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Published 14th December 2018
No matter how excited you are to be starting a career which can take you all around the world, the fact remains that you will need to get through your TEFL course first. Many TEFL courses are 4 weeks’ full-time, while others are part-time, and others still are online or a combination of online and face-to-face tuition. Whichever way you decide to tackle a TEFL course, you will be expected to put in long hours and a lot of hard work before they will give you the certificate. So it’s a good idea to make sure you are properly prepared for your TEFL course.
Five simple ways to be in the best position to engage with a TEFL course
1. Read
There is probably going to be a lot of theories of teaching and learning which will be new to you. Luckily, there are endless resources on the topic of teaching and learning a foreign language which are available to you. Spend some time before your course starts to familiarise yourself with popular ideas, terminology and even famous TEFLers, such as Jim Scrivener, Jeremy Harmer and Scott Thornbury. This will give you a head start on the course and ensure you don’t feel overwhelmed when you start.
You could also ask your TEFL provider to send you a reading list. In this way you will be getting an introduction to the field and also covering some of the course content as well. This will save you time later on in the course.
2. Revise your grammar
English grammar can be complicated and is usually downright confusing. Even if you’re a native speaker (especially if you’re a native speaker!) take some time to review English grammar. Find a good reference book and look through it to refresh your memory on the terms we use to describe the grammar we use in our language. It’ll show you how much you don’t know, so you can look up your problem areas to try to get to grips with them before you start trying to teach them.
3. Get organised
The TEFL course is going to take up your time. All of your time. Besides the time spent on the course, you will spend time reading, planning lessons, finding resources and preparing for assessments. Before you start, organise your diary and your calendar so you don’t have any other big deadlines or massive time commitments planned for the same time.
4. Go shopping
Find out what you will need for the course, make a shopping list and off you go! Regardless of whether or not you are doing an online course or a face-to-face course you will need stationery – think highlighters, blu-tak, whiteboard markers – and textbooks.
5. Get excited
Now that you are all prepped and ready you can get excited! This is the start of an exciting adventure for you so put your fears and doubts aside and get ready to change your life!
I’m interested to do the TEFL course please send info. Do you need a matric certificate to do the course? Thank you in advance.
I’ve completed my TEFL course and have been teaching in Libya. I’d like to find out where in South Africa can I teach. I don’t have a B.A. degree.
Thanks
Regards Bullah7
Hello Bullah, I will be able to provide limited assistance with your job search unless you did your TEFL course with us. We have a jobs board on our website where you can search for jobs worldwide. You can access the jobs board on our website through the following link: https://www.theteflacademy.com/tefl-jobs. I would also recommend searching through Google for other ESL job sites. We do have a range of internship and volunteer programs that you can apply for though our website at the following links: https://www.theteflacademy.com/internships and https://www.theteflacademy.com/volunteer. I hope you find this helpful and I wish you all the best with your search. 🙂
Im interested in the TEFL course,where can I find the nearest place around Johannesburg Melville where I can do the course and what are the entry requirements?
Hi Cleopatra, I have sent you an email with our course information and links to the course locations in South Africa. We do have one in the Bedford view hotel, Johannesburg. 🙂
I would like to know more about the TEFL course please. I stay in Lindequesdrif as there a nearer place where I can do the course or is Bedfordview the nearest?
Thank you
Sias
Hello Sias, I have sent you an email with our course information and prospectus. The closest weekend course location is in Johannesburg. 🙂
Do you offer practical classes ? I’m in Preyoria and have completed the online tefl course
Hello Neil, we offer 20-hours of face-to-face training as part of our level 5 168-hour combined TEFL course. IF you have completed our online course already it is possible to transfer to the combined course for a fee. Please send us an email and we can further advise you on the next steps. 🙂