Page 17 - ELG2102 Feb Issue 474

Teaching qualifications
Have TEFL certificate will travel?

What do you really need to know about training for TEFL?
Melanie!Butler investigates

raining courses for Teaching English as a Foreign Language Countries don’t print lists of certificates they accept. Even the
(TEFL) are booming as graduating students and furloughed Korean government EPIK programme, whose list of certificates was
workers sign up for online programmes which they hope will traditionally followed in many Asian countries, now simply asks for
Tlead to jobs overseas after lockdown. But which of the many a ‘TEFL/TESOL/CELTA/etc certificate of at least 100 hours or more
courses available is best? from an accredited programme’. Apart from CELTA, a certificate
It’s not a question of quality, it’s a question of portability, as different which can only be issued by the University of Cambridge, this could
countries demand different things. So, which qualifications are cover any number of certificates accredited by almost anyone.
accepted in the most countries? We recommend only considering either the US accredited courses
If you’re going to a country where you need a visa – which for described above or certificates issued by a national assessment body
Brits will now include the EU – the most essential qualification is a and accepted on the national qualification framework of the relevant
university degree. English-speaking country. These include AQF in Australia, the QQI
With some exceptions for language assistants working in state in Ireland or the UK’s Ofqual, which lists not only CELTA and Trinity,
schools, the only countries we know of which allow you to teach but at least five other course providers.
English legally without a degree are the UK and Malta. And, outside of At least then if the country you are applying for a job in hasn’t
Europe, where preference is given to EU citizens, a depressing number heard of your course, you can prove that it’s an officially recognised
of countries also require you to have a passport from an English- qualification back home.
speaking country Be careful though. We have come across a few UK courses claiming
With a university degree and the right passport there are a to be accredited by Ofqual which we couldn’t find on the register.
small number of countries where you don’t need a training course. If you take away one thing from this article, it’s that, when it comes
Traditionally it has been possible to work legally in private language to teacher training certificates, always check everything you read on
schools in Japan, Korea and Taiwan without a certificate, while in the web.
France and Germany ability to speak the national language has been
seen as more important. A small number of countries, including
China, allow graduates with a degree in English to work without
TEFL training.
The number of countries requiring certificates for work visas is,
however, increasing plus, in a recession, the supply of graduates from
English-speaking countries looking to go abroad rockets, so having the
right certificate will give you an advantage.
Which certificate should you have? As already stated, the
requirements vary from country to country, but a 120-hour course
including 20 hours of teaching practice with English language learners,
from a reputable provider, is acceptable almost everywhere. Online
courses are now also commonly accepted, though less so in the Middle
East. However, employers prefer online courses which include tutor
support and teaching practice on real students.
Which certificate provider is acceptable for a visa again depends on
the country.
The toughest restrictions are in the European Union member
states, where the only certificates which are widely accepted are Ofqual regulated certificates
the Cambridge University CELTA, the Trinity College London
CertTESOL and their Irish equivalent, the CELT. As these appear Both Cambridge Assessment CELTA and Trinity College London
to be accepted everywhere else too, we have listed every provider of CertTesol are regulated qualifications listed at Level 5 on the
both the CELTA and the CertTESOL in the English-speaking world, Ofqual registers. The following TEFL qualifications at the same
starting on page19. As CELT courses are only available in Ireland, they level are listed by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations
are not included. Regulation (Ofqual) in England:
Outside of Europe, the situation is far less UK-centric. In East
Asia, for example, where American English is standard, certificates Course provider: The TEFL Academy
awarded by accredited US universities and specialist institutes, such Courses: Level 5 certificates in Teaching English as a
as the School of International Training in Vermont, are accepted, as Foreign Language
are courses inspected by the two main accrediting bodies for language Assessment body: Qualifi
centres: CEA and ACCET, which accredits the training courses from
Bridge in Denver, see page 50. Course provider: i-to-i
The US system’s use of accreditation is reflected in the requirement Courses: Level 5 certificates in Teaching English as a
in many countries for teachers to have certificates which are, as the Foreign Language
Chinese authorities put it, ‘recognised and accredited’. Assessment body: GA
Unfortunately, however, outside the US no national system for
accrediting TEFL certificates exists. Instead, a host of ‘accrediting Three more assessment bodies – Pearson, TQDQ and Focus –
bodies’ have sprung up on the internet, some owned by the very have Ofqual regulated Level 5 certificates in this field.
company whose certificates it accredits.

editorial@elgazette.com 17