TESOL: Keeping up with Teaching

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I have always been one that enjoys education, whether I am learning something myself or I am teaching others. Unfortunately, my California Teaching Credential will not work in Europe so I need to find other ways to make a living out of the job that I love most: teaching. The problem is, I will most likely be teaching English! And in order to teach English, I need to be certified...

Initial reaction to TESOL

I had already heard about the TEFL certifcation course, but I was unsure about the TESOL course. I mean what is the difference anyway. From my understanding it is the same thing but it depends on the region you take it and the time period. I was hesitant at first because the TEFL academy seems to offer so much, including a lifetime advisor. TESOL was just straight forward and no extra frills. This was a tough decision and in my research it seemed like there was no real difference between the two, so I chose TESOL because it is the newer model and it was a lot cheaper!

I had found a deal about the course via Groupon and I jumped on it. The TEFL Academy charges around $1,500 for online course and the Groupon deal was just $69 for the same course. How could I not pass up a deal like that? With the Groupon it gives you a code that you use on the TESOL website to enroll in classes. It is a 150-hour online course and claims to be go at your own pace. 

Enrolling in the TESOL course was a lot easier than what I thought it would be. Most online courses have an official start date and an end date, but not this one! Now I am sure that if I took my time I would have heard from my teacher. All I had to do was enter in the code from Groupon and I was all set. After entering in the code, I was ready to get started. 

The TESOL course that I took was completely go at your own pace. There was a total of 6 units, so my goal was to complete one per week. That is the average of every TESOL/TEFL course. The course was fairly easy, unless you do not do well with standardized tests like I do. I took notes on every lesson and at the end of every lesson is a small quiz. Occasionally you must write papers and take tests and quizzes. I was pleased with the course because it went into detail about teaching, business work, and English, which would all be useful for the future.

I finished!! Once I completed the program, I received a lovely email from my teacher explaining the process of getting the official documents. I followed the instructions and then in my email I received my proof of certification! This specific program was very easy to use and I loved that I could work at my own pace. It feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and that I am one step closer to making the big move. Maybe it is because the year is ending, or maybe it is because I have completed one of the most important steps, but I AM SO EXCITED! I SERIOUSLY CANNOT WAIT!!