Job Discussion Forums

MsDooLittle · Joined: 25 Jan 2009 Posts: 63 Location: somewhere else

Has anyone done this? Any info about how useful / relevant to a career in TEFL it is, would be appreciated.
I have eight years experience teaching adults, business/general English here in Slovakia. Mostly corporate. I have an unrelated BA + TEFL cert. from slightly dubious ITC in Prague, now thinking about the next step. I'd like to continue teaching adults, but somewhere else, maybe ME or Asia. I recognise that I really need to improve my qualifications. Is the MA at Birkbeck a good choice?
Any info or advice is gratefully received!

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

Hello MsDooLittle,

As you are now in Slovakia, I'm presuming you will be returning to the UK to study at Birkbeck, as they do not offer online or distance degrees.
Are you aware that for both undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, virtually all of the teaching takes place in the evening, ie. after 5pm? It is primarily intended for people who are working and can only come in the evenings. Maybe that is your plan...??

The part-time MA in Applied Linguistics takes 2 years, spread across 2 or 3 evenings a week, from October to July. The full time course takes 1 year from October to September, studying every evening, Monday to Friday, and sometimes on Saturday too.

There are two compulsory modules : Introduction to Applied Linguistics and Research Methods and Design. (I have previously taught the research methods course, but not this academic year). There is a choice of about 8 other modules. You are assessed by coursework, continuous assessment and a dissertation of about 15,000 words.

It is predominantly a theoretical rather than a practical course. Is this what you want? Why have you chosen this over an MA in EFL/TESOL?

Maybe you know all this stuff....perhaps you have some more specific questions which I can answer more specifically. It does have a good reputation for research, but lacks a campus atmosphere.

MsDooLittle · Joined: 25 Jan 2009 Posts: 63 Location: somewhere else

Thanks for your reply, Dedicated. I wasn't aware that it is evening study - and you are right, I am planning to quit my teaching here and invest in improving my tefl credentials so that I may be able to move onwards in my career. As much as I love my current job (self-employed) and it pays ok, it is leading nowhere. And if I leave this country I will lose the reputation that I have built up over eight years. I read, elsewhere on these boards, that Applied Linguistics has more weight as a qualification. And I am interested in the theoretical side of tefl; however my real ambition is to improve my teaching and open up the job opportunities (in another country) at the end of it. So maybe tesol is the way to go. I see (now) that Birkbeck has the TESOL MA, but also evening study, which is not what I want. I would prefer to focus on my studies full time and have a good/useful qualification at the end of the year. Do you know anything about the MA at Sussex university? (I confess I am looking at places where I have studied before as accomodation will not be such an issue)
Huge THANKS for any comments you can make...
MsD.

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

Hello again MsDooLittle,

I haven't experienced Sussex University personally, but asked a colleague who teaches there.

Sussex offers an MA in Applied Linguistics, but they do NOT do any input on classroom methodology or testing. In the Autumn Term, you do 2 compulsory courses : Language and Linguistics and Researching Language in Use. In the Spring Term you choose 2 courses from : Discourse and Communication Analysis;Principles and Practice of English Language Teaching; First Language Acquisition and Sociolinguistics. Then you have a 20,000 word dissertation. The courses are held in small group seminars. There are 5 assessments : one for each of the 4 courses and the dissertation.

Does this sound like what you want to do? Check out:
www.sussex.ac.uk/linguistics

Other courses which come highly recommended :
Manchester University : MA TESOL
Reading University : MA Applied Linguistics
MA ELT
Aston University : MA Applied Linguistics
King's College, London Uni : MA ELT and Applied Linguistics.
Birmingham Uni : MA Applied Linguistics
Leicester Uni : MA TESOL and MA Applied Linguistics
Salford Uni : MA Applied Linguistics and MA TESOL. (IN 2008, Salford was voted Number 1 in the National Student Survey, with 100% student satisfaction rate)

I think if you google them, you can get more details. I think you must decide whether you want a theoretical course, or one which has more practical components. Good luck in your search!

kaw · Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 7:21 am Post subject:

Why not have a look at the MA TESOL courses that offer the DELTA as part of the course - that way you'll be combining the theory with the practical and have an extra piece of paper Smile

Not sure where's offering these courses these days but you could check on prospects.ac.uk as they have a list if all postgrad courses available in the UK.

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

Hi Kaw,

Thanks for joining in the posting. I know that some UK universities offer credits or exemptions to DELTA holders. However, I'm not aware of courses where you can do them concurrently. I think the DELTA is expected first... please correct me if I'm wrong.

eg. Aston (20 credits on MSc in TESOL)
Institute of Education, London (MA TESOL - exemption of one 30 credit optional module)
King's College, Leicester, Reading all offer 30 credits for having the DELTA.

I agree, though, that the combination of a practical DELTA and a theoretical MA in Applied Linguistics is ideal and puts you on the top of the ladder for job applications.

MsDooLittle · Joined: 25 Jan 2009 Posts: 63 Location: somewhere else

Thank you Dedicated, this is golden information! Websites are useful, but not so detailed or informative.

I am very interested in the Sussex MA, theoretically, but am not sure it will have the maximum practical use I am seeking to be a better teacher, and I am not sure I can afford the luxury.

I found there is a TESOL MA at Brighton University, do you know anything about it? Or anyone else out there have knowledge/experience of this MA?

THANKS!

Kofola · Joined: 20 Feb 2009 Posts: 159 Location: Slovakia

Hi,

I don't know if you are aware of the different levels of status in the UK for teachers or not? It might be worth thinking about if you want to work in the UK.

In British Council run schools in the UK in order to be a teacher trainer or more qualified (and better paid) teacher, you need TELF-Q (Qualified) status ie MA or Diploma/DELTA, but the MA must include 5-6 hours of observed teaching practice with feedback by someone who is TEFL-Q trained. Some MAs include this component and some don't. It's fairly flexible as apparently you can 'add on' the practical component simply by finding an appropriately qualified person to do the observations. It would probably be easier just to do it as part of the course, though.

BTW, CELTA gives you TEFL-I (ie Initiated).

Some places do offer combined DELTA/MA courses. I think Bath is one, but there are others.

I'm actually doing a distance MA myself at the moment. If you can afford to do it fulltime without having to work at all, you would probably be able to do a lot more reading than I am currently managing. On the other hand, though, I think it is really useful to be teaching while reading up on the research.

Also, I would choose your course carefully. Some are definitely better than others. Took me over a year and a half to decide! I would especially check out staff credentials/publishing and whether many former students publish in the big name journals/books. That should tell you something about the quality if you can't find anyone with personal experience.

Hope it helps.

MsDooLittle · Joined: 25 Jan 2009 Posts: 63 Location: somewhere else

Thanks Kofola...
I'm not actually thinking of returning to the UK to teach; my plan is to return to TEFL somewhere else in the world when I am a better qualified teacher. Maybe ME, but who knows.
May I ask, who are you doing your distance learning with? I agree, the ideal would be to teach/study at the same time but I am keen to focus on studies for maximum benefit, get the MA then re-locate. Working hard these days to save as much as possible (but the currency is working against me!!!)
With that said.... I must go to my next class...

markcmc · Joined: 18 Jan 2010 Posts: 262 Location: Taiwan

I took the MEd TESOL at Exeter, which was good.

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

Ms DooLittle,

If possible, do a full time MA, especially if you intend going to the Middle East/Gulf countries - some of them do not accept distance learning MAs.
Check the various forums here for more details of which ones accept what.

MsDooLittle · Joined: 25 Jan 2009 Posts: 63 Location: somewhere else

Good morning Dedicated
This is indeed what I am thinking of doing; save some cash, bite the bullet and return to UK to get an MA, then move back to TEFL in a new location. My question here is trying to find out a bit more about which MA to do - and thanks to everyone for your contributions, it's been really helpful.

Applied Linguistics looks interesting but maybe not as practical as I would like. TESOL seems the better choice for me. Does anyone know anything about the Brighton University MA in TESOL? Is it worth the time/money/effort?

I will have to take a year off work to do this; its an investment. So I'm trying to find the most cost effective and rewarding way of doing it...

Kofola · Joined: 20 Feb 2009 Posts: 159 Location: Slovakia

I'm doing the combined MA in TESOL & Applied Linguistics with Leicester Uni. Thought it would cover jobs that ask for either and seemed well set up for distance learning. (Unlike Birmingham who didn't respond to my email queries - which is the main reason why I decided against them). So far I've been pretty pleased. My tutor is very good at getting back to me quickly. If you're doing it on the ground though different questions will apply.

One thing I would look at is what the English requirements are for non-native speakers. A friend complained once that the high number of people with weak English on his course hampered the level of debate, as they just didn't understand what they were reading well enough to discuss its finer points.

kaw · Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 1:13 pm Post subject:

Hi Ms D

Just had a look at Bath Uni - they do the MA TESOL including DELTA. If I was in your place would probably go for one of the more 'established' unis.

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

Kofola has made a valid point about looking at the entry points for non-native speakers.

At Bath, for example, you can do the MA in TESOL if you have an IELTS Band 6.5 overall, with not less than 6.0 in any component. Curiously, to do the DELTA , you need IELTS minimum Band 8.0, with no component less than Band 8.0. They obviously expect native speaker level for the DELTA but not for the MA !

I agree with Kaw about applying to a more "established" university, rather than an old polytechnic-turned-university, hence my previous list.