CTEFL/TEFL online classes?

[HeDiWen何迪文]

I'm trying to apply for an english teaching job this fall in Tianjin, but I don't have a CTEFL/TEFL yet. One ex-english teacher told me I could simply go take online classes and get the certificate. He even said I could skip the classes and just take the test. But, I'm not sure where to take the test or classes. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[kdavid]

Do you have any previous teaching experience? If not, do you think you're genuinely setting out on the right foot to take this job seriously by

skip[ping] the classes and just take the test

?

First and foremost, as a teacher, you're in an extremely powerful position to influence the lives of others, both in regards to how they view language learning and education in general.

Secondly, and just as important, you're taking on the role of a foreign dignitary. How seriously you take your job as an English teacher and how you behave in China will leave lasting impressions on your students, and paint for them a picture of how other foreigners are.

I'd hope you, or anyone else wanting to become a teacher in China, would be willing to put a bit more effort into your initial TESOL training.

[HeDiWen何迪文]

That didn't really help me at all... I never said I wanted to skip the classes. Granted, if I have to take them I will obviously. Just that the guy who taught english in the city i'm going to did skip the classes, and said that it was almost uneccesary to even take them. He did fine as an english teacher as far as i know, and stayed for over a year. I've also heard that most people don't even need a certificate to teach english (conversational anyway). I was merely asking where to take the classes or even the test if i don't have to take the classes.

[kdavid]

I never said I wanted to skip the classes [...]

I was merely asking where to take the classes or even the test if i don't have to take the classes.

?

To answer your original question, a simple Google search for "online tefl" yields tons of results. I'm sure you can find a cheap online course to give you the piece of paper you're looking for.

I've also heard that most people don't even need a certificate to teach english (conversational anyway).

This depends on where you want to teach and what type of school you want to work for. There are plenty of schools outside of the big cities which will take you without any experience or qualifications whatsoever. However, there is a very strong correlation between the quality of teacher a school seeks and the quality of the conditions they provide to their staff.

With most quality schools requiring that their teachers have BAs and/or (at least) professional TESOL training, do you really want to work for a school that takes teachers without any qualifications?

While, realistically, many TESOL teachers do not get into TESOL to really teach, but instead just to fund some time abroad, the school with which you work will weigh heavily on your overall experience abroad. The better of a school you find, the better your experience here, or elsewhere will be. You owe it to yourself, and the students you will teach, to put yourself in a position to be competitive on the market so that you can have the best experience possible.