# TEFL/TESOL Advice on courses



## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Hi Guys

I was approached recently by a local college of English who have associations with a close friend of mine who is a Spanish teacher of English. They know I have teaching experience and being native they have asked me if from September I will run "conversation" classes and 1-2-1 and small group coaching from a native perspective for students who are struggling and in particular to help with their conversation and prenounciation.

I decided to give it a go for the challenge and because I would like to get back into teaching.. it´s only a few hours a week and I think I can make time, it would be fun. They have said that they aren´t bothered that I am not a qualified English teacher because I am only offering additional support and hands on conversational practice. They say that being native and having teaching experience in the past make me ideally suited.

However... it´s years since I taught and I thougth it would be worthwhile getting a little bit of training and certainly polishing up on my grammer. Therefore I have decided to do a TEFL/TESOL course in the meantime.

I work full time so can´t go off to college, but a number of companies offer online courses. Remember I do not want to get into a serious career as a teacher, just do this for a while for fun. The question is which course?

At the moment I have narrowed it down to two companies (i to i, and intesol). Both are UK based and offer courses ranging in timescales etc. Does anyone have experience with either of these companies, and what are your opinions? Alternatively does anyone have experience with other companies that offer similar things?

Because I want to get this done before I begin the work, I don´t want someone that will keep me dragging on for weeks between modules, I need a firm that give plenty of support, and that respond quickly and above all are professional. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks guys!


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> I was approached recently by a local college of English who have associations with a close friend of mine who is a Spanish teacher of English. They know I have teaching experience and being native they have asked me if from September I will run "conversation" classes and 1-2-1 and small group coaching from a native perspective for students who are struggling and in particular to help with their conversation and prenounciation.
> 
> ...


if you already have teaching experience, it's more for conversation & pronunciation than grammar (please tell me you don't have a strong geordie accent) then in all honesty you could probably get by without

however, it certainly wouldn't hurt to brush up on your grammar & there are tons of online courses, some of which can apparently be completed in 40 hours

you'd want a TEFL course rather than TESOL, though

sorry I can't help with a specific one


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> if you already have teaching experience, it's more for conversation & pronunciation than grammar (please tell me you don't have a strong geordie accent) then in all honesty you could probably get by without
> 
> however, it certainly wouldn't hurt to brush up on your grammar there are tons of online courses, some of which can apparently be completed in 40 hours
> 
> ...


Thanks Xabia... I did think about doing it "blind" so to speak but frankly it´s the grammer... I struggled (and still do a little) with the terminology of grammer when learning spanish... it´s daft because in my work I use the English language at all levels including preparing and negotiating contracts which, as you will know need absolute correct grammer when being written BUT to me its natural, so a bit of work on it will help.

The TEFL/TESOL thing seems confusing to me. Nealry all of the colleges I spoke to said they are much of a much and now most courses aare TESOL. I have a friend who is a french teacher at an international school close to where you live, and he did TEFL a few years ago but he now puts TESOL on his business cards (his explanation was that its the newer politically correct version) but i just dont know... both companies I am considering refer to both as if they are the same.... argggg confused.com!


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Thanks Xabia... I did think about doing it "blind" so to speak but frankly it´s the grammer... I struggled (and still do a little) with the terminology of grammer when learning spanish... it´s daft because in my work I use the English language at all levels including preparing and negotiating contracts which, as you will know need absolute correct grammer when being written BUT to me its natural, so a bit of work on it will help.
> 
> The TEFL/TESOL thing seems confusing to me. Nealry all of the colleges I spoke to said they are much of a much and now most courses aare TESOL. I have a friend who is a french teacher at an international school close to where you live, and he did TEFL a few years ago but he now puts TESOL on his business cards (his explanation was that its the newer politically correct version) but i just dont know... both companies I am considering refer to both as if they are the same.... argggg confused.com!


well to me, TEFL is Teaching English as a Foreign Language - what you'd usually need to teach English in a foreigign country - such as Spain!

TESOL -Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages I always understood to be aimed at those teaching people already living in an english speaking country

maybe it makes little difference - :confused2:


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> well to me, TEFL is Teaching English as a Foreign Language - what you'd usually need to teach English in a foreigign country - such as Spain!
> 
> TESOL -Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages I always understood to be aimed at those teaching people already living in an english speaking country
> 
> maybe it makes little difference - :confused2:


Why do they have to make things confusing!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

*Tefl tesol tesl*



xabiachica said:


> well to me, TEFL is Teaching English as a Foreign Language - what you'd usually need to teach English in a foreigign country - such as Spain!
> 
> TESOL -Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages I always understood to be aimed at those teaching people already living in an english speaking country
> 
> maybe it makes little difference - :confused2:


Hi Steve,
I decided to look for the ultimate reference/ explanation/ low down on TEFL/ TESOL/TESL as it's smth that is constantly being asked. Didn't someone ask smth similar last week?
First thing is that these acronyms are not actually qualifications; they refer to types of teaching.
TEFL = Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Teaching people whose first language isn't English. 
TESOL = Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Lots of Americans have qualifications related to this as they teach refugees or immigrants in the States.
TESL = Teaching English as a Second Language. This is mainly taught in places where English is an official language alongside another local language

Nice and short explanation here
TEFL or TESOL? - TEFL qualifications - Teacher Recruitment - British Council

In the end there isn't too much difference, and I reckon someone with a qualifaction focussed on one type of teaching could cope with teaching in the other situations. I think the idea is that an immigrant needs "survival" English immediately like how to fill in official forms, how to find out about bus timetables and how to pay a gas bill whereas a student here might need how to read a computer manual and ask for tourist info in London.

I agree with xabia as well in that a conversation class often implies that a grammar explanation is not needed or not _*wanted*_. However I personally think that language can't be compartmentalised into grammar, conversation, listening, functions etc. It's a pack that comes together so in a conversation you'll need listening skills, vocabulary etc and grammar may well come into it . A short explanation as to why more easy/ I like go swimming / could you tell me where is the toilet ? are not correct would be useful I imagine.

Would you prefer an online course or face to face?


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Hi Steve,
> I decided to look for the ultimate reference/ explanation/ low down on TEFL/ TESOL/TESL as it's smth that is constantly being asked. Didn't someone ask smth similar last week?
> First thing is that these acronyms are not actually qualifications; they refer to types of teaching.
> TEFL = Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Teaching people whose first language isn't English.
> ...


Hi Pesky,

Thanks for the in depth reply. So in reality, tesol or tefl will both do a similar job (considering I just want to polish up). I totally agree with your points about grammer etc. Although I will be working on conversation, gramer issues may come up, questions may be asked, and frankly I want to be equiped with the answers! In previous reaching roles I was well educated in the subjects being taught and I want to be the same to cover every eventuality.

As for type of course, defintely online because of my schedule and workload. The online courses can be done in your own time and at your own pace which is vital for me because right now I have some huge projects on the go and certainly cant fix regular times for classes due to the nature of my work.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Hi Pesky,
> 
> Thanks for the in depth reply. So in reality, tesol or tefl will both do a similar job (considering I just want to polish up). I totally agree with your points about grammer etc. Although I will be working on conversation, gramer issues may come up, questions may be asked, and frankly I want to be equiped with the answers! In previous reaching roles I was well educated in the subjects being taught and I want to be the same to cover every eventuality.
> 
> As for type of course, defintely online because of my schedule and workload. The online courses can be done in your own time and at your own pace which is vital for me because right now I have some huge projects on the go and certainly cant fix regular times for classes due to the nature of my work.


Well Steve, you're obviously the right kind of teacher to have. You've got classroom experience and also experience outside classroom walls, you know that being English doesn't make you an English teacher and you want to get prepared before standing in front of the students. Sounnds good to me!

I had a quick look at the i to i course and it looked like it was going to include all the right things...


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Well Steve, you're obviously the right kind of teacher to have. You've got classroom experience and also experience outside classroom walls, you know that being English doesn't make you an English teacher and you want to get prepared before standing in front of the students. Sounnds good to me!
> 
> I had a quick look at the i to i course and it looked like it was going to include all the right things...


Thanks! Over the years I have tought in cars, classrooms, and trained teachers and yoru absolutely right, you need to know what your doing... "failing to plan is planning to fai"l... "poor preperation = poor performance", oh yes and "if steve doesnt do some training he will look like a pillock when he cant answer a student query!"

I like the look of i to i, i like the look of intesol also but they are dearer. They claim that i get "level 4" tesol whilst the others tell me levels dont exist! ARGGGHHHHHHH

Im leaning towards i to i, so if anyone has had dealings with either of these firms please do let me know your thoughts!


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## macdonner (Oct 24, 2010)

Hi Steve,

Have you tried the short TEFL taster on the i-to-i website? I tried it and found it to be quite good, it gave me a fair idea of what would be included on the course, although it is quite short. I have signed up for a weekend course at the end of May through TEFL Scotland, just to add a feather in my cap! I did consider doing an online course with either TEFL Scotland or i-to-i but time constraints meant that I thought doing it in a weekend would be best (that way I can't keep putting it off and making excuses lol, bosh - job done lol). Hope you find something that suits and have added the below link that I stumbled across and bookmarked (although I have only skimmed it a little bit myself so far) that may be useful to you? 

Main Page - TEFL World Wiki


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

macdonner said:


> Hi Steve,
> 
> Have you tried the short TEFL taster on the i-to-i website? I tried it and found it to be quite good, it gave me a fair idea of what would be included on the course, although it is quite short. I have signed up for a weekend course at the end of May through TEFL Scotland, just to add a feather in my cap! I did consider doing an online course with either TEFL Scotland or i-to-i but time constraints meant that I thought doing it in a weekend would be best (that way I can't keep putting it off and making excuses lol, bosh - job done lol). Hope you find something that suits and have added the below link that I stumbled across and bookmarked (although I have only skimmed it a little bit myself so far) that may be useful to you?
> 
> Main Page - TEFL World Wiki


Thanks for the info. I have enrolled with i to i. Ay señor mio, this is going to be fun!
Thanks also for the link!


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## JoCatalunya (Mar 16, 2011)

steve_in_spain said:


> Thanks! Over the years I have tought in cars, classrooms, and trained teachers and yoru absolutely right, you need to know what your doing... "failing to plan is planning to fai"l... "poor preperation = poor performance", oh yes and "if steve doesnt do some training he will look like a pillock when he cant answer a student query!"
> 
> I like the look of i to i, i like the look of intesol also but they are dearer. They claim that i get "level 4" tesol whilst the others tell me levels dont exist! ARGGGHHHHHHH
> 
> Im leaning towards i to i, so if anyone has had dealings with either of these firms please do let me know your thoughts!


I have been interested in taking a TEFL / TESOL course myself and whilst the grammer side frightens the heck out of me I think I am going to give it a go never-the-less. 
One thing Steve, are you doing 2 things at once when you type, I ask because you keep making typo errors and I often find this is done when someone is doing other things and not really concentrating. Something I am guilty of far too often. :confused2::ranger:


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

JoCatalunya said:


> I have been interested in taking a TEFL / TESOL course myself and whilst the grammer side frightens the heck out of me I think I am going to give it a go never-the-less.
> One thing Steve, are you doing 2 things at once when you type, I ask because you keep making typo errors and I often find this is done when someone is doing other things and not really concentrating. Something I am guilty of far too often. :confused2::ranger:


Two things at once? Try 5!!!

I work at home, and am usually in the midst of work, tv, talking to the OH on msn about something going on in life, and browsing the forums also... that coupled with the fact that i tend to type faster than really I am good at!

Im generally not brain dead though, and rest assured that when its something important errors are few! (not that I am underestimating the importance of this forum jajajaj)


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## JoCatalunya (Mar 16, 2011)

steve_in_spain said:


> Two things at once? Try 5!!!
> 
> I work at home, and am usually in the midst of work, tv, talking to the OH on msn about something going on in life, and browsing the forums also... that coupled with the fact that i tend to type faster than really I am good at!
> 
> Im generally not brain dead though, and rest assured that when its something important errors are few! (not that I am underestimating the importance of this forum jajajaj)


Now, now Steve, 5 things at once.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

JoCatalunya said:


> Now, now Steve, 5 things at once.


Im very good at multitasking (or not as the case may be!)


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## Spanky McSpank (Aug 27, 2009)

I would brush up on grammar and spelling, without wanting to sound like a git, I noticed some spelling mistakes in your posts. Spaniards will ask about grammar and spelling even in conversation classes.


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## Adrofex (Apr 8, 2011)

Having studied a degree in TESOL (with Spanish), and worked as a conversation assistant in Spain, I can tell you that it's important to have at least a basic understanding of English grammar.

When giving speaking activities, it is essential to round them up with a feedback session which will almost always include a grammar element. If you're unable to explain why, for example, "I know how are you" should be "I know how you are" then you might run into trouble. It's not sufficient to just say "because it is".

Obviously you won't always know the answer. In these cases you can make a note of the problem, and let the class know that you'll explain it them next time they meet with you. Then it's simply a matter of researching the problem at home.

If you're dead set on studying an online course, go for it. However, I would recommend getting a number of useful books (I believe these would be sufficient in preparing you for teaching English, and can also be used as reference whilst you're teaching):

*For general English language teaching advice:*

Jeremy Harmer - The Practice of English Language Teaching [_this book gives you an in-depth, yet easily readable, overview of teaching methods. It has a good section on Speaking skills_]

Jeremy Harmer - How to Teach English [_This book takes more of a practical stance. As well as talking about methods, it provides examples and suggestions for teaching English in the classroom_]

*For self grammar study:*

Raymond Murphy - Essential Grammar in Use [_Basic grammar for beginners_]
Raymond Murphy - English Grammar in Use [_Intermediate level grammar_]
Martin Hewings - Advanced Grammar in Use [_Advanced level grammar_]

[_All of these books explain the grammar and also give you exercises to test yourself. They can be used for reference_]

*For teaching pronunciation:*

This is the most difficult part of teaching English. A lot of the time this is neglected by teachers as (if they're not native) they may not be confident in their own level of pronunciation, or (if they're native) they may have no idea how to even start teaching something so complex!

This would take some time, but I would recommend learning IPA (the International Phonetic Alphabet). If you're not familiar with it, it's basically a set of symbols that represent speech sounds. When you do this, you'll find that there are certain sounds that are very difficult for Spanish speakers to make, as they simply don't exist in Spanish language. An example of this could be the different between "Ship" and "Sheep". You'll find that Spanish speakers find it very difficult to pronounce the "i" in "Ship". Another common problem, which I've battled for many months to eliminate from my students' pronunciation, is an "intrusive e" sound; for example, instead of saying "Spanish", a Spanish speaker would most likely pronounce "eSpaneesh".

I would recommend learning IPA online. There are many books that tackle the learning of pronunciation (The most famous example is probably: Peter Roach - English Phonetics and Phonology) but I find these books to be hard to read, and unfortunately they don't focus on the elements of pronunciation you need to learn (Spanish to English), but give you an overview of every single sound possible..... which isn't too helpful.

There's a good study by Jamie Keddie called "Spanish Voices in the English Classroom" which seeks to find the most appropriate way of aiding Spanish speakers with their English pronunciation. You will probably need some knowledge of IPA symbols to make use of this though. The article can be found, for free, by doing a simple Google search [It links to a pdf file].


It was mentioned by an earlier poster that you should be aware of your own accent when teaching. This is incredibly important. It's hard for some teachers to reach a good balance between dumbing down on their heavy regional accent and not enunciating every single syllable in a patronising way.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions feel free to contact me. 


Adrian.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Adrofex said:


> Having studied a degree in TESOL (with Spanish), and worked as a conversation assistant in Spain, I can tell you that it's important to have at least a basic understanding of English grammar.
> 
> When giving speaking activities, it is essential to round them up with a feedback session which will almost always include a grammar element. If you're unable to explain why, for example, "I know how are you" should be "I know how you are" then you might run into trouble. It's not sufficient to just say "because it is".
> 
> ...


Thanks so much for taking the time to write such a thorough response. I will certainly look into the books that you suggested. You make some very valid points... thanks again.. most helpful!


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## yo_soy (Feb 18, 2010)

I'll second the Harmer books; we use them in University and I've found them useful during my studies last year and for teaching this year.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

yo_soy said:


> I'll second the Harmer books; we use them in University and I've found them useful during my studies last year and for teaching this year.


Yes, Harmer is a bit of a Guru. And the Murphey books are absolute cassics in Spain at least. Very good recommendations all round from Adrofex!


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