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kingbee2009
Joined: 14 Apr 2009
Posts: 17
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 Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 8:46 am Post subject: Which online TEFL cert? ------Recommendations please |
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Hi there,
I'm looking to get a basic TEFL certificate to teach in Turkey (along with my BA Business degree and 2.5 yrs experience teaching in Italy).
I've been informed that a basic online cert will do, so am looking to do a 40 hour online course.
I realise most of these are Mickey Mouse, but what's the best/most recognised please?
Many thanks and best regards,
KB |
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Chancellor
Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Posts: 1337
Location: Ji'an, China - if you're willing to send me cigars, I accept donations :)
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 12:56 pm Post subject: Re: Which online TEFL cert? ------Recommendations please |
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| kingbee2009 wrote: |
Hi there,
I'm looking to get a basic TEFL certificate to teach in Turkey (along with my BA Business degree and 2.5 yrs experience teaching in Italy).
I've been informed that a basic online cert will do, so am looking to do a 40 hour online course.
I realise most of these are Mickey Mouse, but what's the best/most recognised please?
Many thanks and best regards,
KB |
If you had explored related threads on this board you would have learned that the "industry standard" for an entry-level certification is 100-120 course hours followed by at least six hours of supervised teaching practice with real ESL/EFL students. So, no, a 40-hour certificate like the one offered by i-to-i will not do (not even if you add another 60 hours of various "modules" and the on-site weekend; I know you didn't mention them specifically but they're well known for being a sub-standard course provider and their basic certification course is only 40 hours). If you can't do a four-week on-site course for whatever reason (like not being so stupid as to quit a fairly good-paying job just to go take a course and not have a guarantee of a job afterward), then look for an on-site course provider that also offers an online course but that will also allow you to do your all-important supervised teaching practice on-site (I can't stress enough the importance of the supervised teaching practice and, no, i-to-i doesn't offer real teaching practice despite its claim; it has you practicing in front of other teacher trainees and not real ESL/EFL students; what separates courses that meet the standard from those that don't is primarily this whole issue of a supervised teaching practice with real ESL students).
It is preferable that you do an on-site course such as CELTA, Trinity, SIT or one of the generic providers (generic meaning that they're not brand names). There are on-site course providers that offer an online course and allow you to do the all-important teaching practice on-site. Two such providers are Coventry House International (which is an on-site Trinity course provider in Canada; go to www.ontesol.ca) and TEFL International (they have courses in numerous locations around the world; go to www.tefllife.com/tesolvirtualcourse).
In the alternative, if you're really serious about TEFL as a career, skip the entry-level certification courses and go get either a graduate certificate in TEFL (as in from a university like University of California at Berkeley) or get a master's degree in TESOL or in applied linguistics (with an ESL emphasis). |
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kingbee2009
Joined: 14 Apr 2009
Posts: 17
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 2:02 pm Post subject: |
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Hi and thanks for the great info,
Of course you're right, but at the moment I don't have the resources (money+time) to do a CELTA/Trinity.
However, I appreciate the information.
I've been told in the Turkey forum here that "anything remotely TEFL" will do as a certificate for getting a working visa in Turkey.
I do have 2.5 yrs good teaching experience and all I want is the visa at this stage. Getting the minimum basic certificate is the priority, as I want to start working there as soon as possible, and will need my remaining savings to relocate and pay for flight/transport, etc.
If i-to-i is a substandard provider, do you know a better provider offering short basic online certs (e.g. 40 hr), which would be enough to get the Turkish visa?
Many thanks and best regards,
KB |
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 2:14 pm Post subject: |
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If you're looking for a basic, online only, forty hour, "TEFL Certificate," it's hard for us to recommend one over others.
They are all mickey mouse. They all seem to be about as micky mouse as each other.
You're looking to get the most basic qual to meet an immigration requirement...well- if any of these will do that for you, it doesn't matter which, and good luck to you. Check with sources in Turkey, and get one that has worked for someone else in the past.
But- What about the students?
You say you don't have the money to do a real qualification.
Okay. But students will be paying you as if you knew how to teach.
Seems unfair to me.
BEst,
Justin |
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santi84
Joined: 14 Mar 2008
Posts: 1317
Location: under da sea
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 2:57 pm Post subject: |
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| If you only want a below-standard (less than 100 hours) certificate, it really doesn't matter where it is. Any employer that accepts it does not really care where it is from. The only person here that will recommend one over the other is someone who works for that particular company (for example, you will probably find someone chiming up about how great i-to-i is, but they have have four posts, all about i-to-i's greatness). There is no "best" or "most recognized", so take your pick. |
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Chancellor
Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Posts: 1337
Location: Ji'an, China - if you're willing to send me cigars, I accept donations :)
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 3:52 pm Post subject: |
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| kingbee2009 wrote: |
Hi and thanks for the great info,
Of course you're right, but at the moment I don't have the resources (money+time) to do a CELTA/Trinity.
However, I appreciate the information.
I've been told in the Turkey forum here that "anything remotely TEFL" will do as a certificate for getting a working visa in Turkey.
I do have 2.5 yrs good teaching experience and all I want is the visa at this stage. Getting the minimum basic certificate is the priority, as I want to start working there as soon as possible, and will need my remaining savings to relocate and pay for flight/transport, etc.
If i-to-i is a substandard provider, do you know a better provider offering short basic online certs (e.g. 40 hr), which would be enough to get the Turkish visa?
Many thanks and best regards,
KB |
Your prospects for better jobs even in Turkey will depend on you getting a certification that meets the industry standard. The kinds of jobs you are likely to get with a 40-hour certification (like the one i-to-i provides) are jobs that will likely hire you without any certification. As for being able to get a working visa in Turkey, that has nothing to do with whether you have a TEFL certification but you should be aware that many countries require you to have a bachelor's degree to get a working visa. So, the TEFL certification is to get the teaching job while the bachelor's degree is to get the working visa (and, with better employers, also to get the teaching job).
I provided links for two on-site course providers that also offer an online course and on-site teaching practice. If you're not going to do an on-site course like CELTA, Trinity, SIT or one of the generics, then this is the route to go. Stay away from i-to-i or Oxford Seminars or similar substandard courses unless you really want to have very few job prospects. As santi84 suggested, there is no such thing as one substandard certification being better than another.
You said you have two and one-half years of teaching experience. What kind of teaching is it? Are you teaching English to speakers of other languages or are you teaching something else. If you're teaching something else (other than teaching another language), don't presume to think that such experience qualifies you to teach a language. Teaching a language is very different from teaching things like elementary school or high school or a vocational course like automobile mechanics. |
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kingbee2009
Joined: 14 Apr 2009
Posts: 17
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 5:04 pm Post subject: |
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Hi and thanks 
Some good info, which is appreciated.
This is what "Otterman Ollie" wrote in reply to a thread I started on the Turkey forum:
"Anything that is remotely tefly and on headed paper will do, the system in Turkey ( for want of an appropriate term) is unable to process your application to teach here without one."
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=75640
I was therefore under the impression that I needed the TEFL to process the visa.
Justin, I appreciate your comments, but not so much about the 'short-changing my students' bit.
For your information, during my time teaching English and Business English to Italians (adults and teenagers mainly), I have put more effort into my lessons than most teachers would dream of, and my students have learnt a great deal.
I know exactly how to teach people, and any TEFL qualification will not improve that, it's just a piece of paper to open doors from my point of view.
I was thrown in at the deep end in the Milan area of Italy and found that I have a good natural teaching ability, being patient and understanding, as well as being a people person and having the ability to structure and deliver quality lessons.
With regards to the online cert, it may well be a good option to email potential schools directly and ask them.
Having a CELTA in Turkey is definately not a requirement, it's just what the lowest they'll accept as a TEFL that's important for me right now.
Many thanks and best regards,
KB |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:00 pm Post subject: |
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I know exactly how to teach people,
I'd hesitate to say that myself, after my 12+ years of experience, CELTA, MA, and other quals....though I'm a relatively successful career teacher at this point.
I think it might be fair to say that you've had a reasonable level of success and may have some talent for the job...but knowing 'exactly'?
Sorry to get pedantic, but we are language teachers, after all... |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:03 pm Post subject: |
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Anyway, sorry, on a more useful note, if any cert will do, then which 40-hour cert doesn't make any difference - as others have pointed out, they're all basically mickey mouse level. After Turkey, or for better jobs, they will all be substandard - and they'll all get you into the very basic jobs you want at the moment, probably.
It won't matter, for the kinds of jobs you're applying for. Go fo the cheapest one, if this is the route you're going to take. |
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kingbee2009
Joined: 14 Apr 2009
Posts: 17
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:15 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Spiral,
Thanks for your replies and info.
I hear what you're saying about any and all of them being pretty much the same.
On the teaching: come on, teaching English abroad isn't all that difficult, let's face it.
Maybe I just have a natural ability for it, and combined with my high intelligence (private school education, 150 IQ and highly intuitive), I've found that gauging a person's ability with English and finding the best way to help them improve, has become second nature after 2 and a half years.
Having had excellent results and having taught at a level way above what I was supposed to be capable of, I have proven myself and found what I'm made of teaching wise.
Perhaps having a lot of confidence in your ability helps too.
Best regards,
KB |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:33 pm Post subject: |
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Dear kingbee2009,
"Perhaps having a lot of confidence in your ability helps too."
Hmm, you may have to work some on that. 
Regards,
John |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:37 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks, john, I was pondering exactly how to put it. I expect it comes with experience (and age).
Anyway, we've just finished off a newbie with 3 years of experience who had a huge case of overconfidence and wasn't open to collaboration with team members, regardless of how different/new the teaching contexts she needed to deal with were to her. She's off to an elementary school where she can teach the same course to similar students for the long-term. It'll work for her. |
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mozzar
Joined: 16 May 2009
Posts: 339
Location: France
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 8:57 pm Post subject: |
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| kingbee2009 wrote: |
Maybe I just have a natural ability for it, and combined with my high intelligence (private school education, 150 IQ and highly intuitive), I've found that gauging a person's ability with English and finding the best way to help them improve, has become second nature after 2 and a half years.
Having had excellent results and having taught at a level way above what I was supposed to be capable of, I have proven myself and found what I'm made of teaching wise.
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You sound like a right tit. I'd absolutely loathe having to work with you. 'Yeah well, i'm much more intelligent than the average narry-do-good teacher. I can see what the people need, it's... a gift.' |
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:08 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| come on, teaching English abroad isn't all that difficult, let's face it. |
Erm, sometimes it is. Depends a lot on context, expectations, individual students, needs, resources, support.
At least, sometimes it's difficult for me. Though I guess I only have a decade of experience, in a variety of contexts, in a variety of countries, and am licensed as a teacher trainer and have a fair amount of post grad education in the area.
I certainly don't know "exactly" how to teach.
To get a good job, in many parts of the world, you're going to need a real qual.
I won't argue further about whether you need it to DO a good job.
But know this- as of now, for the organisation I work for, your resume would get binned for having no experience or training.
No training is clear- since you have none. And most good employers don't count the kind of cert you're looking at as anything at all.
No experience you might argue with, but here's the rub: a lot of employers don't count pre-training experience as experience at all. Because it's experience you got at the kind of place that doesn't appear to care if you know what you're doing.
If you're just looking to bum around and teach EFL, go for it, you're on the right track, and good luck. It can be a really good time!
If you're hoping to progress past the level you're at now, though, you're going to need some real training, sooner or later. Sooner would be better, since not having it basically invalidates your experience in the eyes of a lot of employers. (ie, if you get a cert now, then do two years in Turkey, you'll have a cert plus two years experience. If you do two years in Turkey then a cert, you'll have cert plus 0 years post-training experience.)
| Quote: |
| I have put more effort into my lessons than most teachers would dream of |
Good for you, and keep it up. There are plenty who don't, which may be part of the reason that some of us lifers are so grouchy.
You'll find, though, if you put some of that same effort into training, you'll eventually qualify for the kind of jobs that actually give you the time to put the effort in. (Meaning jobs where you get less hours for more money than the entry level stuff.) Maybe this isn't what you're after- but I highly recommend it. It can be an even better time!
All the best,
Justin |
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Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
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| Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:15 pm Post subject: |
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PS- Don�t take this the wrong way, but it probably doesn�t help you get good info, or to elevate the level of the discourse, to brag about things on an internet forum. I�m sure you�re a bright guy! But�comments about your high IQ don�t add much- no way to prove it here. I could claim 300, if I wanted.
here we can only know you from your postings; if you want to be considered intelligent, only intelligent posting is going to make an impact.
Justin.
PPS- which is why, though I can see some postings have aggravated some people, we'd really be a lot more communicative if we didn't stoop to name calling. |
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