TEFL cert. Note: most other parts of the world will not settle for online TEFL certs and require a CELTA or equivalent.

NEXT LEVEL (better schedules, more security, better pay - at language schools and private schools usually): BEd + either ESL/EFL component or CELTA.

PROFESSIONAL LEVEL:
DOS and Teacher Training jobs: DELTA
University, some corporate, government jobs: related MA preferably including a practical component. If the MA was purely theoretical, DELTA or at least CELTA recommended as a supplement.

Desirable extras: Letters of recommendation, local contacts and reputation, publications, conference presentations, research, PhD degree

KEY:
CELTA is a one-month course entry level which focuses on general teaching principles, not all of which are aimed at teaching children. There are add-ons available for entry level teachers going for the kiddie market specifically.

DELTA: a three month full time course (can be taken over time and partly by distance, though an on-site practicum is required) for in-service teachers with experience.

MA TESL/TEFL or MA Applied Linguistics: one or two year programs which may or may not include a practicum. Fully theoretical MA programs can put a teacher without a CELTA or DELTA at a disadvantage on job markets outside of academia, so many teachers opt for both MA and DELTA. Note that some MA programs give credit for a DELTA.

Entry level jobs most places require the minimum BA + some kind of cert - but most teachers either get out of the game or move up the ladder. Experience alone will provide some traction, but eventually unless one's content to labor away at relatively insecure and lesser-paid jobs long-term, it's usually advisable to consider upgrades along the way.

Input from others will be useful - I've given only real basics here, though I think this is pretty accurate. Will be interested in the take of others with quals as opposed to teachers with 'only' experience!!

[esl_prof]

Thanks for kicking off this thread, Spiral! You've provided a nice bare bones summary with helpful definitions for newbies above. I'm bookmarking this to share with others who ask about the basics.

[Sashadroogie]

Yes, some badly-needed clarification there, Spiral, cheers!

[I'm With Stupid]

Good post. Now try and do one for international schools. That's where it gets complicated.

[spiral78]

I can't describe all international schools because they vary hugely, but I can say that in general there are two types:

Privately owned international schools, which as far as EFL goes, can range as widely as private language schools in terms of quality (or lack thereof). The owners can be individuals, groups, and are fairly often religious groups. Privately owned international schools are more likely to be lower-end and thus more likely to hire people with lesser quals (BA+CELTA or even less). There are usually more openings at these than at 'real' international schools.

'Real' international schools chartered by states or nations usually require teachers with actual teaching licenses and hire far more from content teachers (math and sciences especially) and far less from EFL teachers. These jobs are great when you can get them, but openings aren't rampant and upper-level quals usually needed. Note that jobs advertised aren't always really 'open:' in many cases, the school already knows exactly who it wants to hire, but must advertise the position to satisfy legalities. Apply anyway if you have what they want (sometimes the job is really open!), but don't be disappointed if they never respond to you.

[esl_prof]

An addendum to the key:

CELTA equivalent refers to any TESOL/TESL/TEFL course that includes a minimum of (1) 120 hours of training (2) 100% face-to-face instruction, no online components, and (3) six hours of supervised teaching practice, which many would consider to be the most important element of equivalency.

The best known alternatives to CELTA are Trinity and SIT (sort of like the McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's of TEFL training) but others that meet the three above mentioned criteria (akin to Carl's Junior or Jack in the Box) will generally do the trick as well.

[esl_prof]

Following PROFESSIONAL LEVEL, you might add:

TEACHER EDUCATION LEVEL
Requirements: PhD/EdD in TESOL, Linguistics, Curriculum and Development or related fields
Focus: Teaching undergraduate and/or graduate level courses in language content (e.g., grammar, phonology, etc.) and methods of teaching to prospective teachers enrolled in either initial teacher licensure programs or MA TESOL/Applied Linguistics programs.
Typical employers include university departments of English, Linguistics, and Education.

Preferred extras: research, peer-reviewed publications, published textbooks or teaching materials, conference presentations, overseas teaching and research experience

[Sashadroogie]

OK, guys, I am a little blinded by science now. Where do I go for training for teaching the birdie song?

[esl_prof]

[esl_prof]

[Sashadroogie]

This is what I want! Where can I learn this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACFtndqofMw

[esl_prof]

[spiral78]

[kurtz]

[esl_prof]