TEFL/CELTA/CELT answers...

radiospan · 30-07-2013 03:45PM

I'm looking for a TEFL course in Cork. Is i-to-i the only option? I see they have a course in August and September. Are there any alternatives?

I've contacted Cork Language Centre, it seems their only TEFL course is for state qualified secondary school teachers.

Tramps Like Us · 16-08-2013 03:42PM

Lads I'm looking to teach in China for a year or two, I have a university degree so I'll satisfy the Visa requirements, is it worth my while doing one of those 140 hour online tefl courses? It seems being a native speaker is enough to get a job by itself.

Some are very cheap, with special offers and such. I'm just looking for a bit of an extra string to my bow and a bit of an idea of what I should be at when trying to teach english, how to structure things etc (I have some experience tutoring from college so I'm not entirely new to teaching). More of a confidence boost type thing.

What you think? Will I get something out of it?

ViveLaVie · 16-08-2013 04:40PM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

Lads I'm looking to teach in China for a year or two, I have a university degree so I'll satisfy the Visa requirements, is it worth my while doing one of those 140 hour online tefl courses? It seems being a native speaker is enough to get a job by itself.

Some are very cheap, with special offers and such. I'm just looking for a bit of an extra string to my bow and a bit of an idea of what I should be at when trying to teach english, how to structure things etc (I have some experience tutoring from college so I'm not entirely new to teaching). More of a confidence boost type thing.

What you think? Will I get something out of it?

I would say no. Those courses are useless.

Tramps Like Us · 16-08-2013 05:25PM

ViveLaVie wrote: »

I would say no. Those courses are useless.

So should I fork up the 1200 or whatever it is for the CELTA course? Will that help me get a better position in China?

I'm just wary of ending up as a teacher with no idea of what to do... few people have said to me not to worry you'll work something out, its not hard to do over there, but I don't like winging things unless absolutely necessary. But to save 1200 euro.. maybe lol

What would you recommend?

SeantheMan · 17-08-2013 08:34AM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

So should I fork up the 1200 or whatever it is for the CELTA course? Will that help me get a better position in China?

I'm just wary of ending up as a teacher with no idea of what to do... few people have said to me not to worry you'll work something out, its not hard to do over there, but I don't like winging things unless absolutely necessary. But to save 1200 euro.. maybe lol

What would you recommend?

CELT is brilliant. Easily one of the best things I've ever done.
Well worth the money

Tramps Like Us · 17-08-2013 03:59PM

SeantheMan wrote: »

CELT is brilliant. Easily one of the best things I've ever done.
Well worth the money

I'm leaning towards doing one, with one of them I can go pretty much anywhere to teach. Do you know of any good places in Dublin to do it? Cheaper the better tbh. Thanks.

SeantheMan · 17-08-2013 04:30PM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

I'm leaning towards doing one, with one of them I can go pretty much anywhere to teach. Do you know of any good places in Dublin to do it? Cheaper the better tbh. Thanks.

I did mine here

http://www.ces-schools.com/dublin/08018/celt-tefl-course

It's directly across from Central Bank

Tramps Like Us · 19-08-2013 03:39PM

SeantheMan wrote: »

I did mine here

http://www.ces-schools.com/dublin/08018/celt-tefl-course

It's directly across from Central Bank

Cheers, looking like I'll do that, tyvm. Might as well do it proper.

Only thing is I'm a bit confused about the degree requirement. I'm currently sitting exams which I deferred from xmas because of Illness (these are final exams). It says on that site that if I don't have a degree I have to sign a waver saying that I wont seek employment in Ireland, does that mean I get a different certificate? It shouldnt be an issue as I should graduate in a couple of months but there is always a possibility I might have to repeat a module (god forbid) so if I have to that I wont graduate until well after I have done the CELT course.

Basically why I am asking is if I get my degree AFTER doing the CELT course can I teach in Ireland, do I have to reapply for a variant of the CELT cert or anything? Just trying to get all the bases covered.

SeantheMan · 19-08-2013 03:54PM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

Cheers, looking like I'll do that, tyvm. Might as well do it proper.

Only thing is I'm a bit confused about the degree requirement. I'm currently sitting exams which I deferred from xmas because of Illness (these are final exams). It says on that site that if I don't have a degree I have to sign a waver saying that I wont seek employment in Ireland, does that mean I get a different certificate? It shouldnt be an issue as I should graduate in a couple of months but there is always a possibility I might have to repeat a module (god forbid) so if I have to that I wont graduate until well after I have done the CELT course.

Basically why I am asking is if I get my degree AFTER doing the CELT course can I teach in Ireland, do I have to reapply for a variant of the CELT cert or anything? Just trying to get all the bases covered.

I would just ring them up. They're very informative and helpful.
I can't answer your questions with 100% certainty, and there's no use in me guessing for you. Give them a call and ask, if you explain that you are sitting exams and will be awaiting certification it shouldn't be a problem.

I say this because after you complete the CELT, it takes up to 8 weeks for your certificate to be sent out, but they encourage you to apply for jobs and issue you a letter confirming "awaiting certification" and even hire people before their certs arrive. So I'm sure they'd understand

Tramps Like Us · 19-08-2013 03:58PM

SeantheMan wrote: »

I would just ring them up. They're very informative and helpful.
I can't answer your questions with 100% certainty, and there's no use in me guessing for you. Give them a call and ask, if you explain that you are sitting exams and will be awaiting certification it shouldn't be a problem.

I say this because after you complete the CELT, it takes up to 8 weeks for your certificate to be sent out, but they encourage you to apply for jobs and issue you a letter confirming "awaiting certification" and even hire people before their certs arrive. So I'm sure they'd understand

Cheers, I sent them an email a few mins ago to get an application form, I asked those questions too so hopefully I will hear back soon.

Getting excited now

ViveLaVie · 19-08-2013 04:03PM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

So should I fork up the 1200 or whatever it is for the CELTA course? Will that help me get a better position in China?

I'm just wary of ending up as a teacher with no idea of what to do... few people have said to me not to worry you'll work something out, its not hard to do over there, but I don't like winging things unless absolutely necessary. But to save 1200 euro.. maybe lol

What would you recommend?

I can't say for certain if it would improve your pay in China but in general the CELTA gets you better pay and more likelihood of getting a job. It's an excellent course and well worth it, in my opinion. It gives you a great foundation on which to start teaching. I'd recommend the CELTA above CELT simply because it's more recognised internationally. Also, you'll get the same certificate as everyone else but you won't be able to apply for certain jobs until you get your degree.

Tramps Like Us · 19-08-2013 04:06PM

ViveLaVie wrote: »

I can't say for certain if it would improve your pay in China but in general the CELTA gets you better pay and more likelihood of getting a job. It's an excellent course and well worth it, in my opinion. It gives you a great foundation on which to start teaching. I'd recommend the CELTA above CELT simply because it's more recognised internationally. Also, you'll get the same certificate as everyone else but you won't be able to apply for certain jobs until you get your degree.

I would do the CELTA but I honestly can't afford it, the 1000 will be a struggle, I'll have to borrow some of it from family members, which I hate doing. 1500 or so, just doesn't seem worth it to me, especially considering people regularly get jobs in China with no TEFL of any description whatsoever.

The lady from CES replied already (!? fair play I say!) and yes, everyone gets the same cert, and the waiver becomes null and void once you get a degree.

SeantheMan · 19-08-2013 04:13PM

I'm just looking for a bit of an extra string to my bow and a bit of an idea of what I should be at when trying to teach english, how to structure things etc (I have some experience tutoring from college so I'm not entirely new to teaching). More of a confidence boost type thing.

Reason you asked for CELT was the above.
It's up to yourself.

If you're near guaranteed a job you'll be able to pay the loan etc back in no time.
But, everyone's different

playedalive · 19-08-2013 09:40PM

Tramps Like Us wrote: »

Cheers, looking like I'll do that, tyvm. Might as well do it proper.

Only thing is I'm a bit confused about the degree requirement. I'm currently sitting exams which I deferred from xmas because of Illness (these are final exams). It says on that site that if I don't have a degree I have to sign a waver saying that I wont seek employment in Ireland, does that mean I get a different certificate? It shouldnt be an issue as I should graduate in a couple of months but there is always a possibility I might have to repeat a module (god forbid) so if I have to that I wont graduate until well after I have done the CELT course.

Basically why I am asking is if I get my degree AFTER doing the CELT course can I teach in Ireland, do I have to reapply for a variant of the CELT cert or anything? Just trying to get all the bases covered.

I did my CELT course in the Dublin School of English last month and I was told that the degree is only required if you want to teach in Ireland (in an ACELS Government recognised language school). Otherwise, you get the same diploma as everybody else.

I asked them before starting and they told me that it's up to the school to ask you for degree transcript/CELT certificate.

madmoe · 20-08-2013 12:36PM

ViveLaVie wrote: »

I can't say for certain if it would improve your pay in China but in general the CELTA gets you better pay and more likelihood of getting a job. It's an excellent course and well worth it, in my opinion. It gives you a great foundation on which to start teaching. I'd recommend the CELTA above CELT simply because it's more recognised internationally. Also, you'll get the same certificate as everyone else but you won't be able to apply for certain jobs until you get your degree.

If I'm gonna pay for the CELT I may as well go the whole hog and pay for\do a CELTA......the thing is all the places I found so far in Dublin offering a course part time are only offering the CELT and not the CELTA :-(

Cheers,
M

SpaceTime · 20-08-2013 12:41PM

playedalive wrote: »

I did my CELT course in the Dublin School of English last month and I was told that the degree is only required if you want to teach in Ireland (in an ACELS Government recognised language school). Otherwise, you get the same diploma as everybody else.

I asked them before starting and they told me that it's up to the school to ask you for degree transcript/CELT certificate.

You'd really want to check the requirements of the country you plan to teach in. There's no general rule for "Ireland" and "everywhere else".

A lot of countries require a bachelors degree and CELTA or something similar.
I know certain Asian countries will not grant a visa to someone planning on teaching English without a degree.

It depends on the rules in that country and it also depends on what the language school is looking for.

In France, it seems quite normal that they'd also expect you to have a BA in English or Communication or something similar as well as a teaching qualification. Again, it depends on the school, but it can be quite a tough market especially in Northern Europe.

CELTA is much more widely recognised than anything else because it's a Cambridge qualification.

I know a few people who've found language schools looking a little confused when presented with CELT.

Tramps Like Us · 20-08-2013 12:44PM

For China you need a BA for the via, unless you wanna work illegally.

SpaceTime · 20-08-2013 12:45PM

Also remember that if you've any technical or business qualifications they can be a major bonus for landing a Business or Technical English teaching job with CELTA added on.

It can be a nice way of getting some experience abroad / brushing up languages while earning some money if you've a B.Comm, B.Sc in Computer Science or science in general etc etc.

I ended up finding a teaching job in a Spanish bank at one stage (business background) and it was quite well paid and a there was very nice atmosphere, excellent hours, really friendly students etc etc.

They wanted someone who could deal with specific language for business. So, there were a lot of situations where I had to tailor classes to the exact needs of particular staff. That meant needing to understand the banking system and all the business and economic terminology they were likely to encounter.

Tramps Like Us · 20-08-2013 01:03PM

SpaceTime wrote: »

Also remember that if you've any technical or business qualifications they can be a major bonus for landing a Business or Technical English teaching job with CELTA added on.

It can be a nice way of getting some experience abroad / brushing up languages while earning some money if you've a B.Comm, B.Sc in Computer Science or science in general etc etc.

I ended up finding a teaching job in a Spanish bank at one stage (business background) and it was quite well paid and a there was very nice atmosphere, excellent hours, really friendly students etc etc.

They wanted someone who could deal with specific language for business. So, there were a lot of situations where I had to tailor classes to the exact needs of particular staff. That meant needing to understand the banking system and all the business and economic terminology they were likely to encounter.

I'll have a law degree, any use you reckon?

Tramps Like Us · 20-08-2013 01:04PM

madmoe wrote: »

If I'm gonna pay for the CELT I may as well go the whole hog and pay for\do a CELTA......the thing is all the places I found so far in Dublin offering a course part time are only offering the CELT and not the CELTA :-(

Cheers,
M

They are the same thing really, you might just have to explain about the CELT if they haven't heard about it

madmoe · 20-08-2013 02:29PM

SpaceTime wrote: »

You'd really want to check the requirements of the country you plan to teach in. There's no general rule for "Ireland" and "everywhere else".

A lot of countries require a bachelors degree and CELTA or something similar.
I know certain Asian countries will not grant a visa to someone planning on teaching English without a degree.

It depends on the rules in that country and it also depends on what the language school is looking for.

In France, it seems quite normal that they'd also expect you to have a BA in English or Communication or something similar as well as a teaching qualification. Again, it depends on the school, but it can be quite a tough market especially in Northern Europe.

CELTA is much more widely recognised than anything else because it's a Cambridge qualification.

I know a few people who've found language schools looking a little confused when presented with CELT.

That's it!! I'm definitely NOT doing the CELT.......if I'm gonna spend a grand or more on this it needs to be the most widely recognised one!

Cheers mate,
M

madmoe · 20-08-2013 02:32PM

SpaceTime wrote: »

Also remember that if you've any technical or business qualifications they can be a major bonus for landing a Business or Technical English teaching job with CELTA added on.

It can be a nice way of getting some experience abroad / brushing up languages while earning some money if you've a B.Comm, B.Sc in Computer Science or science in general etc etc.

I ended up finding a teaching job in a Spanish bank at one stage (business background) and it was quite well paid and a there was very nice atmosphere, excellent hours, really friendly students etc etc.

They wanted someone who could deal with specific language for business. So, there were a lot of situations where I had to tailor classes to the exact needs of particular staff. That meant needing to understand the banking system and all the business and economic terminology they were likely to encounter.

Excellent! I have a BEng in Electronic and Computer Engineering from NUI Galway.......

SpaceTime · 22-08-2013 05:10PM

Just also bear in mind that the Spanish economy isn't exactly going wonderfully at present.

When I was there the banks were still spending rather lavishly on staff training.

That's definitely changed!

If you've a technical background though maybe try targeting language schools that do corporate stuff.

The other thing to remember is that a lot of places are run by chancers too.

I had good and really bad experiences. Just make sure that you're totally sure of what hours they've agreed to and what your rate is.

I was completely misled by a couple of employers too.

madmoe · 23-08-2013 09:36AM

SpaceTime wrote: »

Just also bear in mind that the Spanish economy isn't exactly going wonderfully at present.

When I was there the banks were still spending rather lavishly on staff training.

That's definitely changed!

If you've a technical background though maybe try targeting language schools that do corporate stuff.

The other thing to remember is that a lot of places are run by chancers too.

I had good and really bad experiences. Just make sure that you're totally sure of what hours they've agreed to and what your rate is.

I was completely misled by a couple of employers too.

Thanks a million mate! My sister is in the North in Aviles and this will be her third academic year coming. The place is ran by an Irish guy and it has worked out very well for her so far. I'm thinking more Barcelona or Madrid though as if I'm gonna go to Spain I want to be in a big city.

Cheers,
M

queensinead · 25-08-2013 09:02PM

Is there any realistic possibility of getting TEFL work here in Ireland (apart from July or August) on any kind of an on-going basis for someone with an English BA 2:1, a Masters and a CELT qualification---plus some on-off, part-time TEFL teaching experience in Dublin?

Or should that person just cut their losses and see CELT as a qualification that you use abroad, or when travelling outside Ireland, and either move abroad or try to go into some other field here in Ireland ?

Is there any realistic hope of any TEFL work over the Winter months here in Ireland?

roxyworldgirl · 25-08-2013 10:56PM

Can anyone clear up for me what courses are actually legit?
You see so many online courses available these days that youd think everyone would be qualified if they were all accredited?

SpaceTime · 25-08-2013 11:22PM

CELTA and CELT are both legit.

The major difference with CELTA is that it's a Cambridge qualification and they're also the people who set out most of the exams that people are studying for in those language schools i.e. :

Cambridge English: First (FCE)
Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE)
Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE)
Cambridge English: Business Certificates (BEC)
Cambridge English: Legal (ILEC)
Cambridge English: Financial (ICFE)

and part of the groups that run:
BULATS
IELTS

That's why CELTA and DELTA are so internationally recognised.

CELT Certificate awarded by ACELS (The Advisory Council for English Language Teaching in Ireland) and it's also a fine course.

CELTA is however part of that whole Cambridge system and that's really the big advantage of it over anything else.

The Cambridge exams are used pretty much everywhere and the British Council is the other big backer of those qualifications and they're a bit like Alliance Française i.e. you'll find them almost everywhere.

...

Just remember though that in a lot of cases the jobs you're likely to pick up aren't always wonderful. It's a great option if you want to do a bit of international travel and check some places out while paying the bills, but in general I think the wages are ridiculously bad in a lot of places and in my experience the employers aren't always the nicest or the most reliable.

Be VERY careful to ensure that you've got your hours worked out and locked down and that you have sufficient funds for a flight home. I've had really bad experience with employers in Spain who promised a lot more than they delivered and left me with way less money than I had expected. I remember working an entire month and coming home with barely €512 (having worked full weeks and long days!) ... I was absolutely screwed over. I've heard plenty of similar horror stories and far worse from places in further flung destinations.

I would suggest having a few places lined up, as you may need to chuck a job and move to a better one. Also, you can usually add a lot of private classes on as you go. I ultimately ended up being self-employed (and paying taxes etc) in Spain which worked out quite well for a year.

Also, make sure that you're 100% familiar with what taxes, social welfare contributions and rent you'll have to pay. Depending on where you're going the charges can be enormous.

It's definitely something you'd do more for a bit of travel and exploring the world rather than a serious job.

If you're serious about becoming an EFL teacher in a university or something like that, you'd really be looking at doing something like at the very least DELTA (the next step up from CELTA) but probably more like MA in TESOL and probably something like Applied Linguistics.

It can be a good experience and you'll learn loads, but just bear in mind it's not all it's cracked up to be a lot of the time.

tinpib · 14-02-2014 03:10AM

Ok I'm resurrecting this old thread kinda for the purposes of good karma. I learned a lot from it and want to give my experience so that it may help others.

I was made redundant early 2013 and in figuring out what to do with my life I read through this entire thread at least twice, maybe 3 times.

As I had redundancy money while not exactly 'money is no object' I didn't have to cut corners in picking a course.

I decided to do CELTA, saving a few bucks for the hassle of explaining CELT to every prospective employer etc was not appealing.

So my choice came down to where to do it. I was based in Dublin then.

So the choices, as far as I was aware, would be IH International House on Dawson Street or The English Academy on O'Connell Street.

IH was ¢1750 and English School was ¢1500.

In the end I went with IH.

My reasons were, firstly I was willing to spend/had the funds to spend the extra ¢250 if I thought it was worth it.

Secondly I was very impressed with how IH had organised the application process. They have been doing this for 10 plus years, I think. I didn't want to be the guinea pig somewhere while they were having teething problems.

The English Academy had only been going a year or two at that stage so I didn't want to risk it. Now I have no idea what The English Academy would be like, it could be even better than IH but once I dealt with IH I felt I had made the right choice.

Actually my flat mate at the time took his English classes through The English Academy and he liked it there.

When I was applying for IH I had a number of questions. I clicked for the application form thinking to myself that I will fill it out and give them a buzz to get my questions answered. It turned out that their application form is also like a FAQ and every question I had was answered. That impressed me.

From working in a company that would do the very opposite of that I took it as a very good sign.

So I paid my money and signed up.

The course teaches you how to teach. It does not teach you any English grammar/rules etc whatsoever.

You are supposed to do all that before you do the course so I guess if you don't enjoy that side of things or are not very god at it then maybe you shoudln't be an English teacher.

Before you pay your fees you do a pre interview, just so you can suss each other out. It gave me an indiction of what was in the course which I liked. You also have grammar tasks to do. I think they do this so that if you haven't a clue how to answer them it scares you into knuckling down on your grammar etc before the course.

They have a recommended reading list with one book they expect you to read and others that would be good if you read.

The one they expect you to read is essentially an overview of the 4 week course.

The other books they recommended are books that I refer to most days in the class. Grammar points and 'How the hell do I teach the XXXX tense' books.

I thought the 2 tutors on the course were excellent. Again I reckon this may not have much to do with IH. The same tutors could be in The English Academy aswell as they are all freelancers as far as I know.

But I found the whole thing to be very well run in IH. It's a conveyer belt of classes, you are not the first and won't be the last on it.

As regards the course itself I don't have much to add to what has already been said here.

It is incredibly intense. Everyone on the class knew it and it is drilled into you at the pre interview too.

You go to class 9-5 then are pretty much studying/working until 12/1am each night just about grabbing a take away for food. You barely have time to cook.

Everyone is like that, so there is a great feeling of we are all in this together in the class.

I found the assignments to be an enormous pain in the balls. You work from 9am to 1am Monday to Thursday, you just want to chill out and switch off the brain at the weekends, right? Wrong.

It's full on for 4 weeks.

You just have to get through it. But it is an excellent course.

As noted before you teach 8 classes, on your first day you think 'oh Christ not a 45 minute class but a 60 minute class last, i'll never do that'. In fact the opposite happens. By the time you have completed 7 lessons, all the fear is gone, you are confident standing in front of a class. You know how to prepare original material, correct students, manage a class etc all without nerves.

Which is the object of the course. In other words it works.

You just have to go through hell to get there.

Since then I have wondered about those doing the online courses. The probably still have all that hell of standing in front of real live students for the first time to go through where with CELTA or equivalent you will be comfortable being a teacher from day one.

Also to clarify you are teaching real-live students from the get go on the CELTA course. As far as I know the classes are offered for free so the students know that their teachers are only training to be teachers so will be sympathetic to your plight.

Our students were a great bunch, I'm sure they are in general, and it was great to go for a few pints with them when we finished.

madmoe · 14-02-2014 08:14AM

tinpib wrote: »

Ok I'm resurrecting this old thread kinda for the purposes of good karma. I learned a lot from it and want to give my experience so that it may help others.

I was made redundant early 2013 and in figuring out what to do with my life I read through this entire thread at least twice, maybe 3 times.

As I had redundancy money while not exactly 'money is no object' I didn't have to cut corners in picking a course.

I decided to do CELTA, saving a few bucks for the hassle of explaining CELT to every prospective employer etc was not appealing.

So my choice came down to where to do it. I was based in Dublin then.

So the choices, as far as I was aware, would be IH International House on Dawson Street or The English Academy on O'Connell Street.

IH was ¢1750 and English School was ¢1500.

In the end I went with IH.

My reasons were, firstly I was willing to spend/had the funds to spend the extra ¢250 if I thought it was worth it.

Secondly I was very impressed with how IH had organised the application process. They have been doing this for 10 plus years, I think. I didn't want to be the guinea pig somewhere while they were having teething problems.

The English Academy had only been going a year or two at that stage so I didn't want to risk it. Now I have no idea what The English Academy would be like, it could be even better than IH but once I dealt with IH I felt I had made the right choice.

Actually my flat mate at the time took his English classes through The English Academy and he liked it there.

When I was applying for IH I had a number of questions. I clicked for the application form thinking to myself that I will fill it out and give them a buzz to get my questions answered. It turned out that their application form is also like a FAQ and every question I had was answered. That impressed me.

From working in a company that would do the very opposite of that I took it as a very good sign.

So I paid my money and signed up.

The course teaches you how to teach. It does not teach you any English grammar/rules etc whatsoever.

You are supposed to do all that before you do the course so I guess if you don't enjoy that side of things or are not very god at it then maybe you shoudln't be an English teacher.

Before you pay your fees you do a pre interview, just so you can suss each other out. It gave me an indiction of what was in the course which I liked. You also have grammar tasks to do. I think they do this so that if you haven't a clue how to answer them it scares you into knuckling down on your grammar etc before the course.

They have a recommended reading list with one book they expect you to read and others that would be good if you read.

The one they expect you to read is essentially an overview of the 4 week course.

The other books they recommended are books that I refer to most days in the class. Grammar points and 'How the hell do I teach the XXXX tense' books.

I thought the 2 tutors on the course were excellent. Again I reckon this may not have much to do with IH. The same tutors could be in The English Academy aswell as they are all freelancers as far as I know.

But I found the whole thing to be very well run in IH. It's a conveyer belt of classes, you are not the first and won't be the last on it.

As regards the course itself I don't have much to add to what has already been said here.

It is incredibly intense. Everyone on the class knew it and it is drilled into you at the pre interview too.

You go to class 9-5 then are pretty much studying/working until 12/1am each night just about grabbing a take away for food. You barely have time to cook.

Everyone is like that, so there is a great feeling of we are all in this together in the class.

I found the assignments to be an enormous pain in the balls. You work from 9am to 1am Monday to Thursday, you just want to chill out and switch off the brain at the weekends, right? Wrong.

It's full on for 4 weeks.

You just have to get through it. But it is an excellent course.

As noted before you teach 8 classes, on your first day you think 'oh Christ not a 45 minute class but a 60 minute class last, i'll never do that'. In fact the opposite happens. By the time you have completed 7 lessons, all the fear is gone, you are confident standing in front of a class. You know how to prepare original material, correct students, manage a class etc all without nerves.

Which is the object of the course. In other words it works.

You just have to go through hell to get there.

Since then I have wondered about those doing the online courses. The probably still have all that hell of standing in front of real live students for the first time to go through where with CELTA or equivalent you will be comfortable being a teacher from day one.

Also to clarify you are teaching real-live students from the get go on the CELTA course. As far as I know the classes are offered for free so the students know that their teachers are only training to be teachers so will be sympathetic to your plight.

Our students were a great bunch, I'm sure they are in general, and it was great to go for a few pints with them when we finished.

Very well said mate! I finished the CELTA in Kaplan International College before Christmas and can say all of what you said above applied there as well! Don't know if you knew it at the time or if it was the case but Kaplan offer the full CELTA as well, just another option if people are thinking about doing it in Dublin! I would rate them very highly, on the same level as IH!

Cheers,
M

playedalive · 15-02-2014 02:23AM

I know CELTA is considered to be far superior but I've got the Irish CELT and, so far, it has got me work in Ireland. I enjoyed my course in the Dublin School of English. I got so much support it was really nice.

In terms of going abroad, I am sure any good reputable school would realise Ireland is an English speaking country and would know the necessary authorities like ACELS and QQI. I know one guy from my course teaching in South Korea and another guy who is teaching in China.

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