Job Discussion Forums

[fayefidalgo]

Hello all of you professional teachers. I humbly ask for advice and information.

My question pertains to teacher training (but the website would not let me post on that board, otherwise I would have done so). I have a bachelors degree (Anthropology and Spanish) and will complete a cert. in TESOL from my university (in USA) in June. I am realizing that I will likely need a MA to support my family and have an international life, as well as teach in the Middle East (I also study Arabic).
I am trying, somewhat unsuccessfully to research Linguistics grad programs and wonder what is the difference and what is the best course of action for me in pursuing a MA. I have a huge interest in language learning, and wish to teach English.
I haven't found much in the way of Applied linguistics programs in my area, but I have found many MA in linguistics as well as MA in TESOL. I think Applied ling. would appeal to my own language learning as well as teaching. I am not hugely interested in an MA in Ed. and do not wish to teach K-12 in USA.
In your collective experiences what do you think?
Thank you for your thoughts/ideas/advice.

[Pikgitina]

I completed an MA in Linguistics, i.e. not Applied Linguistics, some time ago. I loved it. After having completed a CELTA and a DELTA and having had about 6 years' teaching experience, I found a more theoretical course right up my alley. On the DELTA, things like discourse analysis and curriculum design are covered in sufficient depth, but the course I took, specialising in Second Language Acquisition (SLA), provided insight into theories and ongoing empirical studies aiming to narrow down how the brain actually acquires language. Often really fascinating.

On the down side, having kind of expected, at times, to find out exactly how the brain does achieve this , I found that the theories and linguists just end up chasing each other, and it all went around in circles at times. Nevertheless, well worth it!