Job Discussion Forums

[themeepsong]

I'll give you a brief bio first;

-I have 3 years of Business English experience in Korea
-3 years of experience teaching at an Elementary School in Korea
-a TEFL and CELTA certificate

I would like to start teaching at Universities in the future(in non-English speaking nations), but I may end up in Canada at some point, perhaps teaching at an Elementary School there.

I'm considering doing the Master of Applied Linguistics or Master of Education.

Perhaps with my TEFL and CELTA, doing the Master of Applied Linguistics would be overkill. Also, if I had the Master of Education, it would probably open more doors in Canada if I chose to move there.

* also if anyone knows, does a Master of Education act as teacher's license in Canada? I obviously haven't done much research on the topic.

The Master of Education seems like it might be more practical and it looks a little more sexy on a resume, I guess.

Any help is appreciated, including their thoughts on the USQ or any other online masters programs. thanks. cheers.

[sojourner]

Use Dave's search facility to locate posts submitted by a member called "Gordon". He finished his M.Appl.Ling., through USQ, about 2-3 years ago. If his posts to the main Dave's fora don't refer to his Master's studies, then go Dave's Teacher Training Forum and do a search there. (You might also want to submit a query to that forum re the M.Ed. v M.Appl.Ling. issue ). I vaguely recall that Gordon appeared quite satisfied with his USQ course - but, there have been other posters who have had some misgivings about USQ.

I, myself, completed an MA (Applied Linguistics) programme, through the University of England (www.une.edu.au ), about 3 years ago. It was ok - bit theoretical, though (yet, still learnt a lot !) - and, of course, it certainly makes my CV look good ! However,, the number of units (ie subjects) being taught each year is often a bit limited. But, a good thing about the programme is that they'll allow students to concurrently enrol in a limited number of subjects being offered by other departments - including those being offered by other universities - for cross-crediting towards their MA (Appl.Ling.) degrees. For further information about this Master's degree, contact Dr Karen Woodman, the programme coordinator (she's Canadian, BTW !). UNE also offers M.Ed. programmes.

You might also want to look into the M.Appl.Ling. programme being offered by Macquarie University (located in Sydney). That uni is probably regarded as having Australia's leading Applied Linguistics research centre. A number of the world's leading lights in the areas of Applied Linguistics and TEFL have taught at Macquarie (eg, David Nunan).

You should contact the educational authorities in your province in order to ascertain their pre-requisites for teaching positions.

Peter

[Jetgirly]

In general, an M.Ed wouldn't qualify you for K-12 teaching certification in Canada. You usually need a teacher training B.Ed program. In my province you need:

[themeepsong]

Thanks! I really appreciate the earnest responses.

I'll continue to do a little more investigating.

cheers.

ps additional advice or comments are still more than welcome