Job Discussion Forums

[nighthawk]

I posted this message yesterday, but it has been deleted. I don't see why it was deleted because this thread is very relevant to teachers. In fact, I think it should be a sticky!

To the moderators: Before you delete it again, I'd like to know why. Send me a palm.

Hello all. I�m a 25 year old American with a little EFL teaching experience under my belt. I know I want to teach EFL�that much I�ve learned from my experience teaching. I�ve decided that I want to get an M.A. in TESOL ASAP, so I don�t ever have to take another crappy language school job ever again, and besides, grad school seems inevitable for me anyway. This field seems to be getting more and more competitive, and I'd like to just get it out of the way. I�ve posted about the M.A. before, but I�m looking for more info.

I'm going to try to explain to you all how I learn, so you can get an idea about what kind of program would suit me. Distance M.A.�s won�t work for me because of my learning style. I always have learned best in person and through being tutored; thus, I'd prefer a university with a low student-faculty ratio for their M.A. in TESOL program. The Peace Corps is out of the question because who in their right mind would trust the American government these days? -- certainly not me! -- so I�m trying to figure out where I could go (Australia?, England?, someplace else?) and which universities would be affordable considering the cost of tuition and room and board. Also, I�d like to find a 1-year degree program instead of a 2-year one because obviously that would cost less, and from what I�ve heard most employers don�t care either way, so long as you get an M.A. in TESOL.

I just e-mailed a friend about this, and he e-mailed me back telling me what his (2-year) M.A. in TESOL program in the U.S. was like. Maybe after reading it, you�ll understand why I�d like to find a good program elsewhere. Here�s what he said:

[guest of Japan]

Order Peterson's Guide to Graduate Schools in Education from Amazon.com.

It lists information on about 60 schools that have programs for ESL and EFL. I bought it and it is quite handy for the preliminary search.

To be honest I don't understand your desire for a top-down educational approach in grad school. Only half of the purpose of grad school is to learn information. The other half is to make you a professional who can work independently, research and manipulate information, and can develop and follow a plan of action. The idea of getting a Masters is so you can be a leader in the field. How can you become a leader if your only training is in following the leaders?

Anyway, good luck with your search. I think you will find that book helpful. For a small sampling of what it has to offer go to their website and use their grad school search.

[Sherri]

nighthawk
I agree with guest of Japan, I find some of your "requirements" a bit strange for someone looking for a graduate degree. I think you will find most courses worth their salt will not be textbook-based.

Concerning references I doubt very seriously if you can find a program that does not require references of some sort. Usually though they ask for academic-related references not references from for example the owner of a private language school. You can ask your advisor or teachers who got to know your work well when you got your BA. Do you have any work colleagues who could comment on your teaching?

Also bear in mind that what your friend wrote about his course is not true of all American MA courses. I am doing my MA at the University of Birmingham, I also have an MSc and a BA from British universities. I think you would be hardpressed to gain acceptance to a British university without references. It is also very expensive as you would be charged a higher rate as an overseas student--even if you study on their campus. If money is an issue, I think you would be better off staying in the States.

I have heard good things about the program below, have a look at the website. It has some but not all of your requirements.

http://www.sit.edu/graduate/aymat/

Good luck in your search
Sherri

[nighthawk]

I've been known by more than a few to be a strange sorta fella.

There's a thread about SIT in the newbie forums:
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?t=6324&highlight=sit

Here's a quote from it from Gordon:

[Gordon]

Yes I do think that. If I recall correctly, SIT was asking for $35,000 US for their Masters degree. It could be a little more or less. Then you have the flights to and from Vermont once or twice to consider. The UK has masters for about 7-9,000 pounds and in Australia, they're 8,000 AUS(Tasmania) to about 14,000 AUS (Deakins and Macquarie). Don't quote me on the exact figures, the numbers are off the top of my head, but they are fairly good estimates.

I have looked at about 15 masters programs in the past 6 months, but have yet to find one that seems right to me.

[nighthawk]

Gordon wrote:

[Gordon]

Sorry, I was talking about distance masters. I think all of them have in-house programs too, but you will have to check on the cost for rent, etc... Mind you everyone knows that life in Australia is waaaay cheaper than the UK, even in Sydney.