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amanley206253
Joined: 09 Aug 2009
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 Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 6:43 pm Post subject: TEFL certification |
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When I originally looked into my teaching position in Korea last year, I realized that I would never have enough time or money to complete any type of TEFL program. I lucked out and was able to acquire a job that didn't require it.
However as I'm nearing the end of my contract I realize now is a perfect time to do so. But the process itself is quite unknown to me, especially as there seems to be many different programs dedicated to giving you the "best and most recognized" certification, etc etc.
Right now I simply need to know what to do. Are online certifications equally valuable? How many hours? What is the normal cost? Dave's ESL Cafe seems to be a logical destination for investigation, so any information is helpful, especially to someone who doesn't quite understand the process, at all, as myself might be described. Thanks. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 6:53 pm Post subject: Re: TEFL certification |
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| amanley206253 wrote: |
When I originally looked into my teaching position in Korea last year, I realized that I would never have enough time or money to complete any type of TEFL program. I lucked out and was able to acquire a job that didn't require it.
However as I'm nearing the end of my contract I realize now is a perfect time to do so. But the process itself is quite unknown to me, especially as there seems to be many different programs dedicated to giving you the "best and most recognized" certification, etc etc.
Right now I simply need to know what to do. Are online certifications equally valuable? How many hours? What is the normal cost? Dave's ESL Cafe seems to be a logical destination for investigation, so any information is helpful, especially to someone who doesn't quite understand the process, at all, as myself might be described. Thanks. |
IF you plan to just stay in Korea then any old on-line TESL with a rating of 100 hours or more is enough to get you a bounce up in pay or level.
IF you plan to go anywhere else AFTER Korea then you need a classroom based TESOL/TEFL/CELTA cert with actual observed classroom experience as part of the program.
On-line certs cost from $160 and up. From personal observation I have found they usually run about $250.
Classroom based programs are typically 30 days (full time) and can run from $1000-$2000 depending on where you go. There are a couple places in Korea that run a CELTA program (British council comes to mind) and there are a few good ones in Thailand that are affordable and recognized by various accreditation bodies (including the CELTA and Trinity certs).
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amanley206253
Joined: 09 Aug 2009
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| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 7:38 pm Post subject: |
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I see, and is there any significance in obtaining either a 100-hour or 120-hour certificate?
And yes, I do believe this (at least currently) is a Korea-only inquiry, so a smaller certification is what I'm looking into now. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 8:48 pm Post subject: |
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| amanley206253 wrote: |
I see, and is there any significance in obtaining either a 100-hour or 120-hour certificate?
And yes, I do believe this (at least currently) is a Korea-only inquiry, so a smaller certification is what I'm looking into now. |
For Korea the minimum (to get the bump up) is 100 hours.
After that it is just your professional development (or in case you want to try working elsewhere).
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joon817
Joined: 09 Jun 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2010 6:27 am Post subject: |
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Can anyone recommend TESOL/TEFL online course for 100 hrs?
Just want to know what you think of the experience and how much it cost for you.
Appreciate any input. |
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Morticae
Joined: 06 May 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2010 11:12 am Post subject: |
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| joon817 wrote: |
Can anyone recommend TESOL/TEFL online course for 100 hrs?
Just want to know what you think of the experience and how much it cost for you.
Appreciate any input. |
I'd go with the best value.
http://www.tesolonline.com/courses/without-tutor.php
100-hour Certificate in TESOL: US$190
This is with ITTT. Please note you can save yourself another $20 though, through a recruiter. I signed up with Footprints and received a discount through a link they offered. http://coursepayment.com/footprints170 That takes off $20.
At any rate, with or without the $20 discount it is the best price I found. You don't need the tutor support. The only thing the tutor will do is email you back, "Good job!" or "Looks great!" etc-- that's not worth $100+ more.
With a tutor (and the higher $) you do not take the final exam, you only do worksheets.
Without a tutor you ONLY take the final exam. Meaning, the worksheets are never graded. You can do them but in all honesty, for the most part, they don't relate much too the final exam. You should at least take a look at them and I will direct you to this website for fairly decent answers to all of the worksheets:
http://adamsittt.blogspot.com/2009/03/unit-1.html
The final exam is fairly simple, but I was paranoid and it took me 17 hours. Could easily be done much faster than that.
In summary: I recommend ITTT, no tutor, read all the PDF's they send you thoroughly, look at the worksheets but don't necessarily do them all, utilize the above cheat sheet website for worksheets, then ace the final exam. You can do this as fast as you want-- it's all at your pace. I did the course in 2 weeks.
P.S. After you pass the final exam they give you a choice between TEFL or TESL certificate. They are basically the same thing and recognized as such. I chose TEFL though. |
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710
Joined: 05 May 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2010 2:44 pm Post subject: |
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| I did the ITTT course as well. I did the test rather than the tutor route, since a lot of posts seemed to suggest the tutor was not very helpful. The only reason to go with the tutor is if you feel you won't do well on the test. The test has a twenty four hour limit which should be plenty of time even if you just read through the material. I suggest going through the material though even if it is after you take the exam, It makes no sense to go into this without any preparation... I've been going through grammar books and teaching guides in my spare time... |
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kissdisap
Joined: 19 Feb 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:05 am Post subject: |
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My wife & I are currently doing the 100hr Tutor course through ITTT. Should be finished with it in time for EPIK but the response time and feedback received has definitely been helpful.
If I was just doing it for the certificate, I would've done w/o tutor to save some $, but I've felt that the tutor has been instrumental in helping me understand where I'm 'lacking' and where I could improve in my teaching methodology |
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pulse_pace
Joined: 12 Jun 2010
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 5:29 pm Post subject: |
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I'm doing ITTT right now actually.
Are the test questions based on the material?
They're not multiple choice are they? If so then I fail automatically. |
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Morticae
Joined: 06 May 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 5:31 pm Post subject: |
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| pulse_pace wrote: |
I'm doing ITTT right now actually.
Are the test questions based on the material?
They're not multiple choice are they? If so then I fail automatically. |
Well yes, of course the questions are based on the reading! They are NOT multiple choice, everything is almost short answer/essay style-- so just explain yourself fully and you should be fine. A small handful of questions were pulled from the worksheets they sent you too. |
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toph
Joined: 10 Jun 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 9:44 pm Post subject: |
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I didn't do ITTT, but it seems pretty popular and legit.
And, it's pretty cheap!! (Ah, I wish I knew about it before-hand).
Anyway, if you want a TEFL cert then I would do: www.teflonline.com.
That's what I am doing right now. It's fairly simple, and you get grammar certified as well. The layout of the TEFL course is:
12 MODS (modules).
1 quiz/MOD.
2 essays/MOD.
Must pass with at least a 70% to certify, and differences in grades of 70-100 won't matter for certification qualities. Also, when you pass they automatically send you to a page to print off your certificate. It's pretty legit-looking (the certificate), and you can see samples online (type in "teflonline certificate" or "bridgetefl certificate").
And, on your resume you can put BridgeTEFL instead of TEFLOnline for the certification. (Although it doesn't matter). So all is good. |
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joon817
Joined: 09 Jun 2010
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| Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 1:15 am Post subject: |
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| Thanks everyone for your input! You guys rock! |
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fl4mers
Joined: 26 Jan 2010
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| Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 3:39 am Post subject: |
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Everyone here seems to have done their course through ITTT so I'm going to play black sheep and throw in an alternative. I did my TESOL at LinguaEdge and thought it was really good. The 100-hour course cost $249 with tutor support and I have to say my tutor was great and pretty helpful. I actually found the fact that my assignments were being regularly graded to be a real bonus because my tutor had some really good input that really made me think about some of the things that could use improvement. It probably isn't the most comprehensive course out there but it definitely provides you with a good solid foundation to working in the classroom. I would definitely recommend it.
Here's the website: http://www.linguaedge.com/tesol-certificate-100-hours |
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toph
Joined: 10 Jun 2010
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| Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 2:43 pm Post subject: |
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Sorry, I forgot to mention: For TEFLOnline, there is also a final exam at the end of the course. I'm not sure how difficult it is, as I'm still completing the TEFL course now; but I'm assuming it shouldn't be anything major, considering the rest of the course has been a breeze.
(I've scored 100% on every MOD so far. That's including all quizzes, and essays.) So yeah... |
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jamiemexi
Joined: 13 Feb 2010
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| Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 10:31 pm Post subject: |
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| For Korea the minimum is 100 hours. |
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