TEFL/CELTA/CELT answers...

KevinDublin · 12-04-2008 1:48pm #1

Hi Folks,

Just stumbled onto this thread and thought I might be able to help shed some light on the TEFL/CELTA etc ESL courses. I’ve been teaching English for about a decade now in different countries around the world and there seems to be some confusion about the different type of courses that are out there.

Firstly; In order to be considered qualified to teach English in Ireland (or in the UK) the ONLY certificates allowed are certificated issued by ACELS (the English schools branch of the Dept. of Ed.). This means that I to I courses are NOT valid TEFL courses to teach in Ireland. A full list of these providers can be found on www.acels.ie

If you are planning on teaching outside of Eire or the UK, schools tend to be less strict, in some cases, just being a native speaker of English is a sufficient qualification to teach. In other cases, having a piece of paper with “TEFL COURSE COMPLETED” on it is a bonus! That’s where the I to I courses fit in.

If you are looking to actually learn to be an English teacher, you should do either the CELTA or the CELT. IMO both courses are the best qualifications in the world to become and English teacher. Also, BOTH will allow you to teach in Ireland and the UK but also are very highly regarded everywhere else.

Whats the difference between the CELTA and the CELT?
One difference is that the CELTA is run by Cambridge University whereas the CELT is an Irish Dept of education (acels) certificate.
The CELT is also considerably cheaper, (around 1000 euros Vs 1500 for the CELTA)

Realistically, to learn to teach English, you have to, at some stage stand up in front of a bunch of non native students and learn by doing. The CELT has at least 8 hours of you teaching students whilst being observed by a trainer. That kind of experience is invaluable and cannot be found by these nonsense online courses.

My advice for people looking to teacher at home or abroad is to do a CELT course. It might be 200 or 300 euros more expensive that the online or weekend courses but it will equip you to be an English teacher and even if you are not planning to teach in Ireland, you never know what will happen in the future and you might find yourself having to apply in Ireland for a few hours work in which case the CELT course will stand to you.

I’ve heard that Annalivia School in Dun Laoghaire run some of the best CELT courses in Ireland and they have full and part time options. Their website is www.annaliviaschool.com

Sorry for such a long post but I go into rant mode when I see some of the false claims floating around about weekend courses on online course enabling you to teach. They neither qualify you nor equip you!!!

I'd be happy to answer any questions.. I don't know everything about the topic but I'll give it a go.

PS: I know I'm not supposed to link to websites on my first post but I'm not advertising anything... Just humble opinion as a teacher.

extra-ordinary_ · 15-04-2008 11:29pm

Yes i agree! I attended one of those weekend courses and it didn't teach me much at all. I am doing a CELTA course now and i am learning so much .. shows you everyting from lesson plans to class management issues!

KevinDublin · 17-04-2008 9:52pm

Yeah absolutely... It's ridiculous to think that you can learn to teach without ever teaching students.

The course is hard work though isn't it!

LurkingLady · 17-04-2008 10:05pm

I've got some issues with the ACELS system to be honest

Personally I did CELTA in Prague 2 years ago so I'm all set but I used to work in a language school where the secretary had a Master's in TEFL but was not allowed to work in her profession because she did her degree in Poland.
Yes, yes, you may say she's not a native speaker and therefore has no business teaching EFL in Ireland, but
a) her English was brilliant - you would never think she was not a native speaker
b) she had over 500 hours of practical EFL training at college (as opposed to 120 that you get during CELTA/CELT courses) not to mention COUNTLESS lectures on teaching, child psychology, psycholinguistics etc etc!

A certificate is nothing, tbh, compared to that..

Anyway, just so my rant is not completely off topic:
all of ye who have TEFL certificates may find this site useful: www.tefl.com

KevinDublin · 17-04-2008 10:17pm

You are right... Kinda :-)

Acels don't have any problems with Non native teachers teaching EFL, as long as the schools don't advertise that their teachers all all native and then employ Non native teachers.

And, as you said, there are alot of them out there that are amazing teachers. They have the advantage of having had to learn English from the start, whereas most Irish English speakers couldn't tell you the difference between present perfect and present continuous :-)

But, from a sales point of view, if I was going to learn French in France, I wouldn't be too happy if I had an Irish French teacher. So it's down to that moreso than ACELS.

IMHO

LurkingLady · 17-04-2008 10:24pm

True, true...

My point was not so much that she wouldn't be employed by a language school as that ACELS wouldn't consider her qualifications satisfactory (if I remember correctly, it states that you need a 120+hrs TEFL certificate or equivalent - if you ask me, a 5-year university course should be considered satisfactory)

You are right about the marketing thing.
HOWEVER, what about the year-long courses (as opposed to summer courses) for immigrants. It has been proved that with adults who are only beginning to learn English the use of mother tongue has been highly beneficial. In such cases having a non-native TEFL teacher on staff would surely be useful for the school marketing-wise

KevinDublin · 17-04-2008 10:32pm

Sorry I get you now:o

That is crazy... Did she present her Degreee to ACELS? I'm surprised that turned that down!

And you are right about using L1 for beginners it is very useful and so yes, native teachers would be the way to go. Problem is though that very few schools will have a mono-lingual group of beginners. Most schools want to fill the classes and so will accept students from everywhere and so obviously will be excluded if the teacher is speaking anything but English.

LurkingLady · 17-04-2008 11:08pm

KevinDublin wrote: »

Sorry I get you now:o

That is crazy... Did she present her Degreee to ACELS? I'm surprised that turned that down!

She did. She came to Ireland in 2006 and sent in all the documents immediately after arrival. After 3 months she got a negative reply - they did not give her any reasons so she wrote a letter asking for explanation - they told her they will look into her case again as soon as she resends them the documents. She did. She waited another three months and got nothing - silence. Every time she called they told her they are still looking into it. When she got nothing from them by August 2007 she gave up trying...
She went back to Poland in October and is doing a PhD in TEFL in Krakow. She's working as a language teacher in one of the local language schools and is earning twice as much as she was a secretary in Ireland (which, supposedly, is a lot by Polish standards) so I'd say she's pretty happy.

I'm just sort of sad Ireland lost someone who could, potentially (I never saw her teach), be a brilliant TEFL teacher. God only knows we have too many bad ones here!

ferdi · 20-04-2008 3:52pm

Hi KevinDublin!

Your comments so far have been most enlightening, thank you. I have a quick question. Would the CELTA be valid for teaching teenagers or is it adult specific?

KevinDublin · 20-04-2008 5:59pm

Hi Ferdi,

Both the Celta and CELT are designed as general EFL courses and although they don't focus on teaching Juniors, they will cover methodolgy on teaching them. Your teaching practise will probably be with Adult learners.

Essentially, both courses will equip you to put together a class plan to teach any non native learner.

Also, it's worth bearing in mind that most schools that teach juniors will have their own courses and will be providing you with the materials to teach them with.

Hope that helps!

Learning · 22-04-2008 12:07am

Hi Kevin, thank you for your post it has been very helpful. I have been teaching Geography for 5 years in the UK and I am looking for a teaching job in Ireland at the minute. My big problem is that I only have 1 subject, I have recently been looking at the ACELS course. My question is, if I completed this course is it likely that it would benefit me in getting a position in a secondary school here? Do the secondary schools here take on TEFL teachers? Secondly, is this a qualification that would allow you to teach English as a subject in its own right in a secondary school to pupils who's first language is English, to say Junior and Leaving Cert? (Ive got an idea the answer is no but its worth checking with you).
Any info you could give me is very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

extra-ordinary_ · 22-04-2008 11:04pm

Learning wrote: »

Hi Kevin, thank you for your post it has been very helpful. I have been teaching Geography for 5 years in the UK and I am looking for a teaching job in Ireland at the minute. My big problem is that I only have 1 subject, I have recently been looking at the ACELS course. My question is, if I completed this course is it likely that it would benefit me in getting a position in a secondary school here? Do the secondary schools here take on TEFL teachers? Secondly, is this a qualification that would allow you to teach English as a subject in its own right in a secondary school to pupils who's first language is English, to say Junior and Leaving Cert? (Ive got an idea the answer is no but its worth checking with you).
Any info you could give me is very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

HI!
Multiculture and EFL is a relatively new phenomenon in Ireland and as such secondary schools are looking for EFL teachers. It will not qualify you ti teach English as your subject as you need to have studied drama and poetry and other things which are on the syllabus. However some schools , will employ a teacher who hasn't got that subject as their chosen subject.

Learning · 23-04-2008 10:42am

Thanks for the info Extra - Ordinary, I really appreciate any advice I can get, teaching is very hard to break into here!

KevinDublin · 23-04-2008 5:58pm

Agree... Although there was alot in the newspapers yesterday about primary and secondary schools not having sufficient resources to teach non native speakers English in schools.

Can't remember which minister was being interviewed, but he was suggesting TEFL teachers need to be brought in, rather than just usiung resource teachers.

TheDudeAbides · 23-05-2008 8:03pm

Which is the best accreditation for someone looking to travel throughout Europe (Spain, Portugal, etc)? I'm not really looking to teach full time, but I reckon it'd be a nice idea to have an English teaching qualification in my back pocket as a sort of plan B. Only thing is I've got no college degree so I'd really want to make sure the accreditation is worth the paper it's printed on. (I kinda figured the online or 40-hour ones were ****e but anyway, thanks for clearing it up)

Have any of you any advice for me?

owlwink · 23-05-2008 11:48pm

What is the most cost effective and rewarding foreign country to teach tefl in for a year?????????

Rimbaud · 30-05-2008 1:07pm

I hear Japan/Korea...the Asian countries are the most rewarding financially when it comes to tefl.

I have the same question as TheDudeAbides, i don't have a degree

I have a diploma in Youth Work though (which probably does'nt matter much).
And i understand you have to have a degree to be able to do the CELTA?

I've been looking into the tefl international courses which are 4 week intensive course based in a good few countries worldwide.You get practical teaching experience also...these look like the best option if you don't hold a degree?
But looking at tefl positions advertised for Asian countries, they nearly all require a degree as well as a tefl certificate.

owlwink · 30-05-2008 6:47pm

Rimbaud wrote: »

I hear Japan/Korea...the Asian countries are the most rewarding financially when it comes to tefl.

I have the same question as TheDudeAbides, i don't have a degree
I have a diploma in Youth Work though (which probably does'nt matter much).
And i understand you have to have a degree to be able to do the CELTA?

I've been looking into the tefl international courses which are 4 week intensive course based in a good few countries worldwide.You get practical teaching experience also...these look like the best option if you don't hold a degree?
But looking at tefl positions advertised for Asian countries, they nearly all require a degree as well as a tefl certificate.

Thanks for that man

:):):):)

civilian · 17-07-2008 12:16am

I'm looking into doing this too. Having the CELTA certificate would hopefully help me earn a bit of money on my travels. I'm going to start in Spain...doing the course in Barcelona at IH.
I've no degree either.
Does anyone know what countries its possible to earn the most money from this? Do all countries in Asia require a degree to teach there.

also, to anyone whose done the Celta course, what are your experiences.
How difficult was it to find work?
Did you enjoy it?

hunnybunny · 21-07-2008 10:32pm

hey there,
Interesting thread.
I have taught in Dubai (primary school) with a degree only (no TEFL cert) for 1 year.

I am now going to England to do my PGCE to be a qualified teacher. Would a CELTA or TEFL be a bonus on top of this, or do you think that the PGCE would be enough, to work abroad that is?
Would a CELTA or TEFL make it easier to get into teaching in Universities in some countries, when combined with a PGCE?

On TES, all that seems to be required is a PGCE for international primary schools.

But I d love to know if its worth my while to do a CELTA or TEFL as I ll be home next summer (2009) in any case and I may as well do something constructive whilst I wait for the new term to start.

See Ye · 29-07-2008 9:15pm

Hello everyone, I just want to add a bit to Kevin Dublin's fine information. Just so you know I'm actually a tutor on the CELTA courses at IH Paris and have been teaching EFL for 14 years.

Until this thread I was unaware of "CELT" - all this means essentially is that if you are travelling to teach outside Ireland you may have to answer questions on course content - see if you can get a copy of the syllabus to show potential employers.

CELTA qualifications are awarded by UCLES (University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate), aka "Cambridge". Prices and the exact format of the course may vary but they all cover the same principles. You are observed teaching a minimum of six adult learners for a total of six hours, you will also observe qualified teachers for six hours. There are also four written assignments to be completed during the course.

Since Cambridge are also home of the most widely recognised EFL exams for learners their teaching certificate is also the most widely known / accepted.

Ferdi the "A" in CELTA stands for "Adults", there is nothing on the syllabus which covers working with teenagers or younger - some courses may have a single workshop on "Young Learners" altho' since Cambridge have a specific qualification for this you may not even get that much. (We don't deal with the subject in Paris.) I don't know how this compares to CELT.

Originally you had to have a university degree to be accepted onto CELTA courses now the guideline is "degree or equivalent qualification", the lower age limit is 20; a certain amount of discretion is allowed. If you are interested go for it ... there will be a pre-interview task which should give you an idea of what you're in for.

Weekend courses such as those run by "i-to-i" are really "taster" courses designed to do two things a) Prevent people going off to teach with absolutely no idea whatsoever and giving us all a bad name

& b) Giving people a chance to see if EFL really is the thing for them before paying out for a full certificate course.

When looking at wages don't forget how much you'll need to make your life somewhere. For example teachers in Kuwait reckon it takes about a year to pay for the car, home entertainment system, furniture etc. before you can start to save anything.

Any questions and I'll do my best but Kevin's your man for Ireland specific stuff.

red_bairn · 17-08-2008 12:39am

hey, is it possible to get a job in a place near a friend when working on the TEFL course?

See Ye · 18-08-2008 9:50pm

Not sure I understand the question - the CELTA is an intensive course - five days a week for four weeks, with "homework", you wouldn't be able to do a job at the same time. Or is it the friend doing the course and you picking up work nearby ? If so I guess it depends what sort of work.

Rosita · 21-08-2008 10:23pm

Does anyone have any idea of the job prospects in the area of teaching English as a foreign language in Dublin?

I was thinking of doing the four-week course largely to get teaching experience and see how I'd find it, but I don't really was to spend a grand + four weeks and end up with nothing. I am not talking about a major career here, by the way, just reasonable possibilities of employment. It just seems to me that there are few barriers to entry and therefore there may be loads of people already qualified looking for employment.

Also, I have a BA degree with English as a major. Now I have no problem whatsoever studying for the CELT/CELTA etc. if it is absolutely necessary as a teaching qualification but am just wondering whether being a degree-holder in the subject makes any difference. I do acknowledge that actually teaching is a skill in itself which a BA in English obviously does not prepare you for so presumably it makes little or no difference in that sense, but am just wondering.

sitstill · 21-08-2008 11:59pm

I did one of these courses back in June, and although I wasn't depending on it for a job as I am a secondary school teacher, the instructors told us that there are plenty of jobs out there as there aren't enough TEFL teachers with properly recognised qualifications and this is especially true at peak times like summer.

red_bairn · 22-08-2008 10:56am

See Ye, I'm guessing your talking to me about this.

My friend and I are wishing to get places of employment in the same area when doing the teaching practise (sorry earlier i said TEFL course, which isn't what i meant). Just so we can live together and so on so forth.

We were originally planning to do the TEFL Weekend Course but are gonna look into other options to make sure there isn't something better.

See Ye · 23-08-2008 5:44pm

red_bairn wrote: »

See Ye, I'm guessing your talking to me about this.

My friend and I are wishing to get places of employment in the same area when doing the teaching practise (sorry earlier i said TEFL course, which isn't what i meant). Just so we can live together and so on so forth.

We were originally planning to do the TEFL Weekend Course but are gonna look into other options to make sure there isn't something better.

OK, that's clearer. If you're talking about secondary education I can't help.

For EFL, a weekend course will give you an idea of what it's all about but you don't come away with a qualification and there's no teaching. If you do a CELTA you get observed teaching practice during the course; I can't see why that would be any different for other EFL qualifications - except the online ones of course.

carolmon · 24-08-2008 11:50am

I completed the week long prep TEFL course run by the VEC in June and would be interested in completing the CELT training.

I've looked at the recommended training centre in Dun Laoghaire but in practical terms it's too far, can anybody recommend a centre city centre or west Dublin?
Thanks

is_that_so · 24-08-2008 9:49pm

See Ye wrote: »

OK, that's clearer. If you're talking about secondary education I can't help.

For EFL, a weekend course will give you an idea of what it's all about but you don't come away with a qualification and there's no teaching. If you do a CELTA you get observed teaching practice during the course; I can't see why that would be any different for other EFL qualifications - except the online ones of course.

It's not just CELTA that does teaching practice. ACELS courses have it as well. As for weekend courses, in my view they are of no real benefit to anyone that does not already have some kind of teaching experience/knowledge. I would also suggest that online courses are even less useful and really should be avoided completely.

The minimum people should be looking at if they think they want some kind of career out of it, is a four-week course (100 hours +) with teaching practice. ACELS is fine for Irish schools but CELTA is better for international jobs.

biko · 01-09-2008 2:18pm

Just stumbled onto this thread and thought I might be able to help shed some light on the TEFL/CELTA etc ESL courses. I’ve been teaching English for about a decade now in different countries around the world and there seems to be some confusion about the different type of courses that are out there.

Firstly; In order to be considered qualified to teach English in Ireland (or in the UK) the ONLY certificates allowed are certificated issued by ACELS (the English schools branch of the Dept. of Ed.). This means that I to I courses are NOT valid TEFL courses to teach in Ireland. A full list of these providers can be found on www.acels.ie

If you are planning on teaching outside of Eire or the UK, schools tend to be less strict, in some cases, just being a native speaker of English is a sufficient qualification to teach. In other cases, having a piece of paper with “TEFL COURSE COMPLETED” on it is a bonus! That’s where the I to I courses fit in.

If you are looking to actually learn to be an English teacher, you should do either the CELTA or the CELT. IMO both courses are the best qualifications in the world to become and English teacher. Also, BOTH will allow you to teach in Ireland and the UK but also are very highly regarded everywhere else.

Whats the difference between the CELTA and the CELT?
One difference is that the CELTA is run by Cambridge University whereas the CELT is an Irish Dept of education (acels) certificate.
The CELT is also considerably cheaper, (around 1000 euros Vs 1500 for the CELTA)

Realistically, to learn to teach English, you have to, at some stage stand up in front of a bunch of non native students and learn by doing. The CELT has at least 8 hours of you teaching students whilst being observed by a trainer. That kind of experience is invaluable and cannot be found by these nonsense online courses.

My advice for people looking to teacher at home or abroad is to do a CELT course. It might be 200 or 300 euros more expensive that the online or weekend courses but it will equip you to be an English teacher and even if you are not planning to teach in Ireland, you never know what will happen in the future and you might find yourself having to apply in Ireland for a few hours work in which case the CELT course will stand to you.

I’ve heard that Annalivia School in Dun Laoghaire run some of the best CELT courses in Ireland and they have full and part time options. Their website is www.annaliviaschool.com

Sorry for such a long post but I go into rant mode when I see some of the false claims floating around about weekend courses on online course enabling you to teach. They neither qualify you nor equip you!!!

I'd be happy to answer any questions.. I don't know everything about the topic but I'll give it a go.

Thanks for the info. I'm thinking of doing a course in Galway, would be good on the CV as well as the possibility of a nixer/going travelling again.

skydancer · 17-09-2008 11:44am

Hi, really useful thread. I'd love advice on the following: an English teacher with 20+ yrs experience of teaching English at 2ndary level in Ireland / N Ireland wants to be able to TEFL in Italy, what certs / courses should she do or will she find work with the experience that she has?
Views, comments, experiences much appreciated. Thanks.

See Ye · 17-09-2008 12:54pm

If you're looking to teach adults then any reputable language school will require you to have an EFL qualification - CELTA is the most widely recognised but CELT seems to be as valid (however as I said previously it is less well known and you may just need to have some info about it handy). Given your experience you might get by with a weekend course qualification but ... Earlier posts in this thred go into detail on the different courses.

Essentially you want to work for a school which expects you to be trained for the job in hand. They are more likely to be professional and treat you as one.

Teaching adult non-native speakers requires a different approach to secondary teaching in an English-speaking country and you'll feel more confident, be more efficient if you've done a course.

Where in Italy are you hoping to go ? I taught in Milan and Vicenza province.

skydancer · 19-09-2008 10:44am

Ta See Ye! it's for my mum, I'm just trying to collate some advice and tips for her.

Smythy1987 · 19-09-2008 8:47pm

Hey,

All of ye're posts have been really helpful so far, but i still need a few more bits of advice..
Ok so im 20 and have a commerce degree from NUI Galway and am considering a TEFL course or something 2 that effect.. Basically i want 2 be able to work and travel in the likes of south korea/china etc and am wondering exactly which course i should go for that is creditable/recognised and would enable me to teach all age groups..
Thanks,
Smythy

Mark1981 · 14-10-2008 6:43pm

Hi, I'm planning to get a qualification to teach English in Dublin and I was looking for some advice as to which school I should pick to get my TEFL certificate. I was told the Emerald Cultural Institute is a renowned English language school in Dublin, however I couldn't find any info regarding TELF courses on their website http://www.eci.ie

Does anybody here know whether Emerald provides TEFL courses?

Thanks a mill!

Mark

saram · 07-11-2008 1:16am

Hi there..Just came across this thread!!

I am looking into doing some study and gaining qualifications in Teaching English as a second language!! I have actually 4 years teaching practice already abroad..but would like to add some meat to my C.V!

I was intending on doing the 120 hour Course with 'i to i' for just under €800 but I have a few reservations..

The main problem I see is the ACELS (governing body of Teaching English in Ireland) doesn't recognise this course. What exactly are the courses that they recognise?? CELT is one I think. Is this course recognised in foreign countries...including Non English Speaking ones?

I don't really intend teaching in Ireland anyway..so am I better off going with the i to i course? I have also the CELTA course in mind...but that focuses mainly on adult learners.. and would be extra hassle to complete. The 120 hour Course would suit me better but will it be worth the investment??

So what do people think is the best course out there for someone in my situation..

Cheers for reading and the help in advance!!

See Ye · 09-12-2008 11:54pm

saram wrote: »

So what do people think is the best course out there for someone in my situation..

What is your situation exactly ? Are you looking to teach children ? (You suggest the adult focus of the CELTA is a minus point) In language schools or within state education ?

emy-87 · 14-12-2008 5:52pm

Hi,

I want to do the Post-grad in Primay school teaching next year, and I think doing a TEFL would help to get experience of a classroom.

I checked the Acels website, and there seemed to be a fair few places that do the Celt course.

Could anyone recommend a school, or how I would choose a school? Im at a loss as to how to go about it! Im living in South Dublin.

Thanks!

anitaf · 08-02-2009 1:06am

Hi just stumbled on this thread and i too was wondering which course would suit best, CELT OR CELTA, have choosen CELTA but unsure which location, International House, Dublin – CELTA (Cambridge ESOL), or The Language Centre of Ireland in Kildare st, Dublin, apparently they are the only two in Dublin offering CELTA according to the CELTA website. Price wise not much of a difference however you do get off early on fri's with one. Has anybody completed the CELTA course in any of the above, would be delighted with some feed back. Cheers!

See Ye · 08-02-2009 12:19pm

While waiting for other replies :
Both courses will cover the same areas - both will give you the same qualification. So I would seriously go with the one which suits you best with regard to dates, price and timetable. The course is INTENSIVE so anything which might make your life easier - shorter commute for example - should be considered. We have just adopted a late start on Wednesday mornings for the courses I work on and it really does seem to lighten the load so knowing you have an early finish or late start one day would be a plus point for that course in my book.

(I've just finished doing a CELTA course here in Paris and a couple of the trainees came to us rather than our competitor just because the dates suited them better.)

TheDudeAbides · 08-02-2009 1:50pm

How about teaching English *without* a TEFL/CELTA/etc qualification?
You know, just go out there (wherever there might be) and just do it.

I'm buggering off outa here quite soon and I'm thinking that being able to teach English on the side might be a nice earner. What I'm wondering about is whether it's really worth my while going to all that stress, hassle and expense of doing a course here when all I need to do when I finally get settled is stick up a few flyers and have a few one-to-ones for cash in hand. I don't want to make a career out of it, just have something up my sleeve, especially if things get tight and I need an auxiliary hustle.

My motto is always work for oneself whenever and wherever possible. I'd rather that than work for some "English School" who don't always have the best reputations. From what I've been reading, and it seems to be universal, is that the majority of them are shamelessly for-profit organisations who deliver a lacklustre service and treat their teachers like crap. You can also pretty much forget about any permanent position or fixed income because there's always a fresh supply of tourists/travellers/backpackers and students trying to earn a few measely bucks before they move on. This is how I understand it from the feedback I've gotten from other forums, articles & reseach.

How many of you have/are, or know of somebody who has or is, teaching English completely outside the TEFL system, who are basically getting cash in hand for helping a few people learn English in their home. It's not exactly a far fetched notion, I'd imagine.

See Ye · 08-02-2009 2:52pm

How ?

How do you intend to "just do it"?

What materials are you going to use ? How are you going to assess the level of your learners ? How are you going to meet their needs ? How are you going to explain the difference between "we're opening a factory in Thailand next year" and "we're going to open a factory in Thailand next year" ?

In short, what are you offering to justify taking people's money ? How would what you propose differ from the schools which "are shamelessly for-profit" and "deliver a lacklustre service" ?

By all means work for yourself but at least do a weekend course so you don't do us all a disservice - teaching without any training is akin to doing the plumbing without any training; true you're not going to actually kill anyone but ...

Powerhouse · 08-02-2009 3:19pm

TheDudeAbides wrote: »

My motto is always work for oneself whenever and wherever possible. I'd rather that than work for some "English School" who don't always have the best reputations. From what I've been reading, and it seems to be universal, is that the majority of them are shamelessly for-profit organisations who deliver a lacklustre service and treat their teachers like crap.

Unlike you who despite not being bothered to train to teach will have a stellar reputation as a teacher, and desite using phrases like "auxiliary hustle" and "cash in hand" will be doing it purely for the love of teaching the language compared with those pesky shamlessly for profit language schools?

You couldn't make this stuff up!:D

TheDudeAbides · 08-02-2009 10:02pm

Oh yeah, here we go... I forgot how pedantic boards can be sometimes. :rolleyes:

Powerhouse: Thanks a million for your helpful comments. Nothing I love more than asking a straight question and getting smartarse replies from sarcastic nerds.

When I use the word "hustle" I don't mean it in the Snoop Dog sense, I mean it in the if my partner or I get made redundant sense and I need something on the side to bring in some cash to make ends meet.

If I wanted to just make fast bucks there are much easier and quicker ways than teaching English.

See Ye: To be honest, training doesn't necessarily equate ability but I do have experience. I used to teach IT training classes, it's not much of a difference really; formulating lesson plans, devising exercises, grading and evaluating progress, etc, etc. It's not like I'm just diving in without any experience or idea of what teaching entails. Besides I'm currently learning a second language off a native speaker and I'm happy with my progress to date, never cared to see any "credentials" from the guy.

My point is a lot of people simply don't have the time, money or need to enroll in a full-time course when what they really want is to have somebody teach them what they want to know. It was the same with IT training; I found the majority of people didn't want to bother with doing an entire ECDL course and simply wanted to know how to do X, Y and Z so I'd go to their house and show them. There was far more demand for it that way, my clients learned to do what they wanted to learn to do, with confidence, and everyone was happier at the end of the day. That's I'm talking about.

So, I'll try again and ask the same straight question - has anyone ever just gone out there (wherever there might be) and just taught English to pick up a few quid? Without doing the whole TEFL course route. Yes or no?

See Ye · 08-02-2009 10:32pm

TheDudeAbides wrote: »

Which is the best accreditation for someone looking to travel throughout Europe (Spain, Portugal, etc)? I'm not really looking to teach full time, but I reckon it'd be a nice idea to have an English teaching qualification in my back pocket as a sort of plan B. Only thing is I've got no college degree so I'd really want to make sure the accreditation is worth the paper it's printed on. (I kinda figured the online or 40-hour ones were ****e but anyway, thanks for clearing it up)

Have any of you any advice for me?

What's changed since this post when you were looking for a course ?

Yes, lots of people have just gone to non-English speaking countries and taught English. Yes, some have even been employed by the schools with low standards you mentioned earlier however there are few, if any, schools left like that in the countires you mention. More and more people are being provided with language training by their employers and thus there is less scope for freelance teachers.

Look in the "working" section of any Lonley Planet type book from the 80s & 90s they'll suggest you can just pick up work in bars or teaching English. Look now and even they now admit you need to have a qualification.

As I've said in an earlier post I'm a CELTA trainer - I have seen people with previous teaching experience (University lecturers, primary school teachers, people who have provided on the job training for new colleagues etc.) have a great deal of difficulty transferring their skills to teaching English - as often as not those who have never stood up in front of a class before have an easier time of it.

Secondly may I ask about your current language learning ? What language does your teacher give you instructions in ? What language are the grammar rules explained in ?

These days people very very rarely learn English with anything other in mind than improving their job prospects and as such want to see a "return on investment" pretty quickly and are more demanding of their teachers. With your IT experience you certainly have "added" value but I still think you should do a weekend course at least.

See Ye · 09-02-2009 7:19am

To put it a different way TheDudeAbides, can you see anything wrong with the logic of the following ... I've been teaching English for 15 years and I use a computer every day so I'm going to start teaching IT; charging people to share my insights and knowledge.

The fact that I'm adding to my reply as soon as I woke up should indicate how strongly I feel.

EmerBaggott · 05-03-2009 10:33pm

Hi, Im a nurse & have never thought before. But would really like to travel. Which course is the best & the most recognised for me to go ahead travel & teach? Theres so many being mentioned here I don't know which one to go for...

TunaSaladBB · 06-03-2009 7:29pm

I'm sure students would never have thought they would be taught by someone who couldn't spell!

Ponster · 10-03-2009 12:29am

TunaSaladBB wrote: »

I'm sure students would never have thought they would be taught by someone who couldn't spell!

Did you really sign up just to post that ?

Supercell · 12-03-2009 4:53pm

I recently had an amazing time in China and frankly my eyes have been opened to another life and another way of living and have decided I want to go back full time.
I'd like to go back to Guangzhou as a TEFL teacher.
Has anyone here any tips as to CELTA or other qualification i should pursue? I work in a full time job right now so the full time four week CELTA course is going to be difficult to do.
Would a regular on-line or weekend course suffice initially to get me there and get a Z visa?

Weepsie · 13-03-2009 12:35am

I was accepted onto the CELTA course only this week. It starts next month though i've yet to confirm whether or not I will be registering. The interview made me rethik whether or not I can do it. I've got 2 degrees so most of the theory and class work I don't imagine I'd have a problem with. My problem is the having to teach on the very first day for 40 minutes while being observed by a teacher and the other trainees. I had imagined that the teaching practice would have come in the second week rather than day one. I've given presentations and spoken in tutorials and such before, but i'm not the most comfortable at it when it's such a situation, although I'm sure left to my own devices with the class I'd be able to teach them fine. I told them i'd let them know tomorrow and still no closer to making a decision either way.

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