Korean Job Discussion Forums

[cellphone]

I'm sure there's some information on this site already but would like to know that in a truely professional sense, for people wanting to stick in the field for some years, (as well as for shorter term) how are tefl and tesol certificate qualifications different and how can they affect the esl teacher's career? even if one is better than the other, per se, is the lower one still basically sufficient? If anyone has a good link on this site for it please point me to it, thanks.

[Paji eh Wong]

I'd be tempted to say that, for the short certificate courses, there is no difference. Standards vary so greatly. I have a TEFL cert, but I chose the course based on the trainer.

Repeat after me, the teacher makes the course. If you want a decent course shop around, observe classes, and talk to a lot of people.

[Kenny Kimchee]

TESL: Teaching English as a Second Language. Meant to include people who live in English-speaking countries who are teaching English as a Second Language to immigrants (e.g. teaching English to immigrants in New York).

TEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Meant to include people who are teaching English to students in non-English speaking home countries, e.g. teaching English in Korea. We're EFL teachers, not ESL teachers.

TESOL: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages: A catch-all umbrella term that includes the above two fields.

Surf over to the Teacher Training Forum for a more detailed discussion of the subject.

[HamuHamu]

If you ever want to teach in Western Europe, a TESOL or preferrably a CELTA will be required. Institutes that *require* a certification will rarely accept a TEFL -- 4 week couse that it is not Trinity or Cambridge. In Czech Rep and possibly Poland, this may not be the case, but in the western part of Europe, it is most definitely.

Although the TEFL courses that are not Trinity (TESOL) or Cambridge (CELTA) are cheaper, and likely just as good in quality (at least some of them), at least you know that your CELTA or TESOL will be accepted at most institutions. When I was choosing a course, I found that CELTA courses were offered in more locations (at least in the areas of the world I was looking to go) and more times than TESOL courses, although a couple hundred dollars more for the 4 week course. Institutes set their own fees, but they are about the same when you factor in exchange rates, etc.

Of course, if you're planning to teach in Korea for a long time, you dont' require anything, and I've found that the certification will rarely get you more than 100,000 a month more in wages ... if anything at all.

However, it you are staying in ESL teaching as a long term carreer, it's worth it. Institutes that say "CELTA and 2 years experience required" mean 2 years POST-certification experience....so it's worth it to get it early, instead of AFTER teaching for a few years....cause those pre-certification years won't count when they look at your resume.