Too many choices

[Char]

I am a qualified computer teacher, but am planning to do the TEFL training in Phuket in January 2009. However there are so many places to do the TEFL training and I am having a hard time choosing. Can anyone suggest or recommend a reputable training school?

[Chopvac]

Don't worry about where so much as worrying about what.

What governments are going to look at first when it comes to giving out work visas is the accreditation of the school, not the quality. For TEFL schools, look for "Oxford certified" or whatever the term is, and check with the Oxford TEFL site in England.

My TEFL was earned via email through a school in Thailand (ITTT), and is accepted by the Taiwan government. That also means you should check with the government of the country in which you plan to teach - there's no point attending a TEFL program that isn't going to get you a job.

[Char]

Thank you for the advice. Have you heard of ECC in Phuket? I was told that an online TEFL is not worth the paper it is written on? What is your opinion on that?

[Chopvac]

Thank you for the advice. Have you heard of ECC in Phuket? I was told that an online TEFL is not worth the paper it is written on? What is your opinion on that?

The name ECC appears on English-related schools in three countries (Japan, Korea, Thailand) yet they have no connection to each other. I couldn't really say anything about the one in Phuket, although I've been to Patong and studied Japanese at a language school.

As for my TEFL course, it was a "twenty hour course" requiring "three weeks" of study. I did the reading and pounded out my answers by email the same day, and finished the course in ten days. The only reason it took that long was I had to wait for ITTT to evaluate my responses or it would have taken less. It took longer to receive the certificate by mail than it did to do the work.

The reality is, anyone with a year's experience teaching English will know enough to ace such a course. (Unless their English is so poor, of course, that they can't spell or name parts of speech. You write English at the same level I do, so you would likely have no problem.) Your real concern should be classroom management, something these courses do touch on, but without classroom experience you'll have to think long and hard about the answers.

I'll reiterate my advide from before: Before choosing a school, decide what country you want to work in, and then ask the country what their standards are for employment.

Also be aware that some of these places are pushy about getting more revenue in. ITTT, which I said I got mine through, and a legal work visa with their certificate, was constantly pushing for me to "upgrade" and pay for more classes.

[systematic]

With the possible exceptions of the two most famous and highly esteemed courses in the world:
Cambridge CELTA (and its CELTYL) and the Trinity Cert. TEFL which are not only fully accredited by the education departments of the British government but are recognised by it as official qualifications, no other courses are 'accredited' in the true sense of the word. The British Council bestows accreditation on British based organisations only. Many on-line courses, particularly those based in the UK, are offered by thinly disguised 'for profit' (600%) group travel companies, or 'non profit' volunteer pay-a-lot-to-work organisations, both which exploit the readiness of motivated youngsters with money to spend on doing their bit for communities in need of developmental aid.
Negative reports are usually expressions of one person's dissatisfaction and may not stand as a criterion of low quality on the whole. Some questions can however be justifiably raised concerning the high price of on-line courses compared to the extremely low operational costs, and the endemic tongue-in-cheeck misleading and often deliberate false claims in their advertising.

It pays to do some on-line research when considering any courses, not only will you find out all the courses on offer, but you will find out what others who have done them are saying about them, particularly if you search the depths of the TEFFLtastic blog on this very web site. One very good resource to start searching for some answers to your question is this Thailand TESOL forum with some eye opening accounts and links to some hair-raising others.

Finally, a Google search in conjunction with the information provided in the above links, will give you up-to-date information of course calendars and prices. It is an unusual coincidence, but in Thailand the quality may appear to decline with increasing proximity to the sea. Often, the courses with the best reputations are located either in the capital or in Chiang Mai. The CELTA is NOT available as an on-line course. ECC is one of several providers of CELTA in Thailand and offer their courses in three locations including Phuket. More information (again through a Google search) would have shown you this: http://www.eccthai.com/training/celtahome.asp
Choose wisely

[TS-SC]

The main problem with choosing a TEFL is there is no universal law, anybody can set up a TEFL course and that means they have a license to print certificates. Most companies which do in-house training are reliable. Also the course needs to be at least 100hours.

We are embarking on a TEFL course through Putuo Techinical college in Shanghai for any of our candidates which need a TEFL, on the condition that they take a job with us after.


Regards,
Sam Chapman
sam.chapman@teachingsupply.co.uk
www.teachingsupply.co.uk

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[steveoh]

I just finished the trinity course which had loads of teaching practice in a real classroom. Really can't see any benefit in doing an online course you'd still be green when you had to teach a class for the first time and the theory is easy to pick up.