Is practicum really required in TEFL?

6 comments

1. Who requires TEFL? Most places in Japan do not. Japanese schools don’t really request it. International Schools actually want people who were qualified teachers in their home country as the school is run by, under the auspices, of the home country system.

2. No, it’s not necessary. It’s just an incestuous relationship with teachers teaching teachers. Get some real world experience with what you’re going to teach, and that isn’t going to be found in a classroom. Talking about ITT and ITTTT, or maybe even ITTTTTTT has nothing to do with teaching.

3. I did the 120 hour at ITTT and enjoyed it. But I immediately went into a Master’s program which, career wise, is much more valuable.

   If you are completely new to teaching English, ITTT is a fine place to start.

4. I wouldn’t say a TEFL course is 100% necessary for 100% of teachers, but I got a ton out of mine and I have to think it’s a very rare case that it’s not a big benefit. Think of it as a space to try out what you’ve been learning in a mostly low-consequence space. You wouldn’t want to read a bunch of TEFL theory and then not get a chance to try it out until you’re in a classroom with students whose grades and futures depend on you knowing your stuff, would you?

   I don’t know how international schools look at TEFL practica, but when I interview an applicant straight out of a training program, I often ask about if they had a practicum. If the applicant didn’t, that wouldn’t necessarily disqualify them but I’d take it as a warning. If they’ve had teaching experience since the program, I am much less concerned about their practicum and I would likely only want to know about their actual work experience.

5. Are you aiming to join an international school? QTS in your home country plus 2 years domestic experience is the minimum requirement for any international school teaching job in Japan.

6. > …is the teaching practicum actually necessary for something like an international school? Would they actually even check?

   1. Yes, you need to do one.
   2. Yes, you’ll need a satisfactory write-up & to share your lesson plans with your uni as evidence.

   Practical perspective? Look when I did mine I was working full-time and my boss treated my paid work as practicum. I still had to do lesson plans and get assessed against the criteria though.