How to choose a TESOL course that is suitable for you

How to choose a TESOL course that is suitable for you

What TESOL Course should I choose? And where should I study TESOL?

You will see many training courses advertised for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) or Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) - courses which aim to prepare and qualify you for your first English teaching job. It is in your interest to choose a course which will offer you a high standard of training and recognised certification.

Such a course:

will enable you to gain employment with a reputable employer,
will have wider recognition in the field,
will enable you to earn more for your work,
and will provide a good basis for future career moves.

English Language Teaching (ELT) is a recognised teaching profession and a good training course is an essential starting point for maintaining high professional standards for high quality student learning.

There are literally thousands of TESOL/TEFL courses on sale on the internet, all promising that they are the best choice. Many providers are genuine and care about their students, and choosing the correct course for you, is your responsibility. To help you make an informed decision you need to do plenty of research. Below are some of the questions you should be asking yourself.

Are you looking for a career or a career break?

The type of course you choose depends on your aims for your future. Are you looking for a short ‘back packer’ course or planning to make a meaningful investment in a teaching career? Either way your students will have invested substantially in the classes you teach and you have been placed in a position of trust, it is therefore vital that you understand the responsibility you have when selecting a course.

What kind of course would suit you?

Do you want to do a ‘taster’ TESOL course?

If you wish to do a short course to help pay costs while travelling, or are unsure about investing in a longer course, a short course or ‘Taster course' may suit you. You will gain a basic knowledge of TESOL and meet other people with similar interests who want to learn how to teach TESOL.

You may not get the full range of input that you will get on a longer course, and you may not be eligible for the same range of jobs that a longer course and its associated qualification will give you but it will serve as good introduction to TESOL.

These courses are recognised as preliminary TESOL courses.

Do you still need to work fulltime while studying?

Online courses and distance Learning courses would be suitable if you prefer working in the privacy of your home or while still working. A distance Learning course will provide you with the theory required to teach; you may still need to complete an element of observed and assessed teaching practice. This is very important for teachers at an early stage of their professional development.

Students often experience real difficulty in funding a course which includes the observed and assessed teaching practice. Many candidates achieve a distance Learning or online course and apply directly to employers for teaching places.

Depending on your circumstances a part online and part face- to-face course may be very useful; attending local community centre courses or an ESOL school and making observations or volunteering to work with students, will give you an opportunity of working with students in a classroom environment.

Distance Learning courses could be useful for teachers already qualified in other curriculum subjects, or someone who has worked in a classroom environment training colleagues or facilitating in-house programmes.

An element of supervised teaching practice may still be a requirement to teach in some institutions and is recommended where possible. These courses are recognised as TESOL Level One courses.

What is observed teaching practice?

Teaching practice (TP) includes the following:

students' own classroom practice,
observations of experienced teachers,
peer observations,
feedback discussions and assisted lesson planning.

The aim of teaching practice is to help students acquire basic teaching skills and establish a solid basis for further professional development.

Observed teaching practice is an opportunity for the trainee teacher to teach genuine learners of English under the guidance of properly qualified trainers or mentors; an essential part of any initial teacher training course, even for teachers already qualified to teach other curriculum subjects, since teaching a language is unlike teaching any other subject.

Students can complete the observed teaching practice while they study for their certificate, or after they have received it. There is no substitute for teaching practice and students would benefit from a course that includes observed and assessed ESOL teaching practice.

Some TESOL Level One and TESOL Level Two courses contain elements of teaching practice. The Advanced items indicate the criteria for a teaching practice element in The College accredited courses.

Should I invest in a Master's in TESOL?

You may wish to pursue a postgraduate Master's degree in TESOL. Academic courses such as Master of Arts and further professional qualifications in TESOL allow teachers to specialise in a particular area of expertise.

Some Master's programmes in TESOL in the UK incorporate a teaching practice component and are designed for both experienced teachers and those with little or no previous teaching experience.

Normally students who only complete the first semester gain a Postgraduate Certificate in TESOL (60 credits exit). Students who complete the programme after the second semester can gain a Postgraduate Diploma in TESOL (120 credits exit). Students who complete their dissertation in the third semester will normally gain an MA TESOL (180 credits).

Do I want to become a qualified teacher?

If this is a career change, you may want to think about becoming a qualified teacher in the UK. The best way to achieve your qualified teacher status (QTS), enabling you to teach across state-maintained schools across England and Wales, almost always means completing a programme of initial teacher training (ITT).

There are several different ways you can complete your ITT:

alongside a degree,
straight after a degree,
as a part-time course alongside work
or as a full-time course.

The option that is right for you will depend on your circumstances. You will need a degree and qualified teacher status (QTS) to become a qualified teacher. (www.tda.gov.uk)

The following links will help you navigate your way through to finding a course that is suitable for you.

For further information on TESOL and TEFL qualifications offered by The College see TESOL Qualifications.

If you are an institution interested in course accreditation please see the steps to course accreditation.