Job Discussion Forums

[dkcaudill]

I'm not new here, just not a regular, so this is the first I've seen of the newbie forum, what a great idea!

I hope to teach in Japanin a couple years when I graduate with a Bachelor's in Elementary Education, w/ a minor in Anthropology. I want some sort of certification to both prepare me for the unique atmosphere of TEFL, as well as give me some sort of edge in the Japanese job market. What I am curious about is:

What certification is most respected/recognized by Japanese schools?

PS: if you are going to post just to tell me that the job market is gone "bubble burst" blah blah I've already heard it all, save your breath.

thanks in advance for the help,

david

[R]

Hi David,

i believe it is the Cambridge University-accredited CELTA TEFL, but I'll leave it to others to correct me on this. The CELTA is at least the one I'm going for...

Rob.

[Guest]

If you have no experience it's a good idea to do a CELTA for your own peace of mind so you don't go in with your eyes closed. It may give you an edge, but you don't need it to secure a job in Japan. What you need in Japan is a degree. If you want a more detailed answer, post again on the Japan forum.

[dkcaudill]

and what about the TEFL International Certification?

[JDYoung]

I'm a fellow newbie and the acronyms in this industry will drive you around the bend. CELTA, CELTYL, TEFL, TESL, TESOL, etc. Try this link to expand the alphabet soup:

http://www.tefl.net/teacher-training/terminology.htm

Hope it helps.

[Kent F. Kruhoeffer]

Dear JDYoung:

A very nice link! I have saved it to my collection of favourites. You're never too old or too young to brush up on some of these EFL acronyms-from-hell.

Regards,
kEnt

[arioch36]

dear R...have you taught in Japan? I don't want to get in the kind of arguement that led me to never visit the teacher training site. I apologize if you do have experience/expertise with Japan. My understanding is that you are quite wrong.

Maybe it is a British thing..CELTA is best etc. Upon what expertise do you rely when you say that CELTA is the best for Japan.

I have been planning to possibly go to Japan in 2004. My understanding from everyone is that CELTA has no special importance in Japan. I know in China CELTA is pretty meaningless except in some British dominated places in Hong Kong.

David, you should post on the Japan site, so people will answer based on knowledge, not some British bias.

Studying the Japanese market, my understanding is that you need a BS to teach at a high school or language school (Americans need a BS to come to Japan to work)

For college you need at least a MA and publications

China, Japan, Korea don't care less. A good school wants experience, a language school wants a warm young white body. Virtually none of them care about certificate.

If you think you need something to help you, I would say the standard is a four week course with some hands on teaching. I personaly think you would benefit just as much by teaching at a Literacy Volunteer place (in America) or become a language partner/ teacher to local college students from Japan. I took a cert course, I liked it,but I would say this will help you more. Learn to use the internet to help you teach. There are some links on Dave's. For writing class, I love Purdue University's "Owl"

[R]

Hi Arioch,

I think we may have slightly crossed wires here. the OP already mentioned that he has a BA and was looking for specificly for a TEFL-related certificate. It's true that many Japanese schools don't really look for a TEFL cert. I checked the last ten job posts for Japan and about half mentioned that it would be a benefit, with one specifically stating the CELTA. When I've seen jobs advertised in Japan, if they do mention a specific certificate, it tends to be the CELTA or sometimes the Trinity.
You yourself mentioned that the 'standard is a four-week course with some hands-on teaching'. The CELTA is just that.

The OP asked for TEFL certificate recommendations. I recommended one which is widely taught and well regulated. The people I know who have done the CELTA have had good things to say about it.

I also clearly stated that my suggestion was opinion and not the definitive answer.

Please don't waste everybody's time by accusing me of having some kind of British bias. I don't, and furthermore the newbie forum isn't the place for this kind of crabbing.

Rob.

[chinagirl]

The legal requirement for a work visa in Japan is a bachelor's degree. Certifications such as the CELTA, while useful, are not required by law. When I was new to teaching, I got a job at a language school in Japan. This is where most of the folks persuing this site would get their start. I had a BA in English. I was working side-by-side with people who had CELTAs and even master's degrees in TESOL. We were all hired based on previous teaching experience. We were all being paid wages based on our previous teaching experience (not certificates).

If you have a bachelor's degree, you should have no problem finding work at a language school in Japan, if you have the right personality and background - an interest in language, good interpersonal communication skills, strong written and spoken English, and inter-cultural awareness.

[guest of Japan]

The CELTA has become more common in job advertisements. This combined with a certification in elementary education will give a leg up on the competition. Of course experience is better, but this is the Newbie Forum.

[arioch36]

I hope I didn't sound to combative. I personally have never heard of school that even if they mentioned "CELTA" wouldn't accept another equivalent course (4 weeks, teaching)

But won't it be a sad day when this piece of paper becomes a substitute for a school looking at the qualifications of a teacher? I think this is becoming the case. This is a little of the subject, but I strongly resist the "CELTA" only movement. We should fight hard as foreign teachers to promote all schools of similar quality. Competition is healthy. Enough said off the subject.

A 4 week cert might be nice if you feel you need it because of inexperience (I wish i had the money and time to take one as a refresher)

I don't understand why posters don't talk about some other methods. I will say sincerely I truly believe you will become more prepared by teaching a literacy volunteer type course for a couple of months. Or a language partner to foreign students of your target country ( ie, Japanese students in America) You will gain so much valuable insight. Hasn't anyone else done this?

Four week courses are rarely country specific (And will never prepare you for your first unruly class, snotty rich kids who don't want to do any work,or classes of 60 plus students. Such things you just have to live through

[denise]

Arioch36--I agree with you about the merits of other sorts of experiences/qualifications. Yeah, I think practice teaching/volunteering/tutoring can be far more valuable than a little piece of paper that says that you've successfully completed a 120-hour intensive course. BUT... the sad truth remains that some schools out there value little pieces of paper over other alternatives. They're the gatekeepers... At least TEFL courses are (or should be...) fairly standardized. I think. (By the way--my TEFL course was NOT Cambridge or Trinity, and I did just fine with it, but oooops, I wasn't in Japan at the time, so I am getting very off-topic right now.)

[arioch36]

Yes, the pieces of paper. Someday I will have to quit teaching for a year and a half, listen to some professors, many who are either grad students with no experience or teaching things that are irrelevant to teaching in Asia, so I can get that piece of paper called MA.

My cert was excellent...not one of them mentioned already by name, out of ten schools, only one said...but this isn't one of the four that AUSTRALIA wants us to have (though it was more in depth, more teaching hours, and though I have years of experience...Australia would not accept it)

When in doubt about what you need to teach somewhere, e-mail some of the school. What is advertised is often not the reality.