Hi,
I am planning on entering into a TEFL certification program offered by my local university. It only requires, however, 18 credit hours to complete the program. The plan is to take 9 credit hours, 3 classes, per semester for 2 semesters. This doesn't seem like much to me. What is the norm, or the average for such a certification program?
How many credit hours is enough?
Moderator: Joe
Re: How many credit hours is enough?
You can find courses worth 40, 60, 80, 100 hrs. The ICAL TESL/TEFL Certificate for example is worth 100hrs. This is not equivalent to the number of hours one takes to complete a course but it is the ELT industry standard used to rate the content value of a course.
The general perception is that the less hours a course is worth the less is the value of the certificate. It’s got to be said though that employers rarely specify how many hrs a TESL/TEFL Certificate should be worth. What matters to them is that you are certified.
Personally I would recommend that more than the number of hrs attached to a certificate you look at the course content. You could look outside your local Uni and check what other course providers have to offer. Ask for their course syllabus and compare them. Check their tutors’ credentials. Make sure the course requires some actual work on your part and it is not based on “Yes or No” answers or “Read This Unit and Summarize It” type of coursework. Try and find out what other students who have taken the course say about it. Basically do as much research as you can.
Also check the posts on independent sites like TEFLCourseReview and TEFLWatch. These are sites where TESL/TEFL courses and course providers are independently reviewed and rated.
http://www.teflcoursereview.com/ical-on ... -training/
http://www.teflwatch.com/index.php/board,44.0.html
The general perception is that the less hours a course is worth the less is the value of the certificate. It’s got to be said though that employers rarely specify how many hrs a TESL/TEFL Certificate should be worth. What matters to them is that you are certified.
Personally I would recommend that more than the number of hrs attached to a certificate you look at the course content. You could look outside your local Uni and check what other course providers have to offer. Ask for their course syllabus and compare them. Check their tutors’ credentials. Make sure the course requires some actual work on your part and it is not based on “Yes or No” answers or “Read This Unit and Summarize It” type of coursework. Try and find out what other students who have taken the course say about it. Basically do as much research as you can.
Also check the posts on independent sites like TEFLCourseReview and TEFLWatch. These are sites where TESL/TEFL courses and course providers are independently reviewed and rated.
http://www.teflcoursereview.com/ical-on ... -training/
http://www.teflwatch.com/index.php/board,44.0.html