Unfortunately there has never been one single regulatory body for the TEFL industry, notes Jimmy Krangol. Right now there are numerous TEFL schools springing up everywhere, all claiming that their course is better than the rest or, that they offer the most accredited TEFL certificate.

It can be a daunting task trying to select the right TEFL course in a minefield of choices. So how can you tell the good from the bad? The answer is actually quite simple. Don’t overlook the obvious! Here are the 5 things to look out for when choosing a TEFL course……

1. How Does The Website Look? -

Is it professional looking, well organised? If a TEFL organization cannot organise a website properly then you can’t really expect them to organize a four week TEFL course!

2. Spelling & Grammar -

I’m always amazed at the numerous spelling and grammar errors on many TEFL websites. Do you really think these TEFL schools are capable of training you to be an English teacher?

3. Criticizing Competitors to Win Customers -

This is common practice for many cowboy schools who struggle to get enough students to fill their empty courses. They usually ask if you’re looking at any other TEFL schools and once you mention a name, they discredit them claiming the certificate isn’t accredited, or something along those lines.

Any reputable organization will focus on the features/benefits of their own course and won’t directly criticize their competitors or get involved in a slanging match.

4. The TEFL Trainer’s Experience -

A good trainer usually means a good course. Ask for details of the trainers experience and qualifications. Get some telephone numbers or email addresses of previous candidates and contact them for feedback.

5. How Many Students Attend Each TEFL Course -

Any more than 16 is far too many. Many international TEFL courses have 30+ students on each course, which is one reason why they’re so cheap. You cannot possibly receive quality TEFL training in such a large group of students. You Get What You Pay For!

So what about the actual TEFL certificate?

A Word of Warning; Weekend TEFL certificates may be a good introduction to TEFL but they are no longer accepted for teaching Jobs in most countries, especially now in Thailand.

The term ‘Accredited’ is used freely but it holds little essence. Most employers will expect you to have around 100 hours of classroom instruction and 6 hours of observed teaching practice with real students under your belt. They will prefer to see how you perform in a classroom and so the type of certificate you have isn’t always that important to them.

Make sure you choose a reputable TEFL course which has at least 6 hours of observed teaching practice with real students This will give you the confidence to walk into a roomful of expectant faces and not run out again screaming!

Good Luck!

About the Author:

Jimmy has extensive experience teaching English as a foreign language throughout Asia. Based in Thailand, Jimmy works as a freelance Education Consultant for a number of TEFL schools around the world. Feel free to contact him with any comments or suggestions at www.worldteflschool.com

An online TEFL course or one done in the classroom? Honor Baldry offers advice on taking the latter option.

Classroom learning – it’s what we’re all used to and the way we expect to study. Or is it? A classroom TEFL course is nothing like the lessons you took in school; expect it to be more intensive but a lot more fun. But before you decide if a classroom TEFL course is right for you, take a look at the pros and cons.

So do you want the good news or the bad news? Good, you say? Here we go then!

The Pros

Practical experience

The best thing about a classroom course is the opportunity to get practical experience. You’ll be working in groups, learning through activities and finding fun ways to absorb the all the information. So basically, you’ll learn TEFL through the very techniques you’ll be using when you teach abroad. Then when you’ve got a grasp of the techniques you’ve been studying, you’ll get the chance to put them into action by creating and giving your very own lesson. A fun and interactive learning environment

Learning doesn’t get much better than this. It’s fun, interactive and completely different from those boring lesson you had to put up with in school. You’ll be running around, playing games and doing quizzes – and that’s only the beginning. Put simply, your tutor will teach you in exactly the same way that you’ll be teaching your own students when you arrive overseas.

Make new friends along the way

You’ll be in a group of about 20 people, depending on demand, and they’ll all be like you: people who want to travel and earn as they go. It’s a great opportunity to make new friends and maybe find a travel buddy or two. Plus, your new friends will be a great source of information. They’ll have done their research just like you, so you can swap stories and information.

A qualification that counts

Classroom TEFL courses are accepted by language schools around the world; just make sure you choose a reputable organisation that’s accredited by an independent body. That’ll give your qualification extra weight, putting you in a better position when you’re applying for jobs.

The cons

One long weekend

Classroom TEFL courses are great fun, but they’re also hard work. The hours are long and you’re always on the go, so by the end of the weekend you’ll probably be tired. Returning to work on the Monday after such an intensive course can be tough. You can avoid this problem by taking an online TEFL course and spreading your study over a couple of months. But online courses have pros and cons too, so maybe you should just take the Monday off!

Just skimming the surface

Classroom TEFL courses cover half the time of online courses and a lot of that time is spent doing practical activities. This means you’ll get to put your new skills into action and cement your learning, but it also means you have less time to concentrate on developing your understanding of TEFL teaching. This can be rectified by adding an online TEFL course to your training or even by buying a couple of books to read before you go.

A spare weekend is a must

The thing about classroom TEFL courses is that you have to do them in one fell swoop. And you know what that means – you have to find a free weekend. If you’ve got a really hectic schedule that can be difficult to do, so you might find an online TEFL course more convenient.

About the author

Honor believes teaching English abroad is the perfect opportunity for any English speaker to explore the world and immerse themselves in new cultures. Whether you’re a trained teacher or a complete beginner, Honor honestly thinks a TEFL qualification is your ticket for the journey of your life. Honor represents www.onlinetefl.com.

By Sharon K Couzens de Hinojosa of the TEFL Tips website

There are thousands of TEFL course providers to choose from, so how do you know which one is the right one for you? Below are some things to keep in mind when choosing a programme.

On-campus vs. Distance

Nowadays there are usually two different types of courses. On-campus or distance. On-campus courses usually take about four weeks. So in addition to not working for four weeks, you will also need the money for room and board. Distance courses can be ok, but they need to include the elements below.

On-Site Programmes

There are quite a few TEFL Training Programmes in Latin America. Try searching at TEFL Certification Abroad to find one that suites you.

Free online courses

The Peace Corps has come up with a Guide to teaching English. You could also try TEFL Boot Camp.

The following online courses require a fee in order to participate

English International
TEFL training
INTESOL International
TESOL Direct
The International TEFL Corporation
I-to-I
ACTDEC

100 Hours Minimum

Most employers will only recognize those course that are at least 100 hours. An hour is usually 50 minutes. Make sure it states on your certificate how many hours the course is.

6 Teaching Hours Minimum

During your training course you will get to teach real students. You need to teach at least 6 hours, this is in addition to any practice teaching that you may do in front of your peers.

Time in Business

How long has the training program been in existence? You might want to steer away from those that only have been going for a year or two.

Professional Membership or External Certification

Check if the TEFL training program has any Professional Membership, such as IATEFL or the TEFL Board. Also, see if your course provider has external certification. The British Council often certifies schools that meet their requirements.

Stand Alone vs Chain

Chain organization such as TEFL International, CELTA, and Trinity have the same basic requirements for their courses whether they’re in Egypt or China, but the trainers are different. So even though their course in one place may be good, it might not be if you go to a different location. However, chain organisations usually have the weight of the chain name behind them.

Stand Alone organisations are a bit more risky, but there are still great ones out there. They tend to cater more to their trainees by giving them more personal attention. The often also have contacts with local schools to get you a job.

Cost

Cost is always going to be a factor, but don’t just choose the cheapest one, because it may not be the best.

Guaranteed Job Placement

Most places should have job placement, but be sure to ask specifically what this is and is may vary from a guaranteed interview to a guaranteed job, which is a huge difference.

Feedback from Past Students

Many course providers will post feedback from teachers who have participated in their course. You might also ask to be put in touch via email with some students to ask other questions. Forums are also a good place to find out about schools. Dave’s ESL Café has a forum specifically for teacher training.

Remember courses are usually a couple thousand dollars so research your programme carefully.

About the author

Sharon K Couzens de Hinojosa is the creator and writer for TEFL Tips, The LA Job List, and The Ultimate Peru List. She enjoys answering people’s questions about TEFLing and Peru.

By Keith Taylor

So, if you’ve heard tales from a returning teacher of the wonders of living and working in Thailand, Brazil or Morocco and you think it might just be the career for you, how, exactly, do you get started?

Well, the first thing to confront you may well be the minefield of acronyms, so let’s work through that first of all.

ESL stands for English as a Second Language. Add a T, giving TESL, and you have Teaching English as a Second Language.

EFL is English as a Foreign Language. Again, add a T, and you have TEFL, Teaching English as a Foreign Language.

Traditionally, TEFL refers to teaching in non-English speaking countries, whereas TESL refers to teaching in English speaking countries, to non-native speakers living or working there. In practice, though, the two terms are often used interchangeably, and both are covered by the all-encompassing TESOL, Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.

During your training or job search, you might come across a host of other acronyms, asking you if you have experience teaching ESP or EAP, FCE or IELTS! Don’t be daunted by these – there is a link to the most common acronyms at the bottom of this article.

Now that you know a little about some of the jargon you’ll be facing, the next step is usually a qualification of some kind. The days of being able to secure an English teaching job solely on the strength of being a native speaker, although not entirely gone, are fading fast. A quick search on the internet for “TEFL courses” (we’ll stick with this acronym for now) will return a mind-boggling selection, of varying content, duration, and quality, and it can be difficult to know what to go for.

It might surprise you to discover that most TEFL courses are short. The most internationally recognised and accepted are the “CELTA” (there’s yet another acronym for you), run by the University of Cambridge, and the “Trinity Cert TESOL”, run by Trinity College, London. Both of these are 120 hour, classroom-based courses, and include several hours of observed teaching practice. In other words, they get you in front of students during the course so that you can put into practice what you learn. These courses are usually studied over a very intensive four week period, and involve a lot of work outside the classroom, preparing classes and writing assignments.

You’ll learn a good deal about teaching theory and methodology, and have some chance to put it into practice. You will learn some English grammar, but don’t expect to be an expert by the end of the course – this mostly comes in your first few years of teaching.

An increasing number of institutions offer courses of similar length and content to the CELTA and Trinity courses, and you will find that many employers will accept these.

Very generally speaking, the shorter and less classroom-based the course, the less accepted it will be by employers around the world. There are some high quality online courses available, for example, but by definition these do not allow for any actual teaching practice, and so are often viewed in a less favourable light by potential employers. Some courses compensate by teaching theory and methodology online, and including a short classroom-based component to put it into practice.

You can take a TEFL course in many different countries. Studying in Bangkok or Prague, for example, can give you the advantage of the centre’s connections with local schools when it comes to finding employment, and some course providers offer help with finding a job as part of the deal.

Another option is an MA in TESOL. As with most Masters degrees, these take one year or longer, and consequently tend to cover theory and methodology in greater detail.

So, to keep your options as open as possible when it comes to finding employment, the CELTA and Trinity Cert TESOL and equivalent courses, or longer MA courses, are perhaps the best options. But there are, of course, other considerations. CELTA and Trinity courses can cost upwards of US$2000. This may seem a big investment if you are not sure yet if TEFL is the career for you.

So a good first step is to have a look at some of the jobs available in countries where you are interested in teaching, to get an idea of the typical requirements. You could choose a shorter, cheaper course, if these are generally accepted where you want to teach, and then study for a CELTA or equivalent after a year or two, if you decide to pursue the profession further.

The availability of short, quick courses often raises the question of unqualified or underqualified teachers let loose on unsuspecting students! Here, the argument runs both ways:

Some maintain that a qualified teacher doesn’t necessarily mean a good teacher, and that communicative skills and enthusiasm are just as important in motivating students. Even the CELTA and Trinity courses are, after all, entry level courses, designed to start you off, with the idea that much of your learning will come from experience during your first couple of years of teaching.

Others argue that just as an unqualified teacher wouldn’t be allowed to teach at a secondary school in the UK or the US, why should it be any different in the TEFL field – students are paying to be taught by someone with solid training in teaching theory and methodology. And after all, as a teacher, you’ll feel better equipped and more confident when you step into the classroom in your new job.

It’s up to you which side of the fence you choose to stand on this one! But whether you study for a week or a year, it will in some measure prepare you for the next step in your TEFL career, when you walk in to the classroom for the first time in your new TEFL job.

About the Author

Keith Taylor is the founder of http://www.eslbase.com, providing free resources, information and advice for TEFL teachers. He also maintains the language exchange: http://www.eslbase.com/language-exchange/. Read the eslbase guide to TEFL acronyms at http://www.eslbase.com/intro/acronyms.