ITTT TEFL Course in Florence, Italy

I am very grateful to Kristin and her staff, I had the opportunity to teach and test myself. It was the first time for me, and I did it because I wanted to change something in my life. The course is very intense but all the teachers are excellent and ready to help. Now I have four students and I am having fun! Thank you!!

This class, teachers, and Director (Kristin L.) were all exceptional! The daily class instruction, mentoring, and discussions were interesting, challenging, and rewarding. The class curriculum was well designed to create a tapestry of learning through readings, input sessions, brainstorming, open ended discussions, interaction with adult L2 learners, as well as an abundance of one on one attention when needed. The program was well balanced and thorough in its approach. Each presenter was well versed in specific topics, which enhanced learning. The class activities and assignments were varied and thought provoking. The school environment was friendly, warm, encouraging, and fun! The overall experience was one sprinkled with tremendous opportunities for personal and professional growth. As a very experienced teacher I found the course to be the most rewarding experience of my life! I grew, learned, shared, and delighted in the success we all experiences throughout our time at TEFL Firenze! Grazie!

I took the TEFL course in the winter of 2011. My apartment was a few blocks from the school and was a giant, beautiful flat with a wrap-around patio. The TEFL program set up my housing and placed me with a roommate who would become my closest friend.

The teachers were not only brilliant, but made the class (which, I will say, was challenging) fun and informative. Teaching was a blast. The students were eager to learn and participative.

I managed to find enough employment to stay in Italy for almost a year. I would do it over again, and I recommend this program to everyone.

Go, learn, travel, and enjoy!

I took this course in person (as opposed to the online offering) thinking that it would just be a certificate factory and I'd have a month to relax and enjoy Florence, get my certification and move on. Boy was I wrong! This course is designed to prepare you to actually be a teacher. From lesson planning and materials preparation to feedback and critiques on your classroom teaching, this course turned out to be an authentic effort to produce a functional and capable English teacher. The staff and teachers were very friendly and encouraging, even when correcting our less than stellar efforts. I can't really recommend the housing accommodations arranged by the school only because I did not utilize them (and nobody in my class did either.) I can recommend Florence, a beautiful city with a ton of attractions and great restaurants, as an outstanding location for attending this school. Overall, it was a challenging and rewarding experience, and one that I'd recommend to anyone who is thinking about getting their TEFL certification.

The four week course is outstanding, particularly the practice teaching experience with students of varied levels. Florence is a great city of art as well as entertainment. The school is convenient to public transport and provides excellent assistance in lodging. From school, the center of the city is an easy twenty minute walk along the Arno, or a ten minute bus ride. There is a superb neighborhood bar/restaurant right next door to the school-great for lunch and coffee breaks. If you are an EU resident, you will probably find a teaching position easily after the course. If you are not an EU resident, you will have more difficulty due to the need for a work permit. For me, an American, the training, the month of living in Florence and the friendships I made were well worth the expense-though I did not seek a teaching position in Italy.

Florence is a moderately expensive city and that's reflected in the accomodation, but it's not terribly overpriced. The staff are all really friendly and helpful and help you get acclimated. The school provides you with plenty of hands on experience that has been extremely helpful so far in my teaching career. Overall it's a nice school and a worthwhile experience.