There is an advertisement in the Taipei times for a tesol course.
5 days= 1000 us.
Must be a good one.
Contact person is Anne.
Don’t have any other info,SORRY.
[Mod’s Note: I have merged this thread with another asking about TESOL and CELTA programs in Taiwan. The more recent posts begin on page 3 of the thread although the previous pages also contain useful information.]
Try www.cie.ca
They usually hold a one week TESOL course in Taipei about January/February each year. Cost about $650 US. You won’t fall asleep on this course.
The course is 5 days and provides a lot very practical teaching methods. They also offer the certificate for teaching other languages if you can prove proficiency in that language.
CIE also offers an online degree, which may take into account previous learning and teaching activities (such as language study and teaching experience if you can furnish proof). This means the degree may be completed in a shorter time period (because you have already done some of the learning!!)
A one week TESOL course. Ha, ha, ha. Have people actually gone to this thing? As far as I know, it’s not a real certified program. Certainly couldn’t take what paper they give you at the end of the course to a decent language school in a country where English learning is taken a bit more seriously. Please, please correct me if I am wrong.
There’s a 1 week tesol course in New Zealand for the same price. It’s intensive and a little pricy considering NZ wages and living expenses. I nearly did it but decided I could walk straight into a job in Taiwan without the qualification but I did have three years practical experience. The NZ one is something like 20 hours classroom time and about the same amount on-line but that depends on you.
Yes, each year there are about 50 who attend in Taipei. I believe Dr Harry Cotton has been coming to Taiwan for about six years and the course keeps gaining momentum. The course is also held in Canada (Toronto and Vancouver) and Japan.
I attended last year and know many others who have as well. In the class I attended last year there were 5 students who came from Malaysia, an American lady who is teaching in Guam, a lady who worked in Taiwan the previous year and returned from Australia to do the course.
While there were a few negative grumps on the course the majority really enjoyed it. I have found many of the methods taught to be very practical and the backbone of my lessons.
The course is certified through St. Petersburgh Universtiy.
The course is highly regarded and I know of people who have worked and are working in Japan.
A few quotes taken from the CIE web-site of students who have taken the course:
“I have a bachelor’s and two master’s degrees and this was the most interesting and, by far, the most useful course I have ever taken. That’s saying a lot considering that I have 3 advanced degrees! The methods hold your attention and will work wonderfully in many educational settings. The experience and contact with people from all over the world has given me the confidence I need to go after a job overseas. By far, the best course I have ever attended.”
“I have found work teaching English in Montreal with a reputable company and I enjoy it immensely. It pays well and I am very happy that I took your course.”
“More intensive and hands-on then CELTA. More activity and student based then CELTA. This class provided me with exactly what I hoped it would. Thanks very much. BRAVO!”
I guess your wrong.
Sure, there will always be someone without the facts to who will talk like an expert. I’ve even heard people say that teaching degrees done on campus through universities are not worth the paper they’re written on. But I know more who would disagree.
Why don’t you check out the web-site www.cie.ca, talk to those who have done the course and perhaps to institutions that are using teachers that have completed the course.
Yeah, no bias there. 
Perhaps in the follow-up they could teach their graduates the difference between “then” and “than” or that when you have two subjects (like “experience and contact”) that you need to use a plural verb, not a singular one. Excuse my cynicism for a program that involves workshops for one week that supposedly makes you a great teacher. How do they manage to fit in a practicum? Or do they? Oops, guess not. So much for that.
I was curious of which “St. Petersburgh University” certifies this program. I googled St. Petersburgh University, Taipei, and TESOL and got no results. I googled St. Petersburgh University and TESOL and got no results. I google St. Petersburg University (the spelling given by the website), Taipei, and TESOL and got two links: one for a British Council report which didn’t mention this seminar and one for a thesis form (also no mention of this program). I regoogled under the school’s real name “Petersburg State University”, TESOL, and Taipei and the only mention of this program came directly from the cie website. Nothing from the university.
I read the website about the B.S.Ed. It counts as a level one course for your B.S. Ed. Yeah, technically, so does Educational Psychology, but that wouldn’t qualify you to be a teacher, would it? Not mention the school’s in Russia. Not to knock the Russian education system…well, actually, I am knocking it. Bwah ha ha ha ha! It’s not accredited through a Canadian school, not even one in an English-speaking country, but from one in Russia. Very cute.
Didn’t we just have a discussion about the difference between fake certificates and fake programs handing out certificates?
I asked questions about this program when I kept getting spammed by the person in charge of organizing it here in Taiwan this past winter. I asked her questions about what you learn thinking back to my own teaching experiences during the last five years and what I have learned in my TESOL training in university and in my CELTA program in the UK. While I don’t remember the exact conversation, I do remember walking away very unsatisfied by her answers and elected not to even bother looking into it further.
Ah, what the hell. I can sacrifice a week off my trip to Australia this CNY. I’ll give it a try. Do they have a money-back guarantee if I think it’s a load of shit?
Absolute bullshit. CELTA is a four week course when taught in full-time mode. The course I took, and every other CELTA or Trinity course I have heard of, was completely student-centered in the way it was conducted. Unless I am mistaken, the one week toe-dipping course you are talking about doesn’t include teaching practice. A course that doesn’t include graded teaching practice just isn’t worth taking. It’s not going to be recognized. I seriously doubt this course you are talking about could come anywhere close to the rigor of a CELTA or Trinity Cert course, and those are just considered pre-service courses.
Yes, the CELTA trains you with real teaching methods. It grades you on your ability to effectively plan, carry out, and evaluate an English lesson, show your own knowledge and experiences with teaching through writing papers, and provides lots of opportunities to observe teachers in action as well as teach a class for a total of six hours with graded observations. It’s strict in admission meaning you have to have some compentency in the English language. Just being a native speaker isn’t enough (unlike in some countries I know…). And it teaches you how to explain language in a way that students can understand in addition to things that are important to practice when teaching non-native speakers.
While I’m sure learning how to do jazz chants and juggle handkerchiefs are skills that can come in handy while teaching, the CELTA actually has practical use in teaching. And the fact that this guy who runs it still teaches things like the very outdated audiolingual method speaks volumes about the program.
From what I understand of the one-week course offered here, it just teaches you how to be the trained monkey many buxibans want you to be (writing the ABC’s with your ass et al) rather than how to be a real English teacher. Exactly what you need to teach here where English is more of a babysitting service than a form of education, but certainly not applicable if you want to go to say, Europe to teach English. It might make a nice supplemental workshop for creative teaching ideas, but it is certainly not a teacher training course.
Don’t kid yourself into thinking otherwise, GongChangZhang.
For the amount of money they want, I would say just spend a little bit more and take a legitimate TESOL course.
ImaniOU wrote:[quote]Excuse my cynicism for a program that involves workshops for one week that supposedly makes you a great teacher. How do they manage to fit in a practicum? Or do they? Oops, guess not. So much for that.[/quote]
Quotes from CIE:
“This TESOL certificate program …focuses on practical teaching methodology. …It is simply based on how the brain actually learns and remembers languages.”
“This is NOT A LECTURE COURSE. It is an intensive, hands-on, interactive program filled with practice sessions. We specialize in practical methodology and NOT theory.”
SO,
The course demonstrates many different METHODS of teaching languages. The focus is that of hands on practical sessions. All students practice the methods being taught. Students are encouraged to use a foreign language when practicing the methods. While we were there we were taught Turkish, Hindi, Tagalog, Taiwanese, Mandarin and a few other assortments that I don’t remember. Basically whatever languages the students bring to class is what is used in the practicals. (I still remember some Turkish words!)
If it’s English grammar your after, sorry this is the wrong course. This is HOW to teach a language, NOT WHAT to teach.
ImaniOU wrote:[quote]I was curious of which “St. Petersburgh University” certifies this program. [/quote]
I must stand corrected here. The TESOL course is not accredited by St Petersburg University (and that should be St Petersburg State University). However, the degrees that are offered through CIE (of which the TESOL course is a compulsory component) are accredited through St Petersburg State University.
Dr. Cotton or the Canadian Institute of English enjoys membership with the following organizations:
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Inc. ACTFL
Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, USA
Teachers of English to Speakers of a Second Language of Canada -
Teachers of English as a Second Language of Ontario
Canadian Linguistics Association
St. Petersburg State University
ImaniOU wrote:[quote]…thinking back to my own teaching experiences during the last five years and what I have learned in my TESOL training in university and in my CELTA program in the UK[/quote]
If you feel so qualified, why are you thinking about doing another course? I have not done the CELTA course, but I understand it is very intensive and one of the best TESOL courses around. I guess the focus of the two courses are different. Most people are very impressed by the CIE course.
ImaniOU wrote:
Nobody is knocking the CELTA course. As far as I understand it is probably the most highly regarded TESOL course.
ImanuOU wrote:
[quote]From what I understand of the one-week course offered here, it just teaches you how to be the trained monkey many buxibans want you to be (writing the ABC’s with your ass et al) rather than how to be a real English teacher. Exactly what you need to teach here where English is more of a babysitting service than a form of education, but certainly not applicable if you want to go to say, Europe to teach English. It might make a nice supplemental workshop for creative teaching ideas, but it is certainly not a teacher training course.
Don’t kid yourself into thinking otherwise, GongChangZhang.
For the amount of money they want, I would say just spend a little bit more and take a legitimate TESOL course.[/quote]
The original post (while being at least a year old) asked if there were any TESOL courses in Taipei. Someone graciously resurrected the thread, and as people sometimes search the threads for this kind of information I thought I would offer a concrete “yes” and here’s where you find out more about it.
So, those here in Taiwan wanting to be trained monkeys can indeed do so. $650 US is not a huge outaly to jump start a teaching career that can recoup that outlay in a couple of months, or even just to improve the untrained monkey’s teaching ability and make demos and teaching that much better. BOY, I wish my Chinese teachers would take the course!!
As stated, it’s a methodology course.
However, there ARE those who are teaching in the US and Canada on this certificate.
I did the course last year and really enjoyed it. My teaching improved. My director asked me to give some suggestions at the staff meeting as she said my two classes were making the best progress. I have very little in the way of discipline problems, which is a huge improvement from before I took the course. And that’s saying something when I have my share of hyperactive boys to deal with. I also have an adult class that really enjoys my classes and rarely have absences. My own language learning also improved. When I stop and contemplate, I don’t feel in the least that I have wasted my money.
I have studied liguistics and plan to top it off as a dual degree with a Ba. in Ed. and I will probably at sometime do the CELTA course.
I’m not trying to kid myself. BUT, if someone is looking for a TESOL course here in Taipei, then I highly recommend CIE’s. If you’ve done it and think it’s a waste of time, well that’s fine. I just find it interesting the scathing criticism your dishing out without actually having done the course. While knowing WHAT to teach is undeniably important, knowing HOW to teach it is at the very least, equally important.
And so, if any of you are looking for a TESOL course to do here in Taipei, I highly recommend CIE’s. It’s Fast, Painless and Practical. (Actually it’s a blast!!)
Jive Turkey wrote:
Absolute bullshit.[/quote]
I don’t believe that this quote is a slur on the CELTA course. It doesn’t say that CELTA was useless or a waste of money. In that student’s opinion CIE’s course was “more intensive and hands-on”. Perhaps in other areas CELTA was better.
Out of all my classmates last year I only heard three who were negative towards some of the methods taught. By far the majority were very happy with the course and many of them were already well qualified. (Ba/Ma/ TESOL/etc.)
The above quote was from someone who has done both the CELTA course and CIE’s TESOL course. I’m not personally in a position to make the comparison as I have not done the CELTA course. Have you done CIE’s?
I believe ImaniOU is essentially saying caveat emptor!. I agree wholeheartedly.
Comparing CELTA & CIE’s certificate, CELTA is four times as long and twice the price. CELTA is internationally recognised and accepted for entry to higher TESOL degrees. CIE’s course is not.
I looked at the academic staff. The website says Dr. “Harry” Cotton is “a pioneer in the field of advanced TESOL methodology and language acquisition”. I then searched the main academic journals (Elsevier, Science Direct, etc.). I can find NO published research by this person. I have also e-mailed him asking for a list of his publications. No response, yet. The staff list is perhaps suspicious: Among the 3 tutors, 2 share the surname Jenkins, and another Jenkins is the registrar. A Mr Stackhouse is the other tutor, and another Stackhouse publishes the newsletter. We have another Cotton in the accounting department, too. These people largely constitute the whole staff. A little too much of a family affair?
Lastly, look at the subjects covered on this course: cie.ca/TESOLMethod.htm
It’s very much a this-is-what-works-for-me-and-this-is-how-I’m-going-to-teach-you course. Audiolingual methods have little place in contemporary ESL. It also boasts
Unfortunately, aside from the one offered in Bangkok, there is nothing of the intensive 4-week CELTA course. There’s a CELTA offered in Japan (Toyko, I believe), but it’s a weekend course and I doubt many of us can afford to fly to Tokyo every weekend for 8 weeks.
That’s the exact same impression I got from this course. It’s misleading in many ways:
This just appeared in my email a couple days ago:
[quote]Dear English Teacher,
We are all searching for our next teaching destination and looking for more competitive pay. Although some of us are looking for more ways to inspire our classes, others are looking to get a legal working permit here. But most importantly we all enjoy meeting like minded and open minded people with different experiences.
Have you heard of us? Check out [www.globaltesol.com.tw](http://www.globaltesol.com.tw) Get TESOL certified with Global TESOL College. Its now in Taipei, Taiwan! With this 5 day intensive program you will not only achieve your TESOL certificate and International English Teacher License through developing and polishing your teaching methods, you will also be linked to our world wide job opportunity bank and be in touch with our over 20,000grads that[quote=“twocs”][quote]Dear English Teacher,
We are all searching for our next teaching destination and looking for more competitive pay. Although some of us are looking for more ways to inspire our classes, others are looking to get a legal working permit here. But most importantly we all enjoy meeting like minded and open minded people with different experiences.
Have you heard of us? Check out [www.globaltesol.com.tw](http://www.globaltesol.com.tw) Get TESOL certified with Global TESOL College. Its now in Taipei, Taiwan! With this 5 day intensive program you will not only achieve your TESOL certificate and International English Teacher License through developing and polishing your teaching methods, you will also be linked to our world wide job opportunity bank and be in touch with our over 20,000grads thatWell, after two e-mail requests for information about “pioneer” Dr. Harry Cotton’s academic research publications, nothing.
This course is a con. Stay away.
Well, after two e-mail requests for information about “pioneer” Dr. Harry Cotton’s academic research publications, nothing.
This course is a con. Stay away.[/quote]
I think you might be right. After searching Google I surmise this guy “Harry” has a doctorate from Berne University, which is actually not a Canadian university as listed on a website titled biusa but is an online university located off the coast of the United States.
“Harry Cotton” may be an alias ripped from a Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker named Early Autumn in which the character Harry Cotton is a sleazy, grubby, major league crook.
[quote=“ImaniOU”][quote=“twocs”][quote]Dear English Teacher,
We are all searching for our next teaching destination and looking for more competitive pay. Although some of us are looking for more ways to inspire our classes, others are looking to get a legal working permit here. But most importantly we all enjoy meeting like minded and open minded people with different experiences.
Have you heard of us? Check out [www.globaltesol.com.tw](http://www.globaltesol.com.tw) Get TESOL certified with Global TESOL College. Its now in Taipei, Taiwan! With this 5 day intensive program you will not only achieve your TESOL certificate and International English Teacher License through developing and polishing your teaching methods, you will also be linked to our world wide job opportunity bank and be in touch with our over 20,000grads thatI think that you guys have things confused. I called Anne at Global Tesol today and she told me that she has no relationship with Dr Harry Cotton. She is not aware of the two Dr’s that are quoted earlier. I think that there are two different topics here, one regarding CELTA and one with Global.I’m currently looking into the Tesol program with Global. They are going to be in Koahsiung soon she says. That would be the closes one for me.
You’re right. Global Tesol is not affiliated with Harry Cotton’s outfit. Nevertheless, I think both programs are suspect.