TEFL Teaching Practicum
TEFL Educator offers an optional TEFL teaching practicum to combine with your online course. The teaching practice option is free and is included in the cost of your TEFL certificate course for the 60, 80, 120 and 140 hour TEFL certification courses.
While most employers do not require a TEFL teaching practicum (TTP) or observed teaching practice (OTP), they do prefer it and it strengthens your certificate.
TEFL Educator doesn't require that our certificate students do a TTP, but we do encourage it and offer it as an option and if completed we endorse your certificate for the TTP and make it clear you have done the extra work. Your TTP is noted in bold on the front of your certificate This adds real value to your TEFL certification.
For the TTP option, we ask that you complete a minimum of six to ten hours of observation, tutoring and/or teaching practice in an EFL classroom. You will be responsible to arrange your own TEFL teaching practicum, however we can provide assistance and guidance.
Where can you complete your TEFL Teaching Practicum?
.There are many opportunities in your local area that you are probably not even aware of. You don't need to be abroad to put your training to practical use in a classroom.
There are many options for you locally. Schools, community centers, churches and more who offer EFL/ESL classes and will appreciate the help of a volunteer.
Your best opportunities to find local EFL classes and observe and participate are at
- Local churches that host immigrant programs
- Community colleges
- Local language schools
- Local libraries
- Local organizations that provide services to recent immigrants
If you are overseas and teaching already, you can do the TTP right at your school.
We understand life is busy, and it can be tough to fit the practicum into your schedule. Once you have started your course, you can start the practicum (you can start with observation), and you can complete the practicum whenever you wish as long as it is before we issue your certificate(s).
You will arrange your own practicum, but we are happy to provide guidance if you have difficulty doing it.
You need to spend at least six to ten hours observing an EFL class or working with the students in some capacity. We will provide a form on which you will note your participation. These forms must be signed and verified by a tutored student or supervising teacher. We will also ask you to write a short evaluation of your experience.
Most people taking our certificate courses volunteer at a local organization and teach either one-on-one or a small class for the required hours. As your TEFL/TESOL course will have a required lesson plan project, we suggest that you use that lesson to teach your first class.
If you find you are unable to arrange any of the above options, we will offer you the opportunity to observe and evaluate several short classes on video and allow you to submit a video lesson.
We hope that you choose to add this option to your training as it costs nothing additional and will enhance your teaching skills and will make you much more attractive to employers.
If you decide to pass on the TTP option now, we offer the option for you to do it later, for a fee.
For that fee we will review your work and issue a new certificate endorsed with your TTP.
Please contact using the chat box on the bottom right of the screen here or via our contact form if you have any questions. Please do ask, we are happy to help if we can.
TEFL Teaching Practicum
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