TEFL Certification and Qualification

The courses will typically cover the underlying principles of good teaching practice, an introduction to the various strategies employed in good teaching practice, and should also provide you with practical experience in a teaching environment. The priorities of language teaching are identified ie. pronunciation, oral communication and the more formal uses of written language and grammatical structures. The course should also contain elements that introduce the student to an awareness of different teaching strategies and their inherent effectiveness or otherwise. Also included should be an introduction to the type and range of teaching aids and material that are available from simple visual aids to more sophisticated multi-media tools. One factor that will always start a debate is the importance or otherwise of fluency and communication versus that of linguistic accuracy. A good balance between the two has to be found and worked towards. There may sometimes be an exam at the end of the course but it is more likely to be a process of on-going assessment leading to the award.

One course that is highly respected is the Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA), which is validated by the University of Cambridge. The course can be taken at any one of 91 centres in England (in 38 identified regions and counties), 6 in Scotland (ie. 3 in Edinburgh, 2 in Glasgow and 1 in Dundee), at Cardiff in Wales, at 2 in Northern Ireland (both in Belfast) and at 3 in the Republic of Ireland (ie. 1 in Cork and 2 in Dublin). There are also many other centres around the world with the identical accreditation. Another course offered with similar and equally widely respected accredatation is the Trinity CertTESOL (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), which is validated by Trinity College, London. This also is a course that can be taken at numerous centres throughout the UK and elsewhere. There are many other courses offered, by other organisations, that enable candidates to study for their qualification using the internet. Before you decide on one, take the time to look at the different prospectuses and find the one that gives you the best value for your money and an award that will be of use to you.

Once you have your initial TEFL qualification you can start to look around for the job that interests you. It might be that you want to stay and work in the UK with children or adults whose first language is not English. Alternatively, you might want to teach children or adults but in a foreign country. Again, you might see your future working in a multi -national organisation or industry where you can employ these new skills in a business environment. The choice would be yours.