Job Discussion Forums

[denise]

This is sort of related to volar's question, but I didn't want to hijack that thread, so...

For those of you who got your TEFL certificates at home, did you find it easy to focus on the course? Whenever people ask whether they should do one at home or abroad, I always recommend doing the course in the country in which they plan on teaching. You can start to get acclimatized, look for jobs and housing, etc. And the price of the course is usually similar.

I did my course in Prague, even though I was well aware that there was a course in San Francisco that I could have done--I was living just across the bay in Berkeley at the time. I was afraid that if I stayed "home" for the course, I would have too many home distractions--familiar people and places, favorite TV programs, etc., and the program wouldn't have the intensity that it should. While I was in Prague, I knew that I was there specifically to do the course, so even though I did set aside some weekend time to go exploring and enjoy being a tourist, I focused a lot more than I might have at home.

So what were your experiences of doing your TEFL at home? What benefits were there?

d

[danielita]

I did my TESL at home. It was easy to stay on track because there were due dates every other week--which was perfect for the die-hard procrastinator in me. I found it a benefit because I knew where all the resources were in my home town and could easily access them. I also had a practicum so it was great for me to get in touch with the schools in the area and arrange my practicum as they were familiar with the university and the course. On the other hand, I have a procrastinator friend that is doing it online and due to work/family distractions they are falling behind. I think it depends on the personality type.

[smiliegirl]

Can I ask what online course you used? I need to do online TEFL certification, but would be interested in finding a course that offered a practicum in the NYC area.

Andrea

[coffeedrinker]

well, I'm slightly off topic because you asked for people who did their courses in their own country...but I'll post anyway

I did my course abroad and agree that there are plenty of advantages.

One additional reason that doing a course at home might be easier is just due to the initial difficulties with day to day tasks of living in a new place/country. Grocery shopping takes longer. Finding a stationary store to buy your notebook takes longer. And you get lost.

I like these things - for me it's part of the adventure of living abroad. But when you're doing an intensive course, it does add up if you spend two hours doing errands instead of one.

(I still think doing the course abroad is good...but at home has advantages too)

[natsume]

I did a 7 course, 17 unit TESL/TEFL certificate at UC Berkeley Extension, which was ideal for me. These were academic courses, very similar to what you would find as the core courses for most Applied Linguistics or TESOL masters programs.

The drawback is that it can take quite a while to finish. I did it while working full-time in an unrelated field, and I was in no hurry, so it took me over two years. Easy to focus, because it was a fairly relaxed pace. I never was taking more than one class at a time. I knew I would most likely be teaching in a TEFL setting, (if I can ever get out of here, that is), so I intentionally did my student teaching in San Francisco's Chinatown.

One of my fellow students did it in half a year, but she did not work. Many finish it in under a year.

[Jetgirly]

I don't think doing a TEFL course at home would be any different in terms of distraction potential than say, doing your undergraduate degree in your hometown. However, I'd have to say that in my opinion there is way more room for distraction when you go abroad.

I did the CELTA in Barcelona and I was definitely very distracted by the city! Gee, would I rather sip sangria by the beach or make a worksheet for my practice teaching? What sounds like more fun- spending Saturday visiting Sitges or spending Saturday analyzing the difference between the past simple and the present perfect in preparation for Monday's lesson? I went out almost every night. It wasn't always drinking, but we were always out exploring the city. I was exhausted every morning, but I was having so much fun!

In the end I left the course with only a Pass. Looking back, I feel really good about the way I spent my time during the course and wouldn't change a thing. Sure, I could have got a better mark if I'd spent more time on coursework and less time on touristy stuff. However, that mark wouldn't have reflected more knowledge, just more time and effort.

[Gordon]

I did my TEFL CELTA at home and would recommend it. For me it worked out well, allowed me to have a regular home life and work p/t (the course was p/t over 4 months but felt f/t), and the centre was a 5 minute drive from home. I also think the course was geared for people working overseas AND in their home country, whereas if you take a course in Spain for example, the course might only focus on teaching in Spain or other European countries. I might be wrong about this, but it is what I assume. So perhaps a TEFL at home might be a bit broader in its outlook. Certainly there are benefits to both locations.

[Glenski]

[coffeedrinker]

[cangringo]

We did ours at home too and I didn't find it difficult at all to focus even though we had to take it at night and work during the day. We were so focused on getting out of Canada that it wasn't difficult and we spent hours and hours making sure our practicum lessons were the best they could be.

[fancynan]

This has been interesting to hear from those who took their course at home. The preponderance of advice on the forum tends to be that one should take the course where you evenually want to work. My question to all of you is, was is difficult to obtain a position in a country other than your home country, having had your training at home? Thanks.

[Glenski]

[ilaria]

I did my CELTA (wow, six years ago now ) in a little seaside town not far from my home in eastern England. It was nice to be able to go and walk along the beach at the end of a long day, even if it was out of season and the weather was a little bit bracing. Apart from the beach and a once-weekly pub quiz, there was really nothing to distract us. Doing the course in my own country worked well for me.

[mlomker]