Tefl Test

[janejo74]

Hi!
I´m a bit curious about how the test works. Have any one done it? Is it just to sign up for the test and then hope that you pass and you get the certificate?

Thanks Jane

 

[majortungsten]

Hi Jane,
I'm not sure what you mean by a TEFL "test". I am a teacher trainer here in BsAs, and I have never heard of a TEFL course that would give a certificate just for taking a test. On top of that, if I were an EFL employer then I certainly wouldn't be employing someone who had just taken a test. In an ideal world, you need to be taking a course. Most, if not all, reputable employers here and around the world will require a 120 hour course with AT LEAST 6 hours of observed teaching practice. On top of this, most schools want a degree too. Online courses are usually a waste of your time and money - employers want that real classroom practice!
There are a number of schools that will help you find work if you train with them. I am not intentionally using this as an advertising plug, but I work for Road 2 Argentina which offers a four week intense TEFL course. Check out:www.road2argentina.com for more details, or pop in and talk to us (Anchorena 1676).
A friendly piece of advice too, you may want to read a few English grammar textbooks. Sadly, gone are the days of getting a job just because you are a native speaker.
I hope this helps.

 

[PhilinBSAS]

Hi!
I´m a bit curious about how the test works. Have any one done it? Is it just to sign up for the test and then hope that you pass and you get the certificate?

Thanks Jane

Jane I'm not clear what you are after.

Do you mean IELTS? IELTS tests skill levels in English and is not an "exam" i.e no pass/fail just a score. There are Academic and General versions. It is world-wide and widely known and recognised. It is used for example by University entrance admissions to courses run in English. It is not necessary to do a "course" beforehand although courses do exist. The IELTS web site provides material for self tution as well as to centres around the world including Buenos Aries. If you are considering taking the test at a centre and want to do a preparatory course I'd recomment you contact one of them and ask which schools they would recommend.

Information on IELTS is found on the website .... http://www.ielts.org...t_is_ielts.aspx

I'm not clear why you want to do this test? You appear to be a native speaker. Are you perhaps referring to a "test" similar to those run by volunteering organisations (not the genuine not for profit ones). In my experience of the worst examples of this type of con volunteers sign up to do a "course in English language teaching" and then do a test and are given a worthless piece of paper suggesting they can "teach English" and then sold a relatively expensive holiday which pretends to be a volunteer placement programme. Dont waste your money is my advice.

If you want to do a teaching course in EFL or ESOL and want to have a qualification which is widely recognised and respected then I'd recommend CELTA - University of Cambridge or Trinity University of London

http://www.cambridge...elta/index.html
http://www.trinityco...uk/site/?id=293

Does this answer your question?

 

[NickBA]

I've taken the TEFL course and am currently teaching English. While my experience may differ from many people, I considered my 4 week TEFL course to be, for the most part, a waste of time and money. I admit that having a few practice classes helps prepare you for your first private students, but instead of paying $1,200-1,500 dollars for TEFL, you might as well offer a few free classes to your first few students until you can get the hang of things.
It may be more difficult to find work without the TEFL certificate, but if you have a good knowledge of the rules of English grammar, and a degree, then a TEFL degree does little if anything to make you more qualified. My class consisted of 8 people, and it was a general consensus that the best thing about the course was that you met other people in a similar situation, not the actual content of the course.

 

[RosaliaLL]

I am going to have to disagree with Nick. I have an English Lit degree and was always a grammar nerd in school, but I found my TEFL course to be invaluable in terms of learning teaching methodology. With enough practice, I suppose, anyone can "get the hang of" anything, but being able to do something and being able to do it well are certainly two different things. I don't mean to sound aggressive, but as someone who has been teaching English in various places for 5+ years, including to immigrant populations in the States, I get frustrated by those who think just being a native speaker makes them qualified to be a teacher.

I second Phil's CELTA recommendation -- it's an intense course that requires a lot of work but I learned a lot. I taught for a year before taking it. When I look back on that time, while I certainly wasn't a BAD teacher, I can't help but feel that my students would have benefitted so much more from having a teacher who was trained and qualified. I did mine in NYC, so I don't know the details on taking it here, but I'm sure they're easily accessible online.

Nick, I'm sorry you had a bad experience. Maybe you can tell us what course you took so others will know to avoid it?

 

[PhilinBSAS]

, I get frustrated by those who think just being a native speaker makes them qualified to be a teacher.

Yes I can understand this. Then I remind myself that Samuel Beckett earned money in Paris offering "English lessons" - and as a lecturer and school teacher without as far as I know ever qualifying as a "teacher".

Since I'm not a Samuel Beckett I'm glad that I took the trouble to take a professional approach to teaching English - after a brief induction in trying to teach in BsAs working alongside proper teachers. I already had several years experience as a University lecturer - but not in languages.

Actually many unqualified native speakers can do a passable job at being teaching assistants under supervision or even giving personal tutoring on a one to one basis. Not investing in a basic course (Id say CELTA is a minimum) or at least not having a personal development plan that includes getting qualified raises questions in my mind about whether this is just conning gullible people out of their money. What quality control exists in this situation? Getting a student to "feel good" about learning English is no yardstick of progress.

OTOH Qualified native speaking English teachers do get discriminated against here in Argentina. You cannot teach in public schools for instance until you have gone through the lengthy Argentine TT requirements which are tedious and bureaucratic so congratulations and commiserations with those who have. I recall going to a dinner party which consisted entirely of Argentine English teachers and finding that all of them completely refused to converse in English (apart from La Portena) and this included a couple of University Professors in English with lines of qualifications in English (from non English speaking universities). I put this down to a collective inferiority complex. By way of contrast I met another Argentine Professor who teaches Argentine English Teachers who regularly visits London and his diction and knowledge of my language made me feel ashamed of myself - not that this was deliberate as he was charm personified.

It's like me in the past having given guitar "lessons" - I dont pretend that I'm a Guitar Teacher just because I happened to go to the same school as Eric Clapton!

More power to the elbow of those who have a genuine passion for teaching and who are taking steps to ensure that they are learning to be effective teachers rather than in it for picking up an easy bob or two.

Might as well busk on Linea "B" - at least people can judge whether you are any good at what say you do

 

[janejo74]

Hi everyone and thanks for the replies!
I´m not a native speaker (I´m Swedish), my interest in doing this is to be able to teach english in BA. I hear all sorts of options and therefor I threw this thread out.
Jane