First Step in Teaching: Reasons to take a TEFL Course
I would rather start by sharing my experience with the combination of teaching and living in several different countries to clarify why I have chosen this topic:
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate moein m. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
My Story
In the past, when I was younger, I did not have any interest and was not enthusiastic about learning English, and I remember that I always used to escape from foreign language classes. Once I turned to 16 and 17, during high school, I spent most of my time with some friends who knew English well and they were always talking about the top movies and books that were on screen or best sellers. Little by little, these friends made me interested in learning English, and I started working so hard. It was the first step of my life towards becoming an EFL teacher.
After attending university, I was more interested in knowing English than before. I took it so seriously that after 6 years of studying hard, I finally had something to say and present. along with learning and being an English teacher, I have reached my big dream that can travel to the world. so far I have been in different countries which allowed me to see the differentiation of cultures and societies and find new friends. even I can say that I found my love during these trips and after teaching in different places, whenever I go to classes I have many things to share with students. another benefit of being an EFL teacher is that you can share your knowledge and see the world wide.
In the beginning, I did not think that one day I would be an English teacher, but after practising so hard and having high enthusiasm, now I am a successful English teacher. I am so happy that I am teaching English. Now after telling this story, I would like to move on to the next step of life. Once I got more familiar with English, I figured out that for being a certified and knowledgeable teacher, there are some recognized and formal courses that provide you with international certificates.
Also Read: How to save money while teaching English abroad?
Special Education
As far as I was curious in English, I started searching more and more deeply. I noticed that there are quite a few courses such as TEFL, TKT, CELTA, DELTA, and son. For the first time, I took my CELTA and it was new for me from each aspect. At first sight, the environment was enjoyable but after getting through it, it became a little bit more difficult. Before that, I did not have any experience, but I dared to participate in these kinds of courses. However, because of some personal reasons I dropped out and could not get my certificate, yet I have learned so many lessons, ideas, and methods. This course opened a new door to English for me. I have been using the things that I had learned through CELTA and the techniques in that course helped me to know how to use the methods in the classes.
Getting Ready
I have learned this that before getting the CELTA again, I have to follow the steps one by one and I must first finish TEFL courses. I can evaluate myself as an English teacher who has both experiences before and after participating in these courses. This time I am more cheerful than before because first I have participated in TEFL and now my knowledge is more accurate and wide than before and I can put other steps more firmly. I suggest to anyone who wants to be an English teacher that they should start taking the TEFL course first instead of immediately jumping to the big stage as I did. In this course, you learn how to deal with the classes, how to manage the schedules and students, and even more than that. The TEFL course is not only for teaching English. There are more things, such as learning a little bit as a background about Business English and Young Learners, which are entirely useful for those who want to be completely certified teachers.
Also Read: Using Songs in the Lesson: a Sample Plan
After passing and learning the stuff from TEFL, now I am more ready to take my CELTA again. This time I am more prepared than before because I know what I am going to do.
Bypassing the units and learning lots of things, now I am even more successful in my classes. There are so many things that we need to know before starting our careers. I have experienced this that after learning the lessons in TEFL I am more adjusted. Now I know how to use the different methods in the right way. By completing the course, if you get back to yourself and evaluate everything, you will notice the mistakes you had before, and after the course, you would be more aware of them. Once you combine your learnings and experience then you will enjoy the best in your classes. Learning without having experience does not make any sense and the opposite either.
Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course!
For the last lines, we need both theories and experiments until we make ourselves good trainers. I am glad that I have made a good decision that I did not start with CELTA again, and first took my TEFL. I recommend everyone to take the courses in order, by completing the TEFL you know what to take next or you need more certificates or not. I can say that TEFL is the base of being a certified teacher. This international course shows you what to do in your classes and how to manage everything.
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