Job Discussion Forums

[The Noodles]

Hi there

Am I right in thinking that a Masters in Education is the way to go if you want to teach at an International school?

A while back, I sent a post about obtaining a PGCE for the same purpose. However a few people have told me an MA. Ed is the way to go. My question is, what would I actually be able to teach with this qualification?

As I understand it, International schools do have ESL classes for non native speakers because they need to get to a level of English which will allow them to understand the English based curriculum. Am I wrong in thinking that?

Hypothetically, If they didn't have a ESL class, what then could I do with my MA. Ed if anything?

ESL is something i've been doing for three years and I think i'd be better off continuing with it. Just I want to do it at an international school. I know I could do an MA. ELT but what would be the advantage of that over MA.Ed and vice versa?

What do you all think?

[Lobster]

What you really need isn't the degree, it's the teaching certificate issued through the university and the Teachers' College that allows you to teach in a public primary or secondary school in your home country. This is usually (at least in the case of Canada) gained through university studies in the Faculty of Education followed by completion of the PDP (Professional Development Program) and your practicum. Just having the Masters in Education does not confer a Teaching Certificate.

RED

[sheeba]

[Shan-Shan]

I would assume that most universities offer MEds which have area-specific concentrations -- MEd in Childhood Education, Music, Math, Curriculum Studies, Languages, etc..

An MEd in Language and Literacy, for example, would be quite similar to an MA in EFL/TESL. The student would presumeably do research in areas of language teaching and acquisition, the results of which would certainly be applicable to both ESL and high-school/university classrooms.

Many "non-online" MA in Applied Linguistics programs I've looked at tend to be a little heavy on abstract linguistic theory at the expense of language acquisition courses. The MEd programs I've perused on a number of "concrete" university websites, however, tend to offer a lot of freedom in course selection in areas of curriculum studies, learning, and language teaching/acquisition.

Though not an MA in TESOL in name, these types of MEd programs offer routes quite similar to those taken towards a TESOL degree depending on how the student customizes his/her program.

[cheekygal]

It depends on a school. International school of Beijing (the fanciest one) asks for both - University/college teaching degree + teaching license/certificate. And teaching experience as well.

I am applying at the International schools now and whole license thing concerns me to a certain degree - back in Russia we do not have that system and even if I want to get one, I have to go through some process of diploma affiliation which is as a pain in the rear end.

[brsmith15]

Beware advanced degrees in education. You've undoubtedly heard the expression, "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach."

Well, there's a third one: "Those who can neither do nor teach, teach how to teach."