What to expect from your four-week TEFL course by Bruce Haxton.

So you’re interested in Teaching English as a Foreign Language [TEFL] but you don’t know which course might be for you? Or maybe you’d just like to know more about what to expect on day one on a course you’ve already booked? Well, there are a variety of courses to choose from including online courses, 20-hour weekend courses, combined online and classroom TEFL courses, 4-week intensive certificates, and a 10-week diploma. The content of all of these courses is broadly similar, but the depth of training varies from course to course. Below are some descriptions to give you an idea of what you might expect on your TEFL Course.

Learning through doing activities

Probably the very best thing about a TEFL course is that the learning happens through actually doing activities, rather than long theoretical explanations. This is true even at diploma level, although discussion forms a greater part of the study on diploma courses, since by then you’ll have plenty of teaching experience and your aim is to perfect the skills you have. In all cases, your tutors want to encourage you to think about what they already know, so they provide plenty of opportunities to chat things through with others on the course. You and your fellow tutees will be given the chance to try out different exercises and materials, which usually involves interacting with each other. This is invariably terrific fun, so although you’ll feel tired, it’s more likely to be from the challenge and excitement than anything else.

Introduction to grammar

We all know an incredible number of words (about 50,000 on average) and grammar is simply the means for stringing this vast vocabulary into some kind of order so we understand each other. There are patterns and rules to think about, but you won’t have to learn it all in one day! Your tutor will use activities applied in a real EFL classroom and will usually break down the learning into manageable chunks. Many trainees are fascinated when they find out all the interesting reasons for why we say what we say. A Weekend TEFL Course will touch on a few aspects of grammar, but you can expect to study in much more depth if you supplement this with an online TEFL course or do an intensive 4-week course. Even in these comprehensive courses, you won’t fully learn grammar’s intricacies, so much of the teaching will raise your awareness and guide you on to further study. Tutors are very patient and understanding when it comes to this aspect, so don’t worry if you find it a bit tricky.

Pronunciation information

Just think about how to say this sentence:

“Get me some bread,” said Fred.

At a glance you can see that similar sounds have a different way of being spelt. We’ve got get, bread, said and Fred all with an /e/ sound. Any TEFL course will provide fun activities for you to help your students practice the pronunciation of individual words. This is important because, as you can see, spelling often isn’t a great deal of help! As mentioned above, the longer your course, the greater the level of detail on pronunciation. We also have to think about intonation, stress and the many other aspects of pronunciation. To prepare you for this highly enjoyable feature of the course, here’s a tongue-twister:

What noise annoys an oyster most? A noisy noise annoys an oyster most.

Teaching reading, writing, listening and speaking

English language learners also need help developing skills to cope with reading, writing, listening and speaking in English. Perhaps you’ve had training in how to write an essay or a letter yourself. Any good course will offer specific tips for helping your learners cope better with these aspects of using English. As always, expect the activities to be motivating, fun and interactive as you build your own awareness. You can also expect tips on how to use music in the classroom as part of your course.

Experience how language learning feels

At some point on any face-to-face TEFL course, you will have at least one lesson in a foreign language. You don’t have to be any good at languages yourself to enjoy this part of the course, and if you find it all gobbledygook – never mind! It’s your chance to experience what it feels like to be a language learner – something that helps every teacher to empathise with their learners. It’s also a great way to learn tips on classroom organisation, for example, how to give instructions clearly using mime and gesture and so on.

Learning by watching

Having the chance to do some classroom observation is an integral part of any course. Online courses often give you video clips to watch, so you can begin getting an idea of what lessons are like. On weekend courses, you will watch your peers teach at various times and on CELTA or Trinity CertTESOL courses, formal classroom observations are an important part of the learning. This safe environment makes it much easier to analyse what is happening in the classroom than when you are standing at the front, concentrating on leading the lesson. You’ll learn loads from this aspect, whether it’s picking up tips from watching an excellent teacher, or empathising with someone whose activity is not going as well they had hoped. And don’t be afraid of making mistakes yourself – it’s all part of the learning process! Nobody expects perfection and it can fun if the odd bit of controlled chaos breaks out!

Teaching practice with feedback

On any classroom TEFL course, part of your day is given over to guided lesson planning and you will be given materials and suggestions to teach from. Many tutees enjoy creating some of their own materials during lesson planning in order to make the lesson come to life. After preparing, it’s time to attend lessons, and these vary significantly according to the course you are doing. On a weekend course, your students are likely to be others doing the course with you whereas on 4-week intensive and 10-week diploma courses, you will be teaching real English students. The important factor is that you stand in front of a class and teach some aspect of the English language. Your aim is to use the ideas from earlier in your course to get them practicing in a fun, engaging way.

Analysis and evaluation

Some of your peers and your tutor will have been watching your lesson. So after teaching, there is the chance to get feedback on how it went. You are also encouraged to evaluate your own experience, focusing especially on what went well and considering any changes you would make if you had the chance to do it all over again. This part can be very encouraging as you’re often your own worst critic and don’t realise just how well you performed. It’s a great feeling to put your training into practice and motivate your students to learn.

So, what are you waiting for? If you haven’t already done it book a place on a TEFL course and get ready for an exciting, interesting, tiring, amusing and challenging experience!

About the Author

I believe that teaching English abroad is the perfect opportunity for any English speaker to explore the world. If you’re a fluent English speaker, a TEFL course is your ticket to the journey of your life. I work for www.onlinetefl.com.

Want to know how to succeed in the TEFL job market? Bruce Haxton tells you how.

So, you’re thinking about doing a TEFL course, and it won’t be too long before you’ve got your crisp new TEFL certificate in hand – but what are you going to do with it?! Get a teaching job abroad and jet off into the sunset – that’s what! But how to get there? Never fear: here are my five simple tips for TEFL job success:

Tailor your resume to TEFL

We’re sorry to say it, but employers don’t want to know about that ska band you were in back in school. Keep it short and sharp – just cover what the job advertisement asks for in simple, direct language. Focus on skills that schools will value, like leadership, organisational and communication skills and how you’ve demonstrated you can use them.

Do your course with a provider that has a job placement service

Get your TEFL course provider to do the legwork for you! Many companies have TEFL job placement services which will match you with relevant suitable contracts on completion of your course. Just make sure you’re eligible to use it before you sign on the dotted line!

Always deal with a real person

Want to know where most of those applications addressed to ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’ end up? That’s right… the bin! One of the best routes to job success is to build up personal relationships with recruiters to make sure your application ends up in the right person’s hands, rather than the trash.

Use your mouse

The internet’s a marvellous thing – where before you might have had to traipse around a city handing out your CV, you can now get access to tens of thousands of TEFL jobs at the click of a mouse. Sites like www.tefl.com list positions from all over the world, which are just waiting for enthusiastic EFL teachers to fill them!

Keep it simple

Very often the person who’ll be reading your job application won’t have English as their first language. They won’t want to tackle an application full of flowery language – they’ll want one that’s simple to read and direct. If they can’t immediately see that you’ve got the skills for the job your application will probably end up being binned!

And remember, if finding a TEFL job feels daunting, the odds are with you: there are 20,000 TEFL positions posted online every month, meaning fluent English speakers with TEFL certificates are like gold dust in many countries!

About the Author

Bruce feels that teaching English abroad is the perfect opportunity for any English speaker to explore the world. As long as you’re a fluent English speaker, a TEFL course is your ticket to the journey of your life.

By David Vincent

The four-week TEFL course, a starting point for so many of us in our careers as English teachers. But is it really worth it?

What do we really gain from these short, intensive courses that can’t possibly hope to adequately prepare us for a career in teaching? A great deal, it would seem, according to the poll that ran on the blog and the forum.

Firstly, and most importantly judging by how many suggested this, the initial teacher training course provides a good foundation on which to build.

I started the ball rolling, stating the following:

‘It didn’t in any way prepare me for a full-time teaching position, but I can’t imagine having had to go into a classroom for the first time without having done it.’

Emma, a forum member currently embroiled in her initial training course, perceptively notes, ‘I imagine it’s like passing your driving test. You only really learn to drive properly afterwards.’ Spiral78 adds, ‘a good course is a pretty essential starter – not that certified teachers are professionals, but that they’ve got a decent idea of how to start. The course got me started on a stronger foot than I’d have had without it.’ Denise further reiterates:

‘It alone would not have gotten me to where I am now, but it was a crucial first step. It taught me the basics and I went on from there. I can’t imagine how my first teaching job would have gone without a certificate (if they would even have hired me without one). I learned a lot about how to plan, organize, and deliver a lesson.’

Canuck is another who shares the notion, ‘that the one month courses offer a foundation to build upon, maybe provide information about what someone currently does in their class now and reinforces good techniques.’ GueroPaz and Mishmumkin further exemplify, GueroPaz noting, ‘it helped me immensely; I would have been lost without it,’ while Mishmumkin adds, ‘I had been teaching a year before doing it, but it really taught me a lot about lesson planning, what to expect, how to talk less/listen more.’ Guy Courchesne reinforces the idea that 4 week courses should be seen as a foundation and that development is required after:

‘I took it without having any serious or immediate expectations of going abroad… I eventually did, about 6 months later. I completed my course in Canada and as it was geared towards teaching in Korea, I found I had to study further and learn ‘on the fly’ when I started teaching in Mexico.

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Increased opportunity in the local job market is another advantage that was mentioned. Chimp Guevara asserts that, ‘it opened the door to better jobs for me in Japan, and gave me a good grounding in the basics so that I continue learning when I got back.’

Another potential advantage of the four-week training course is that it will effectively indicate those who are clearly not up to it. spiral78 exemplifies, ‘I think the courses can also be useful for weeding out people who genuinely aren’t cut out for the job – for example, if a trainee can’t show up on time every day, looking reputable, he/she’s going to crash and burn early in a contract anyway.’

It would seem, therefore, that these initial teacher training courses hold a lot of value. Never the less, Jerry was one who, validly, raised issue with an inadequate learning environment as reason for a course not being worth what was paid:

‘I would say it wasn’t worth the money. I say this because the course was delivered on a shoestring in less than acceptable premises with virtually no frills (coffee, water, working computers). The (course provider’s) websites are very misleading with respect to training environment.’

So, certain courses may be lacking in areas outside the experience you’ll gain in terms of teacher training. These are definitely things to consider when choosing a course, an issue we’ll return to later. Despite this feeling of dissatisfaction, Jerry goes on to note, ‘the course content was delivered well by the trainer and was comprehensive so in that respect it was “worthwhile”.’

Another factor relating to whether or not a particular course is worth the investment is related to what you gain from being in a particular location. This particular aspect caused some disagreement, with suggestions made in support of doing the course in an exotic foreign locale or at a location in your home country. Spiral78 led the cry for taking the course in the country where you’re thinking of teaching, listing the following benefits:

-You can get your feet wet in the country/culture while you still have a support system – training centers will usually arrange for your housing during the course, pick you up at the airport, and generally offer you some kind of local orientation. -Your practice teaching students will be representative of those you’ll be working with when you start. -A good training centre can give you invaluable info regarding reputable employers in a region. -You can be sure that your cert will be recognized by regional employers.

Jerry, in contrast, notes the benefits of doing the course in your home country:

-When you set up a course online in the country you will work in can you be sure of the provider? -Is their course moderated? -Can you have your certificate notarized in that country? -What’s the validity of the certificate? -What’s the local reputation of the course provider? -What’s the training environment like? -Will you be picked up at the airport? I wasn’t, a pre-course orientation meeting was convened and conducted by a previous student who felt it was her moral duty to make sure new students were not left out on a limb as she had been. -Long term, is the certificate any use in another country or region?

Jerry also notes that this won’t necessarily help you in getting used to the type of student you’ll be teaching, suggesting, ‘As for getting to know the type of student, the lessons are so heavily teacher orientated and regimented you don’t get near to learning about them or understanding them.’

In terms of it being worthwhile, there was more agreement when it came to the notion of finding out about your course in advance, with spiral78 suggesting the following checklist:

-How long has the course been operating – under current management? -What qualifications do the trainers have? -What support will the centre guarantee? -Will the centre allow you to contact current trainees? -I’d also send a very brief email to several employers in the area asking whether certification from course X is well-looked-upon.

Spiral78 further exemplifies the disparity between courses, noting, ‘there are a couple of 60-hour courses without teaching practice which are given as seminars using classrooms at universities – but which are NOT considered to be basic level certifications in many parts of the world.’ Indeed, deciding on whether or not a course will be worth it, finding out what the course will include seems to be vital, Canuck asserting that, ‘the only 4 week course someone should take is one that is 120 hours with a practical teaching component. The CELTA and 120 hour TEFL have this. I don’t think an online course can measure up. I also believe that the ‘every weekend’ CELTA isn’t as valuable as the one month all at once type.’

So, generally such courses are seen by the majority as being a good thing, providing as good a foundation in teaching as possible in a short space of time. The experience you gain will open doors in terms of job opportunities and will give you a pretty clear indication if you’re not up to the task.

There are also clear benefits to the location at which you take the course, depending on what your needs may be. Having said that, it’s clear that there are major disparities between the quality of such courses and doing some research before hand will pay dividends.

One final thing to consider if you’re thinking of doing such a course is the group you’re likely to end up teaching. For example, in many countries this might end up being primarily children. Leprofdanglais comments, ‘the only thing is it trains you to teach adults, but where I was working in Spain, new staff always got lumbered with kids’ classes.’ GueroPaz reiterates, ‘here in Thailand and in most places in the world, you teach lots of kids. That’s my main complaint against any adult-oriented course.’ So, even at the initial, four-week starter course stage, think about how specifically the course is going to meet your potential needs.

Use and distribution of this article is permitted subject to no changes being made to the content and the original author’s information (About the Author) must be included with appropriate hyperlinks/URL references in place.

About the Author

If you liked this, read more great articles at the free ELT World journal. Keep up to date with the latest TEFL news at ELT World News. Want to learn more about teaching, here’s a great FAQ.

By Clint Johnson

If you are planning to become a teacher abroad, you are likely to need the internationally recognized tesol certificate; this acknowledged diploma course may actually provide you with all the necessary knowledge in order to become a good English teacher to people who do not have English as their native language.

The tesol course was mainly designed in order to teach you about the basic approaches when it comes to teaching English abroad; the prime teaching methods will also be learned and even the learning techniques will be emphasized by every course that is interested in providing people with the necessary knowledge.

The course is to be attended in order for you to become able to teach this language in an effective manner when in front of a foreign class. The foreign pupils are going to be quite challenging to your English knowledge; therefore, you will have to rely only on the most effective techniques in order to make sure you manage to be a good teacher.

By accessing tesolonline.com, you will become fully aware that teaching can be very challenging especially when it comes to different pupil profiles. Every future student will come with a different profile in front of you and you will have to deal with dissimilar requirements; therefore, the tesol course is to be attended in order to make sure you are going to deal with these challenges in a successful manner without making mistakes or failing.

The entire tesol course is designed in order to teach you how to deal with pupils who are not English and who spoke this language as their second one. By attending this course and managing to get your final certificate, you will add some extra value to your current worth and you will be regarded in a whole different manner when applying for a teacher job abroad.

This certification is highly needed when it comes to teaching English abroad and many countries require its existence in order to allow you to teach there. The certification is also to be regarded as a genuine method to secure your present or future job because the training program that you have attended is highly effective.

For instance, you will be bale to learn more about the necessary and systematic lesson plans. You will learn everything about the effective management of every type of classroom; you will be trained in order to apply the most efficient teaching techniques in order to become a successful teacher abroad.

The tesol certificate will ensure your future teaching jobs because you will be provided with all the necessary and fundamental knowledge. The grammar and language skills will thus be strengthened and you will achieve all the necessary teaching skills before facing a real class of pupils.

About the Author

The tesol certificate is the main tool in order to secure your teacher position because the tesol course guarantees for your proficiency in English.