Korean Job Discussion Forums

mmarshalynne · Joined: 23 May 2008

What is the value either in the classroom or in finding employment if you obtain an online tefl/tesol certificate?

poet13 · Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2008 3:21 pm Post subject:

-Without it, I would be stuck at 2.2 in EPIK. Now that I have it, in the next two years, I can go up to 2.8.
-Other than that, I learned a lot about being a teacher. Knowing what to do in the classroom and knowing why you're doing it are two very different things.
-When tried and true didn't work in the classroom, I was lost. Now, with my TEFL, I have an idea of where to start looking to help myself.

mmarshalynne · Joined: 23 May 2008

Poet13,

Was it an online course or a classroom, and where did you get your certificate?

poet13 · Posted: Mon Jun 16, 2008 2:19 am Post subject:

I did a 100 hour course here in Korea. I did the additional 20 hour practical with a group of teachers also in Korea. I went through KEI TEFL. It's as rigorous as you want it to be. It can also be pretty quick. I worked hard on mine, and I feel I got real value from it. The support was very good too.

Just read another thread where there were apparently no email responses from KEI. I don't know. I can only suggest you try.

Scotticus · Joined: 18 Mar 2007

Poet's spot on.

Depending on your previous level of "education" education, you might learn a lot or you might learn only a bit. Because my Ed courses at uni mostly focused on psychology and pedagogy, I actually did pick up a bit of useful info from the online course I did. If you have no Ed background whatsoever, and you take it fairly seriously, you should be able to pick up quite a bit of valuable information (and get your pay bumped up in the process).

bogey666 · Joined: 17 Mar 2008 Location: Korea, the ass free zone

poet13 · Posted: Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:52 pm Post subject:

I don't know about the rest of the world, but I do know, that in general, the perception of distance education is changing. At one time, not that long ago, distance education was regarded as a joke. Now, in the US, there are employers who encourage and sponsor their employees to take distance ed courses.
I think TEFL, because it is the least regulated of the certificates, has a long way to go in terms of legitimacy and being accepted at face value, but on the other hand, regular universities have the same problem. The CELTA program has for the most part, overcome this and is considered the gold standard in There's your Harvards, MIT's, and Oxfords, and then there are ....Korean universities. Ok, that was cheap shot. Let's just say, universities that perhpas should not be accredited.

This is just my opinion with a little reading behind it.

tob55 · Joined: 29 Apr 2007

bogey666 wrote:

retrogress · Joined: 07 Jun 2008

After 13 years teaching in Asia, I took an online TEFL course. It was a 140 hour course and I finished it in 10 hours. Though it was very basic, I couldn't help thinking: "If I had had this information when I started...", so I emailed the material to my brother who is starting a year with the JET program.

I found some of the tests laughably easy. You could even retake a 5 question multiple choice test after being shown the correct answers. But the tasks were well thought out and they made you learn and use what you learned.

As far as the online TEFL value, mine is getting me 200 bucks more a month from my elementary school job, and I only paid 300 bucks for the course. That's value if you ask me.

teacherinseoul · Joined: 18 May 2008

Many schools are just happy to have teachers with TESOL certificates and they don't particularly care whether it's done online or in-person.

rumdiary · Joined: 05 Jun 2006

Do any of these schools help out with job placement outside of Korea? I'm happy enough here now, but I'd like some options down the road.

zuburi · Joined: 19 Jun 2008

Any way you guys can say which online course you went with? There's quite a few, and I'd like to go with one I know somebody else has done.

thomastucker69 · Joined: 06 Jun 2006

I was looking online at KEI Tefl website and they have 2 programs.

One is 100 hours all online and costs 200 000 KRW.

The other on is 120 hours, with an on-site practicuum for 1 000 000KRW.
Would there be a big difference in the outcome as far as what potential employees would think? And does anyone know about the on-site visit, like what it involves?

ANy information would be great.

Thanks