1. Which course provider/course did you choose?
International TEFL and TESOL Training (ITTT)
https://www.teflonline.net/tefl-online-courses/
Course Title: 120-Hour Course With Tutor Support and Video
2. What good and bad points did you experience (if any) with your course or course provider?
I used the course provider International TEFL and TESOL Training on the recommendation of a friend who had done the TEFL grant the year before me. I chose their 120-hour Standard Online Course and was happy with it.
The material was divided into 20 chapters that dealt with topics such as lesson planning, student evaluation, classroom activities and grammar. I found the grammar sections particularly interesting, as they explained the many different tenses and their functions clearly with examples. Each lesson also came with a relevant 20-30 minute video that usually had useful classroom demonstrations of the topic.
Each chapter ended with a multiple-choice revision quiz and some practice exercises. A passing grade overall was required to finish the course, but the practice exercises did not need to be submitted for evaluation.
After the 20 lessons there was a final project to prepare a lesson plan to teach a specific grammar point. My first effort was returned to me with comments for improvement, so it was reassuring to know that my project was being scrutinised critically.
The course was presented well. Everything was accessed through a straightforward website and it was easy to download the chapters and videos and work through them at my own pace. When I contacted ITTT with queries, they always got back to me promptly. My course also gave me access to a tutor who I could contact for guidance. I didn’t end up using this, but it was good to know that it was available to me.
3. Would you choose the same course provider again based on your experience with them?
The drawbacks for this course are probably the same for any online classroom: a lack of social interaction and feedback and hence the need to be self-motivated in working through the 120 hours of material. With that noted, I would use this course provider again.
1. Which course provider/course did you choose?
myTEFL
http://www.myTEFL.net
Course Title: myTEFL’s 120 hour Professional Course
2. What good and bad points did you experience (if any) with your course or course provider?
myTEFL’s 120 hour professional course had three modules dedicated to grammar, along with some other modules I thought would be very helpful, such as “Smart Curriculum Planning”, and “Designing Testing Systems”. Aside from the content of the course, I was also convinced by their tutor support team (who were very helpful when I had a few questions before signing up), online library of language teaching resources, and their charity work. After reading a few more reviews of them online, I signed up.
The myTEFL 120 hours course was very well delivered. The course is tidy and easy to navigate, and the all the information is well-written and clearly presented. The course follows a basic method of instruction which involves reading information about the module, and then answering questions in a multi-choice or arrange-the-answers type quiz. The information was detailed and interesting, and sometimes videos of actual classes were included. I found that the quizzes were well-spaced between blocks of information. It never felt like there was too much or too little to remember for the exam.
The course follows a very logical progression of topics. It starts with a few modules which give a really nice general overview of language teaching, including the typical language teaching situations in different countries (mostly in Asia). The level of technicality builds with each module, so after learning about general teaching strategies, you go on to learn more about language learning theory and practice. Four modules are dedicated individually to speaking, listening, reading and writing, which are the four strands of language learning you will be focusing on when teaching. After this, it gets a little tough in the grammar modules. They definitely provided the in-depth look at grammar that I was after. Those modules were a challenge, but I finished them feeling much more confident in my grammatical knowledge of English.
3. Would you choose the same course provider again based on your experience with them?
All in all, the myTEFL 120 Hour Professional Course complete met my expectations. I came away feeling like I knew more about TEFL than when I started, and I felt prepared to discuss English in detail with my colleagues. Although I was already fairly experienced with in-class teaching, it gave me some welcome fresh ideas for activities and strategies. I was able to complete the course in a reasonable amount of time, and I would surely recommend it to people who want to develop their TEFL knowledge quickly and comprehensively. I was very happy with their course!
