Training and qualifications
Courses at home or abroad, online training and the DELTA.
Bad News For The British Council In Russia
Russia and the British Council are at odds as Russia is asking the British Council to close its offices and the British Council initially refused.
Surviving The Feedback On Your Teaching Practice: My Experience
The feedback portion of the CELTA, in my opinion, can be the part that does people in. By that I mean – the part that they cannot stand.
TEFL Course Teaching Practice: What's It Like?
Like most teachers with a TEFL certificate, I have the experience of one type of course – the one I took, the CELTA – as opposed to several.
Student-Centered Activities
Brigh-eyed and bushy-tailed ... or something like that ... in the early stages of my TEFL course I came across a bunch of new concepts.
Is A TEFL Certificate Worth It?
Is a TEFL certificate worth its weight in gold…or maybe scrap metal? Pain in Spain’s posts on whether getting a TEFL certificate pays off in the long run are well worth a read.
Getting Certified At Home (In The US Or UK)
Someone recently contacted me to ask if it was possible to get certified online at home in the US and then go, certificate in hand, to Europe to find work.
Can You Trust Online Reviews?
In this day and age where a person is “searchable” verbally and – the author of this article on food critics asserts – visually, a food critic may not be able to remain anonymous long enough to give…
CELTA Survival Tips
I recently came across a post with some useful tips designed for those about to embark on the CELTA or other TEFL course.
What Obligations Do TEFL Course Providers Have?
Aside from presenting the certificate they offer honestly – how much do they have a responsibility to tell potential applicants about the job market?
English - Even As A Second Language - Still "Not Enough" Sometimes
In most countries in the world, people pass through years and years of English classes, devoting much time and energy to learning this foreign language.
Can There Even Be An M.A. / DELTA Debate?
Following a TEFL Logue post on the Great MA / DELTA debate, in response to a similarly themed TEFLtastic post , metaTesol had an insightful post about the difficulty inherent in comparing these…
Ultimate TEFL Certification Guide
Got a question about TEFL certificates? Find your answer - or a link to it - here. The TEFL Logue has been going strong since the end of last August.
Three Reasons To Get Your TEFL Certification Right Now
There are three reasons to get your TEFL certificate now: CELTA, Trinity TESOL, TEFL International, SIT, take your pick, but make your choice soon.
The CELTA And Grammar
TEFL trainees are often understandably nervous about grammar. Will you learn grammar in the CELTA or another TEFL certification course?
The Great DELTA / MA Debate
Pick up a chair of your choice to use as a weapon because TEFLtastic has a debate: DELTA or MA?
The CELTA: Do People Love To Hate It?
It doesn’t take much to raise a ruckus at the ESL café , but one surprising – to me anyway - recipient of a good amount of wrath is the CELTA – not because it is “only” a four week course (ie not…
Unqualified Teachers In China? From Insights Into TEFL
Insights Into TEFL recently expanded on the notion that there are many teachers billed as “unqualified” working in China.
From The Guardian: Unprepared To Teach?
The TEFL section of the Guardian Education site recently featured an article by a teacher who basically found himself in over his head in Japan teaching English after a twenty-four hour tefl course.
What Should I Tell Students About My Training?
It can be an awkward moment when students want to know how you’ve been trained to teach them.
Why Go To Grad School?
Tedkarma, creator of TEFL Bootcamp free online TEFL training, has contributed his insight and advice to the TEFL Logue before, most recently on the topic of using business experience to help you in…
Why Go To Grad School? Part 2
In Part 1 , Tedkarma set the stage and outlined the reasons for getting an advanced degree in the field of English language learning.
Guided Discovery: What's That?
One of the themes that comes up in many teacher training classes is guided discovery. For lots of us, including me when I first heard of it, this is somewhat of a new concept.
TEFL Course: Full-Time Or Part-Time?
Many TEFL trainees immediately go for the full-time intensive TEFL course – generally four weeks long – and there are plenty of advantages to this: you only need to pay for one month’s housing, you…
The Low Down On TEFL Training: TEFL Course Diaries At ESL Base
If you’re looking for first-hand info about TEFL Training Courses from people involved in them this very moment, look no further than ESL Base TEFL Course Diaries .
Impartial TEFL Certificate Advice (Or Not)
First of all, a note on being impartial – I’m not! I think it goes without saying that course providers are unlikely to be neutral, but I would be a bit skeptical even of teachers who have done one…
Pros And Cons Of CELTAs And Other TEFL Certificates
Before you even think of starting this, check out my post on Impartial TEFL Certificate Advice (Or Not) . Pros of a CELTA It’s well-known, even if it is not always required.
One More Reason To Get A TEFL Certificate
In Is A TEFL certificate "enough"? I explained my thoughts on this, specifically that a one-month intensive course, no matter how good it is, is not going to make or break a teacher.
TEFL In International Schools
If you’re tiring of the language school grind and willing to get an additional qualification, working at an international school might be just the ticket for you.
TEFL Logue Review: Travel To Teach
Due to popular demand (well, due to a nice request as a comment on this post ), the TEFL Logue has visited the website of Travel to Teach in order to profile it.
TEFL Training Tips I Still Use
I’ve confessed that there are a few things I don’t use from my TEFL course…but of course there are a lot of tips and techniques I DO use.
Spotlight On Spain
The home of tapas, flamenco dancing, and best of all the siesta. The country which contains Sevilla, where the current temperature is 52 Degrees Fahrenheit!
Is This A Concept Check Question?
Learning how to ask concept-check questions was one of the most useful parts of my TEFL training – and I still use them today.
Free Online TEFL Training: TEFL Bootcamp
My longer-term readers might recall that TedKarma has shared some excellent insight for the TEFL Logue, on, among other things, Should I Use A Recruiter?
Volunteer To Teach ESL In Chicago: Literacy Works
Literacy Works is a Chicago-based organization that provides workshops, trainings and direct literacy (which includes ESL) services in connection with various non-profit organizations in the…
Online TEFL Courses: One TEFL-er's Experience
Usually employers who require a TEFL course require an “in person” one, like the CELTA or those provided by LanguageCorps or through Bootsnall with TEFL International .
TEFL Confessions: Two Tips From My Training That I Don't Use
Overall, my TEFL training was extremely useful: I think it struck a good balance between practice and theory, input/feedback and “output,” if you will.
Volunteer Opportunity: VSN In Nepal
One of the TEFL Logue’s New Year’s Resolutions is to include profiles of organizations through which already qualified or potential future EFL teachers can volunteer.
Is A TEFL Certificate "Enough"?
….to get a job? Very often to most of the time, yes. A certificate that has a well-known name or is internationally recognized will bring more opportunities, but in some places even an online…
TEFL Course Resources At Bootsnall.com
Seeking more info on TEFL courses? Look just a bit further than the TEFL Logue to Bootsnall.com , specifically, the main TEFL Courses page .
Cool Feature Of LanguageCorps No.3
In addition to Cool Feature No. 2 ( the Corps Advocate ) and No. 1 ( Language and Cultural Awareness Training ), LanguageCorps also provides assistance on returning home, more formally known as the…
The DELTA
The DELTA is the Diploma of English Language Teaching To Adults; according to the DELTA website, it can be done full-time over two to three months or part-time over six months to a year.
TEFL Training Videos: What's It All About?
Check out Guy Courchesne’s own YouTube videos of a TEFL Trainee to get a better feel for what your TEFL course teaching practice will be like.
Lesson Plans: Tips For New Teachers
First of all, TEFL trainees can take a sigh of relief: hammering out a lesson plan will not take two and a half hours all the time. That's only for your first year. I kid of course.
Cool Feature of LanguageCorps No. 2
Like any good EFL teacher, I keep the questions coming. In this case, they are questions to Jed Willard , one of the founding partners of LanguageCorps , which is the sponsor of the TEFL Logue.
On Being A Teacher Trainer
By TedKarma (This is the latest in a series of posts by experienced EFL teacher - and teacher trainer - TedKarma.
Make A Difference With Your Native English Skills...
By volunteering to teach ESL in prisons. Check out the recent CNN video about ESL classes in prisons.
What Can You Gain From TEFL?
I had the opportunity to speak to Jed Willard, one of the Founding Partners of LanguageCorps , which offers TEFL training and job placement in Latin America ( Mexico , Ecuador and Costa Rica ) and…
Does Your Degree Matter?
Having a Bachelor’s degree does matter because many countries require it for a work permit.
Introducing Language Corps
I’m happy to introduce the first TEFL Logue sponsor, Language Corps , which offers TEFL training , job placement and assistance in a myriad of locations.
Top 5: Tips For Getting Through Your TEFL Course
1. Do the work If you’re hoping for a short cut…there isn’t one. You need to participate in the input sessions, think through lesson plans, and put time and effort into written assignments.
Volunteer Your Native Fluency Skills For Room And Board In Spain
If you want to get a taste of TEFL while on vacation in Europe (or, hey, if you want to head out to Spain just for this), and without the commitment of a long-term contract or even a course, Vaughn…
TEFL Career Advancement
As with most other jobs, it is possible to move up in TEFL. But how to do it? Stick around : The first step is just gaining experience so you can go from new teacher to experienced teacher.
Resource: Books To Brush Up Your Grammar
You don’t have to be a grammar whiz to enroll in a TEFL course…but if you’d like to brush up your skills anyway, try: Grammar In Use – Available in different levels, this reference book is useful for…
Applying For A TEFL Course: Do You Need To Be A Grammar Whiz?
To apply for my CELTA, I first downloaded and filled out an application which consisted of some standard name-address-education forms as well as a language awareness “test,” which included questions…
Confused About How To Choose A TEFL Course?
Google "TEFL course" and you are rewarded with about 2,620,000 results in 0.09 seconds. Slightly overwhelming, to say the least.
TEFL Course At Home or Abroad?
With the variety of TEFL courses on offer nowadays, people have the option of training at home or training abroad, and obviously there are pros and cons to each.
When To Do A TEFL Course
If you plan on working at a language school, know that these tend to run much like schools in general: from September to June with a summer break.
TEFL Course Classmates
I did my TEFL course in 2002 in a large Eastern European city. There were twelve people on my course including me; about half were also new teachers.
Why Do a TEFL Course?
It benefits your students Learning English is a priority today for people everywhere.