Email Q&A: TEFL International in Manuel Antonio

I Got your email from Lisa...she said you went to the International TEFL school in MA...I am looking at the program also, and I understand there are two programs in MA..the WORLD TEFL and the INTERNATIONAL TEFL in MA....exactly which are you in..and would you rec. it?

What are your personal thoughts on this school??? I have a good Spanish background.actually fluent..and if I am spending this much money, want to make sure it is a quality run program with experienced and qualified teachers.... Please share your personal thoughts on the program, private, of course...is this a professional, qualified program with qualified teachers that will give me enough of the teaching experience I need... ?

Response:
I'm taking the TEFL International course. It's decent enough - the actual classroom part of it (two weeks) in which we are trained in the basics of teacher theory aren't too good, but the teaching practice I'm involved in currently is excellent so far. Solid feedback from both teachers and peers, and it's well organized.

I would advise you, though, to inquire about the number of students in the period you may apply for. The facilities aren't very roomy and we're 35 currently, which is a number that is proving hard for them to handle efficiently. Especially peer teaching - where we the students teach each other - can be quite taxing when there's 15 of them in a row. :)

I've no personal knowledge of the other school, though I'm aware of its existence. From what I understand from people I've spoken to who goes there (a couple), it's good, but I don't know how it compares to this school.

In a TEFL/TESOL qualification what your main concern should probably be is the teaching practice. If you can't get into an actual classroom for more than a couple of times, you might want to reconsider. Here, we have six or seven teaching practices between forty-five and sixty minutes of length, teaching ages between 2 and 70 and across all skill levels. It's quite the handful but very rewarding. Hope this answered your questions.

Regards,
Ole Larssen