It's the course you need, of course.
After a fruitless week of searching for work in teaching English as a second language, rather than throwing in the towel completely, I've decided to take another qualification. Despite almost 5 years experience teaching English, employers don't want to take me on with out formal recognition of my ability as a teacher.
I've been accepted in to the Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults, otherwise known as CELTA, offered at The Australian TESOL Training Centre in Brisbane. It's considered an entry qualification for teaching English professionally, and here in Australia it's very hard to find a job without it. TESOL stands for teaching English to speakers of other languages.
Australian English schools of repute are accredited by a body known as NEAS, which is itself an acronym within an acronym, The National ELT Accreditation Scheme, ELT meaning English Language Teaching. If I can just get my head around the acronyms then I might have a chance of understanding the course.
By all accounts the four week full time intensive course is very hard work, there won't be time for much else except study and teaching preparation. The course starts Saturday week and finishes the first Friday of April. There should be enough time after that to find a job and an apartment before June when C and the kids come over.
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I was thinking about starting a no-cost english class for the Thai's that work for me. The problem I have is trying to find TOEFL handbooks out here in the sticks.
Do you plan to teach them your self? I am interested in distance learning and computer assisted language learning so I want to know how you plan to teach them. There are plenty of online communities where language exchanges are happening, I still maintain links with the students I had in Japan via skype/email/facebook etc. Are they computer literate? Do they have any English ability? Are there tourists in your area who would be interested in helping?
Tell me about your situation and I'll see if I can help.
Thanks for the link, I really thought TOEFL books and the like would be the place for lesson plans.
I also have two Thai managers that speak English, so I was going to enlist them as well. The staff don't really have internet access or speak much English at all.
Let me know how you go finding resources and planing your first lesson.
I am going to apply myself to it as if it were a paid job, and work hard at it as if I needed a promotion. That way when I finish I'll feel more confident about my abilities, and I'll be more presentable to my next employer.
Thanks for dropping by Kleio.