What is a TEFL Certification - CIEE

A TEFL certification is the first step to teaching English to non-native English speakers and is often required by schools hiring English language teachers. Skiptomaincontent HomeGoAbroadWorkAbroadTEFLCertificationWhatisaTEFLCertification WhatisaTEFLCertification ThefirststeptoteachingEnglishabroad Clicktoscrolldownandreadmore TeachingEnglishasaForeignLanguage(TEFL)certificationisthefirststeptobecomingateacherofEnglishtonon-nativeEnglishspeakersandisoftenrequiredbyschoolshiringEnglishlanguageteachers.TEFLcertificationopensdoorstotravelandteachEnglishabroad,online,orinyourowncommunitytonon-nativespeakers. TypesofPrograms It’seasytogetconfusedbytheacronymsforteachingEnglishprograms,orwonderwhetherschoolsabroadrequirespecificcertificates.ManyinstitutionsuseTEFL,TESL,andTESOLinterchangeablywhenreferringtothecertificationtoteachEnglishabroad,andthat’sbecausethey’reallthesamecredential. TEFL standsfor TeachingEnglishasaForeignLanguage TESL standsfor TeachingEnglishasaSecondLanguage TESOL standsfor TeachingEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages IfaninstitutionlistsaTESOLorTESLcertificateasaprerequisite,you’llbeabletouseaTEFLcertificateearnedwithCIEEtofulfilltherequirements. InterestedinlearningaboutwhattoexpectinourTEFLcourse?CheckoutthisblogpostbyaCIEETEFLAlumni.   WhichCourseisBestforYou? Amajordifferencebetweencertificationcoursesisthe totalnumberofhours included,whichcanrangefrom20to200.(Thisnumberisprintedonyourcertificate.)Thenumberofcoursehoursyouchoosedependsonyourgoals.IfyouneedaTEFLrefresherorwanttolearnmoreaboutTEFLbutaren’treadytopursueajobyet,chooseacoursewithfewerhours.Ifyouplantoapplyforateachingjobabroadandwouldliketostandoutinaseaofapplicants,werecommendchoosingacoursewithatleast120hours. It’salsoimportanttochooseanaccreditedcoursetoensurethatyourcertificatewillberespectedbyinternationalemployers.Makesurethecourseyouchooseisproperlyaccredited. TherearefourwaystoearnTEFLcertification: AutomatedOnlineCourses Knownasone-waylearningcoursesbecausethereistypicallynointeractionwithteachersorpeers,thesecoursesrangefrom20to100hours.Youcompletematerialatyourownpace,andlearningisreinforcedwithonlinequizzes.CIEE’s 60-hourTEFLCertificateCourse isanautomatedonlinecourse–thoughunlikemanyautomatedcourses,thisoneincludespersonalizedfeedbackfromanexperiencedTEFLtutor. In-Personcourses SomeuniversitiesoffercertificationprogramsforTeachingEnglishasaSecondLanguage.Thiscanbeagreatoptionifyoulivenearbyandhaveaflexibleschedulethatallowsyoutoattendclassesoncampus.Theseprogramsgenerallyinvolveafour-week,full-timecommitment. Distance-LearningOnline Knownasdistance-learningcertification,thesecoursesallowyoutointeractwithclassmatesandteachersnomatterwhereyouare,usingacomputer,tablet,orsmartphone.Studentsattendvirtualclasses,chats,anddiscussionsandalsocompleteworkontheirowntime.CIEE’s 150-hourTEFLCertificationCourse isadistance-learningcertificationthat’sgreatforbusyschedules.Classesarelimitedto16students,whichallowsforindividualattentionandanopportunitytogettoknowyourclassmates.OurtutorsareexperiencedEnglishasaForeignLanguage(EFL)teachers. Hybrid-LearningOnlineandIn-Person Hybridcoursesarecoursesthatarecompletedbothonline,andin-person.Studentsattendvirtualclasses,chats,anddiscussions,andalsocompleteworkontheirowntime.Aftercompletingtheonlinecoursework,studentspracticewhatthey’velearnedin-person.Thisisagreatwaytogainknowledgeinaflexibleonlinelearningformat,andthenapplywhatyou’velearned,withyourpeersandamentorteacher.Boththe180-hourTEFLCertificationandthe150-hourTEFLCertificationcourseshavearequired20hourpracticumcomponentsoyoucanpracticeonwhatyoulearn. Havemorequestions? Checkoutour FrequentlyAskedQuestions. Youalsocanscheduleacallorsendusan email. WANTTOLEARNMORE? GetthedefinitiveguidetoTEFL Youmusthavequestions,andwehaveanswers. GetTheGuide RequestInformation