new member...a little confused re CELTA/TEFL

[henny]

Hello,

I've just joined and I hope you'll be able to help.

I would like to take a tefl certificate but am not sure: should I go for celta or tefl?

how can I get myself ready for it? I'd love to be part of a group where I can discuss problems and learn everything I need for the exam but also everthing I need - in general - to be an effective teacher.

I am sorry I am new to all this and I may sound boring...nothing new under the sun but I feel I'd rather ask the silly question than say nothing and end up being more confunsed or not good in what I am going to do.

ANY suggestion would be so very appreciated - and of course if you can share materials for me to use to study that would be massive.

Thanks so much!!!

[Briona]

Hi Henny,

What course you should choose depends very much on what you hope do after it. If you intend to have a career in TEFL, I would definitely recommend a CELTA as it's reputable, recognised all over the world and gives you the all-important teaching practice. For those simply wanting to teach abroad for a few months, the cost of a CELTA (as opposed to an online TEFL course) may not be justified.

how can I get myself ready for it? I'd love to be part of a group where I can discuss problems and learn everything I need for the exam but also everthing I need - in general - to be an effective teacher.

There are no exams in either TEFL or CELTA courses. Online TEFL certificates are self-study courses comprising several modules which you work through at your own pace. Once completed, you submit these to a tutor for feedback. Note that tutors have the power to fail you on any module. Most providers will give you two or three attempts at passing them though. The CELTA is a continuous assessment course with everything you do going towards your final grade. As well as attending the input sessions, you have teaching preparation, 6hrs assessed teaching practice and 4 written assignments.

In terms of preparation, online TEFL certificates give you all the necessary information in each module to enable you to complete the exercise at the end. For the CELTA you will be given a pre-course assignment to complete which will give you the basics. Personally I did an online TEFL course prior to taking the CELTA and definitely feel that it gave me the edge over my colleagues, e.g., writing lesson plans, understanding terminology and methodology, etc.

If you give us more of an idea of what your plans are, we might be able to give more targeted advice.

Briona

[henny]

Dear Briona,
first of all thanks so much for getting back to me and for the info provided.

Basically I was told that to get a job in the teaching fields I need either Celta or Tefl. Point is I am not sure what the differences are and what should be best. You now kindly helped me on getting a clearer idea on that but in a way it's not enough. I don't know how to get ready for the exam, whether I can take both exams online (I checked the places I could go for for the exam in the list I found in one of the books (published in 2009) and called them up just to find out they are not offering the service at present (no people asking, apparently) so this is one of the issues: I cannot relocate just to take the course and exam.

Tefl should be a good start I guess but, still, I don't know how to get myself ready for it. For example, I was looking online for a list of word which might be of help (a good start in each field needed) but couldn't find anything.

I confess I am also trying to figure out what's the difference between tefl and toefl because some people, when I asked about toefl corrected me on that saying it is wrong...

Thanks!!!

[pokedmund]

Briona said there are NO EXAMS for either TEFL or CELTA. For the CELTA, an interview and an assessment test is required before they accept you onto the CELTA. I believe with the online TEFL courses, you just pay and work through the course online.

I can only provide my experience on the CELTA. There is more information if you search the forums, but essentially:

CELTA is accreditted by Cambridge.
Involves 120 hours of learning in a classroom, including 6 hours of actually teaching a class of students.
Usually taught with 11 other students (total of 12)
4 written assignments.
Full time course of 4 weeks or a part time course of 12 weeks.
Check the cambridge website for global locations of Colleges that are authorised to teach the CELTA course.
The price for the CELTA is a lot more than the TEFL (In London, UK, you are looking at approximately above or just below £1000.

Once again, the choice is up to you. I've chose to do a CELTA and loved every minute of it. I've never done the online TEFL courses so I can't comment on what they are like.

[Jo]

Just to clarify...

There are references above to "CELTA OR TEFL" and "the TEFL".

There is no such thing as "the TEFL".

CELTA is a TEFL certificate, one of many and some would say the best.

The term "TEFL" itself has no official significance. It simply means Teaching English as a Foreign Language, and many course providers have chosen to call their certificates "TEFL certificates". The term "TEFL" therefore does not of itself endow the certificate with value. You need to check further into the credentials of the course provider and/or the certificate issuer.

[henny]

Thanks so much for getting back to me so quicly.

So...would Toefl be okay for me to teach then? I was suggested to take the exam, online but from what I read here it's like...it would be of no help...

I am feeling hopeless now...I have not such money ...

[Lucas]

toefl is the test that non-native speakers take to obtain an English proficiency score.
You need to take a TESOL or TEFL course if you want to teach English. There is plenty of discussion here about different courses and accrediting organizations.

[Jo]

Yes indeed, TOEFL is Test of English as a Foreign Language and is for English learners not teachers.

Have you looked at the TEFL Training FAQ, Basic TEFL Qualifications and ELT Terminology, Abbreviations & Acronyms found on this site at the link below?

http://www.tefl.net/teacher-training/

[Briona]

Hi Henny,

You still seem to be confused!

As I said earlier (and pokedmund reiterated) there are NO EXAMS in either the CELTA or online TEFL courses, so in that respect there is nothing to prepare for.

As the name suggests, online TEFL courses are conducted online. You pay for the entire course upfront and work your way through the modules at your own pace. Everything you need to know to enable you to complete the exercises will be contained in the module, although you can always Google anything you would like more information on. You submit completed modules to your online tutor and he/she will provide you with feedback.

The CELTA (as pokedmund has explained) is a 120hr course conducted in the classroom. It comprises input sessions, teaching preparation, 6hrs assessed teaching practice and 4 written assignments. To find your nearest authorised centre, click on the following link and select a country and choose 'CELTA' as the award. See: http://cambridgeesol-centres.org/centre ... g/index.do

To enable us to give you more targeted advice, perhaps you could answer the following:
1. Are you a native English speaker? (I only ask because people have suggested TOEFL to you which, as Lucas explained, is the test that non-natives take).
2. Where are you based?
3. Where do you want to teach?
4. Do you want to teach full-time or just for one summer for example?

Briona

[Alex Case]

Agree with all the advice above. If you do decide to take a 4 week 120 hour course, e.g. the CELTA, this article on TEFL.net (by me) should help you prepare for the course

http://edition.tefl.net/articles/traini ... for-celta/

but most people get through with little if any preparation and when you sign up to the course your school will tell you what to read etc before you start

[henny]

Hello everyone,

first of all sorry for getting back to you so late...I have been so very busy...I may have found the best solution for me so am quite happy with that...need to complete the task for the application form now...;-)