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nyc2323
Joined: 22 Nov 2009
Posts: 38
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 Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 3:49 pm Post subject: Which TEFL or TESOl course to take? Does it matter? |
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I'm an american and I want to move to SE Asia this winter (ASAP!) to teach english for 6 months or a year. There seem to be a million different places to get a certification and I was wondering if anyone has heard of/had experience with either TESOL Training Internation or TEFL Institute? How important is the name of the school where you receive your degree? I have pretty much no teaching experience but I have a BA in English.
Does taking a course online make a difference? I feel skeptical but i have to continue to work full time.
Does it matter if the school does or doesn't require teaching practicum?
Any help is much appreciated, I have to sign up for a course this week :/ |
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nickpellatt
Joined: 08 Dec 2006
Posts: 1522
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| Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 5:13 pm Post subject: |
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There are a number of threads that cover this. It is worth browsing through some similar threads here in the newbie forum.
Heres the rub though. What is generally regarded as the industry minimum, is a 120 hour on-site course which offers observed teaching practice of a minimum of 6 hours. This teaching should involve teaching real language learners, not other trainees. The majority of reputable employers will not accept anything less than this. The brand names for these courses are CELTA, Trinity and SIT. Others may offer similar programs but may harm your chances of employment by being less recognisable to potential employers.
This excludes online course options as being a recognised qualification, and also excludes weekend type courses, and the blended course that mixes an online component with a weekend option.
Anything less than the minimum mentioned above puts you at a disadvantage in the workplace, because many applicants for jobs will have the recognised credentials when compared to the online or other course options.
However, this doesnt mean you can find work unless you hold said qualification. people throughout Asia can be found working with just a BA, some may even be found working with neither a BA or a TEFL cert. Generally, the employers who will employ you with an online cert, will often employ you without a cert ... on the basis of a) a white face, and b) any BA or Bsc.
I actually took an online course first ... and found myself house sharing with a teacher with no cert at all ... made me realise my cert was a waste of money. I also found I had to go back and complete a recognised certificate (I did a Trinity) to remain in EFL/ESL...which further illustrates how the online option was a waste of money.
Like I say ... there are a lot of threads that cover this type of issue...its worth reading through some of them on this forum. |
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Chris_Crossley
Joined: 26 Jun 2004
Posts: 1797
Location: Still in the centre of Furnace City, PRC, after eight years!!!
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| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 5:18 am Post subject: Re: Which TEFL or TESOl course to take? Does it matter? |
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| nyc2323 wrote: |
| How important is the name of the school where you receive your degree? I have pretty much no teaching experience but I have a BA in English. |
Employers in Asia might be surprised if they received applications from people with degrees from Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale or Columbia, but, when it comes to TEFL, it does not matter a jot which university you got your degree from just so long as it comes (preferably) from a country where English is the first language.
Degrees from countries that are not Anglophone may be treated with skepticism and may convince employers that, if you have not got a degree from an Anglophone university, your English must not necessarily be good enough.
| nyc2323 wrote: |
| Does taking a course online make a difference? I feel skeptical but i have to continue to work full time. Does it matter if the school does or doesn't require teaching practicum? |
If your TESOL certificate does not include a practicum, you may be putting yourself at a great disadvantage. Going into a classroom full of rowdy, spoilt brats with no experience of teaching and/or dealing with issues of discipline is tantamount to being thrown to the lions.
You are therefore strongly advised to take a Cambridge CELTA or a Trinity Certificate in TESOL. Details can be found at the following websites:
http://www.cambridgeesol.org/ and http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/
| nyc2323 wrote: |
| Any help is much appreciated, I have to sign up for a course this week. |
Choose wisely. There is nothing worse than wasting your time and money on a course that doesn't carry any weight, especially entirely online ones. There are many employers, especially in the Middle East, who simply won't consider candidates who claim they have certificates from such courses. |
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norwalkesl
Joined: 22 Oct 2009
Posts: 366
Location: Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-China
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| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 6:26 am Post subject: |
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Yes it matters.
The best in order are:
1. CELTA
2. Trinity TESOL
3. SIT Tesol
I highly recommend spending the money and getting the CELTA. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 5:51 pm Post subject: |
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| norwalkesl wrote: |
Yes it matters.
The best in order are:
1. CELTA
2. Trinity TESOL
3. SIT Tesol
I highly recommend spending the money and getting the CELTA. |
I would say that after you get a bit of experience under your belt, it really doesn't matter what your cert is. And at that point, you should be working on an MA or DELTA: I got my tEFL cert from a no name place, and have never had any problems getting a job. |
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nyc2323
Joined: 22 Nov 2009
Posts: 38
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| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 6:33 pm Post subject: |
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| Thanks for all of the input. It sounds like the majority recommend spending the extra $$ and getting the CELTA or the SIT (my options since i live in NYC). |
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Chris_Crossley
Joined: 26 Jun 2004
Posts: 1797
Location: Still in the centre of Furnace City, PRC, after eight years!!!
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| Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2009 7:52 am Post subject: Getting the CELTA indicates an investment and commitment |
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| nyc2323 wrote: |
| Thanks for all of the input. It sounds like the majority recommend spending the extra $$ and getting the CELTA or the SIT (my options since i live in NYC). |
The CELTA, DELTA and MA/M.Ed. degree all require the investment of time, energy and, of course, money. Getting any (or, as time goes on, all!) of these indicate a commitment to teaching English and continuing professional development (CPD), and employers will usually favour those who can demonstrate such commitment.
On the other hand, short weekend courses without teaching practicums that lead to a so-called "TEFL certificate" indicate that those taking them may (and I use this modal advisedly!) just want "something to do" and/or "save up money to travel", thus showing a relative lack of commitment to teaching in any meaningful medium- or long-term sense.
That doesn't mean to say, of course, that people who have no qualifications aren't necessarily good teachers since posters on this forum have encountered those who have been able to demonstrate competence in teaching when in the front-line even though they might not necessarily have completed any formal course beforehand.
However, it has also been reported at various times that there are those who do have (or at the very least claim to have) a CELTA or equivalent and have proven absolutely diabolical whenever it has come to teaching students, especially young learners, in the classroom.
As for me, I qualified as a state-school teacher for the secondary/high school sector 14 years ago, so I already had the experience of teaching young learners, albeit back home rather than overseas!
I also have gained the Trinity Certificate in TESOL (back in '01), but have not yet undertaken either the Diploma or else the DELTA, as I do not need either of these in my present job, nor am I likely to need it, even though I have also gained two master's degrees in education during my time in China. |
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alitamlit
Joined: 14 Dec 2010
Posts: 2
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| Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 5:55 pm Post subject: |
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Hi,
I'm sort of looking at the same sort of things. I want to go abroad and teach for a bit, but only a few months - upto say 6 - probably more likely 3.
Spending �1000 ish on celta etc doesnt really make sense to me, but I want to a) be able to at least earn enough to cover my living costs, b) know what I'm doing so I'm not wasting the time of the people who are learning.
Should I do a 100 hour online course or if the certificate that'll give me is worthless should I do the 2 15hour courses free on the oxford university press website. http://www.oxford.co.kr/eng/pr/new_wmv.html
I'm doing a bit of volunteering doing conversational classes with refugees - but its hardly a rowdy bunch of kids. And Bsc from the UK - where should I look to work?
Thanks
(I'll keep scanning the rest of the forum for answers as I'm sure this will have been asked and answered plenty of times) |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 6:25 pm Post subject: |
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| alitamlit wrote: |
Hi,
I'm sort of looking at the same sort of things. I want to go abroad and teach for a bit, but only a few months - upto say 6 - probably more likely 3.
Spending �1000 ish on celta etc doesnt really make sense to me, but I want to a) be able to at least earn enough to cover my living costs, b) know what I'm doing so I'm not wasting the time of the people who are learning.
Should I do a 100 hour online course or if the certificate that'll give me is worthless should I do the 2 15hour courses free on the oxford university press website. http://www.oxford.co.kr/eng/pr/new_wmv.html
I'm doing a bit of volunteering doing conversational classes with refugees - but its hardly a rowdy bunch of kids. And Bsc from the UK - where should I look to work?
Thanks
(I'll keep scanning the rest of the forum for answers as I'm sure this will have been asked and answered plenty of times) |
3-6 months? Skip the course and the idea of being a teacher.
Any decent job (with proper work visa) will be for a full academic year.
Use the money you didn't spend on the course to enjoy your time on the beach.
Oh, and the courses you mentioned aren't worth the time or the paper the certificates are printed on (outside of Korea). IF you are headed for Korea then the 100 hour course gets you the pay bump but again, you need to sign up for a full year to get the job. (see the Korean forums).
. |
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alitamlit
Joined: 14 Dec 2010
Posts: 2
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| Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 7:34 pm Post subject: |
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Ok fair enough - lets say instead of looking to get a paid job, I wanted to volunteer instead - and do a half decent job rather than turn up knowing very little about actual teaching?
Would either of those courses be worth the effort?
The one I put a link to is free and there's no certificate anyway, it's more about not being a waste of space... |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 11:39 pm Post subject: |
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| alitamlit wrote: |
Ok fair enough - lets say instead of looking to get a paid job, I wanted to volunteer instead - and do a half decent job rather than turn up knowing very little about actual teaching?
Would either of those courses be worth the effort?
The one I put a link to is free and there's no certificate anyway, it's more about not being a waste of space... |
If you want a taste and idea then do the freebie thing. It is still about advertising their program and not about anything practical that you will use later.
Just remember that the certificate that you get (print out yourself) isn't worth the ink.
. |
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Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
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| Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 1:55 am Post subject: |
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| tttompatz wrote: |
| alitamlit wrote: |
Ok fair enough - lets say instead of looking to get a paid job, I wanted to volunteer instead - and do a half decent job rather than turn up knowing very little about actual teaching?
Would either of those courses be worth the effort?
The one I put a link to is free and there's no certificate anyway, it's more about not being a waste of space... |
If you want a taste and idea then do the freebie thing. It is still about advertising their program and not about anything practical that you will use later.
Just remember that the certificate that you get (print out yourself) isn't worth the ink.
. |
Anybody can print anything with a printer and a little bit of effort, and it's free!
Seriously, most on-line and weekend TEFL "certs" are just a waste of money. You could learn the same with some TEFL books and save your money.
People take a CELTA because it carries some weight and you get some practical hands-on experience.
I took a generic on-site 120 hour TEFL with 6 hours of observed teaching practice. It was far cheaper (but not necessarily worse than) a CELTA.
If you just want to go to whatever country for a short while, get a cheap cert, I mean, you're not expecting to get a great job anyways, just a standard backpacker langauge school job to buy food and drinks.
Just remember, you get what you pay for! |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838
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| Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 1:31 pm Post subject: |
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| For worthwhile jobs, CELTA or Trinity. It doesn't really matter which school you do it at, although some people think it a good idea to do it in your country of interest. Online certs are not recognised by employers, for good reason - they don't offer you meaningful training experience. |
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Nyingje
Joined: 06 Sep 2010
Posts: 3
Location: Colorado, USA
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 8:08 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| I took a generic on-site 120 hour TEFL with 6 hours of observed teaching practice. It was far cheaper (but not necessarily worse than) a CELTA. |
Prof.Gringo, What course did you take?
Can anyone suggest a decent, relatively cheap certification courses located in the western US?
I'm located in Colorado and am interested in teaching English in China. I've been told it's not necessary to get certification, but I would appreciate the training and practice of a decent on-site course. I don't need (and can't afford to pay for) the name recognition of SIT, CELTA etc.
Thank You! |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 11:57 am Post subject: |
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Nyingje:
If you're in or near the Denver area, you might check out Bridge Linguatec. Just do an Internet search for BridgeTEFL. I have no personal experience with their teacher training programs, but perhaps there's someone on this forum who has. |
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