The School and the TEFL Certification Course

While there is no set international standard for what constitutes a TEFL Certification course, most countries will have requirements that schools must meet before handing out certificates. 

Sometimes the review is only cursory, but sometimes it may also be detailed and require certain content for the course and even the qualifications of the teachers.

Know the answers to these questions about your school and its TEFL Certification course:

  Is the school licensed by the Ministry of Education, or local education office
  or just by a business licensing agency of the local government? This should tell you something about the rigor of the evaluation of the school by their government.

  How many hours of in-class instruction are there?
   The "International Standard" is 100+.

  Is there a grammar component to the course?
  Not just "grammar", but how to teach it, how to correct it and how to explain it.

  Is there a teaching methodology component to the course? 
  Absolutely critical.

  How many hours of observed teaching practice (OTP) are there?
  The "International Standard" is a minimum of six.

  Who observes me during my OTP?  Are they experienced teachers?
  Some schools will only have other student teachers observe you.

  Will I be teaching “real” students during my OTP? 
  Some schools will have you only teaching your student-teacher peers.

  Will I be taught the common problems of the local students?
  The perfect reason to taking your course in the country in which you intend to teach.

  Will I teach the same students every time I do OTP?
  There are good and bad points to this.  Some variety will expose you to wider variety of student problems, while teaching the same students several times lets you experience their progress and how it needs to be planned and organized.

  Will I be teaching adults and children?
  It is better to get some experience teaching both, but this is not always on offer.

  Will I teach the type of students (kids or adults) I am most interested in
  teaching or can that be arranged?  This is a follow-up to the previous question.

  Are all  needed books and materials included in the course price?
  This can be a substantial additional cost, though with many schools you will need only to provide your own board markers and a few incidentals.  Some schools will recommend books and materials that you probably really should have, but not require you to purchase them.

Here are your checklists for:

The TEFL School and TEFL Certification

Your Primary or Lead TEFL Course Instructor

Your Visa - Being in the Country Legally

Accommodation during your TEFL Certification Course

Guaranteed Jobs and Job Search Assistance