How do I choose a course and how do I plan lessons?

[menorca]

I would like to know how I can get a TEFL degree, if there is an on line option.
I've read that Lucy offers a 20-hour Weekend TEFL Courses in Paris, France but I live in Menorca.
I lived in London for 12 years and now I'd love to teach English; I do not know how to prepare the lessons.
Thanks in advance for your reply.
Kind regards,
Maribel

[Lucy]

Dear Maribel,

You seem to have a lot of questions about your new teaching career. It can be confusing at the beginning. I will answer your questions in two separate postings. Here I’ll deal with your studies and in a future reply, I will deal with preparing lessons.

First of all, I think it is important for you to be clear about exactly what you want to study.

A 20-hour course is very different to a degree in TEFL. Most 20-hour courses take place over a weekend and participants learn the basics of teaching; for example, how to plan a lesson, how to manage a group of students, teaching grammar, teaching speaking etc. A degree is very different, a Bachelors’ degree usually involves three years of study (unless you are exempt from one or some modules). A Masters’ degree is usually one year full-time study. In order to get onto a Masters programme, you usually need a Bachelors’ degree and / or teaching experience. A Masters’ is more technical and theoretical than a weekend course or a TEFL certificate. TEFL certificates and weekend courses usually cover practical issues of dealing with a class. A TEFL certificate can be done part-time over one year or through one month’s full-time study. A Masters is often focused on the theory of language and language acquisition. Many Masters are offered as distance learning courses.

One thing to consider if you choose an on-line course is the amount of observed lessons that will take place. You should ask this question when enquiring about courses.

I can’t comment on the individual courses. It is for you to decide which suits your learning style and budget.

Good luck ,

Lucy

[Lucy]

Dear Maribel,

I understand that it can be difficult to plan lessons when you are new to teaching. It’s not always easy to know where to begin. Here are some guidelines to get you started.

The important areas when learning a language are: grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, speaking, listening, reading and writing. Your students will need to learn these aspects. Some of them will need more of one area (for example, a class that is good at grammar but not speaking will need to spend more time on speaking). Find out what your students want to learn and which of the elements mentioned above are most important to them. Then think about these seven elements when you are planning.

When you know what your students’ needs are, you can think about how to address this and get balance in your classes. It’s important to get balance so students stay interested, try to avoid spending a whole lesson on one activity or topic. When you are planning, think about how much time you will spend on each exercise. This will help you to see if there is balance between the activities and will avoid a situation where you have 20 minutes left in a class and nothing to do.

Remember to spend time revising or reviewing work. One idea is to spend 5 minutes at the beginning of every lesson reviewing what was done in the previous lesson.

I hope these ideas will help you. Please write in again if you would like to know more.

Lucy