CIEE TEFL Online 150-Hour TEFL Certificate Course

This was an excellent course that provided me with a solid foundation as a future EFL teacher. Having little to no prior experience with teaching and education, I really feel like I learned everything I needed to know in order to start teaching English. The course is well-structured and easy to follow, and prepares you well to complete the weekly assignment. The information is presented in a very accessible way and staff/the tutor are always there to help you with anything, be it a technological problem or questions about the material/an assignment. The 'Practicum' aspect of this course is especially valuable as it allows you to observe how the concepts you have learned play out in real life, and also gives you a chance to put into practice what you have learned about teaching. I can say that this course is certainly worth the cost, and will provide you with a fun and enriching learning experience!

This course was extensive, challenging and surpassed my expectations. I appreciated how the material was presented to benefit all learning styles and how assignments were dynamic and lively. Each module also came with a slew of outside resources to take advantage of -- a major time saver for those of us who hate scouring the internet for resources! Excellent course for all learners. You won't be disappointed!

CIEE-TEFL was recommended to me by the teacher of ESL I was assisting as a volunteer. I was attracted to it because it is relatively inexpensive and it’s fast, just 10½ weeks. As it is online, I could do the work on my schedule and around other commitments. This doesn’t mean the course is easy, though. There are five weekly lessons, each of which requires careful attention (I made outlines as I went along). Each week also includes a graded assignment, a “Let’s Discuss” session, and a tutorial. This was my first online experience.
CIEE does a great job presenting the material and drawing the students together to create a true classroom atmosphere. Classes are small. The tutor (teacher) was experienced, helpful, encouraging, and supportive. Between the discussion sessions, the online tutorial conferences, and the peer reviews we did of each other’s work, I felt as if I knew my classmates personally. I know I will be keeping in touch with some of them.
The course is thorough. It covers language-teaching theory and history, English vocabulary and grammar, classroom mechanics, online research, and so much more. Most of my classmates had never taught before, but nothing could prepare them better for their first teaching jobs than the CIEE-TEFL course.

I really enjoyed the CIEE 150-hour Certification Course; the instruction was excellent and highly personal. There were ten tutorials over "video chat" (each 45-60 minutes) and for each major assignment, the tutor provided individual written and video-recorded feedback. At times, I felt that the software was overly advanced; several minutes of each tutorial were spent navigating technological difficulties and I had a few problems submitting assignments (however, for the latter part, the tutor was very responsive and understanding of these technological problems). The course is fairly expensive but I think it is highly useful for those pursuing jobs as EFL teachers.

Getting into the classroom as a teacher can be a scary thing, but the CIEE TEFL course helped build my confidence pre-departure and help me learn the fundamentals of teaching. Of course, there is no learning experience that can compare to actually being on the job- but the course helped me walk in confidently and feel ready to teach. I'd recommend this course to anyone who has limited experience formally teaching and feels the need to really learn about the basics.

All the support staff and tutors were very helpful. My overseas coordinators were very helpful in helping me land a job in China and answer any questions I had during the application process. My tutor for the TEFL training course was very nice. His grading policies were fair and he answered my questions in a timely fashion. The deadline for all assignments was reasonable. Make sure to stay up to date on the discussion boards and don't wait to the last minute on assignments.

The best part of the CIEE TEFL course is the support from CIEE itself, the tutor, and fellow classmates. Because it's all online, it can be hard to stay engaged, but the powerpoints and virtual tutors are actually very helpful and keep your attention. I recommend tuning in to the weekly video conferences because it's a great way to get feedback and the tutor I had was really capable and great at explaining concepts.
As someone who does not have a teaching background, this course was a perfect way to prepare to teach in a classroom. I am definitely more confident now and have so many resources, activities, lesson plans, and tips for what I'll face as a teacher.
While it is a bit expensive, it's clear that a lot of effort goes into making the course valuable and worthwhile. Great preparation!

I have never taken a course so applicable to my everyday live as a teacher. The material was engaging and interesting even on the web! Before even going to teach English specifically it helped me recognize trends in native speakers in my own classroom. You leave this course with a portfolio of lessons and helpful feedback on each one. Now teaching English to non-native speakers I refer to my material daily and utilize all of the skills we learned. I have had teachers who did not take the TEFL course ask for the notes I use, and got from these presentations. I have gotten so many good ideas from my colleagues by doing peer reviews in this class. And I have received many helpful tips on my ideas as well. This course doesn't just give you information and send you out into English teaching, it provides you a chance to practice it as well. Also if you are somewhere where you don't know the native language you have helpful tips for learning a second language of your own!

I have never been a good online student, I thrive on connections made by talking to people in person, I find it difficult to get those online. I get distracted by silly things on the internet and tech problems are beyond frustrating to me. I had grim hopes going into this online Tefl course, and I was totally wrong.

TEFL give you a community, something I never felt in other online courses. Being in a foreign place teaching a foreign language can feel isolating. Some days are incredibly hard this course gives you a community of people all over the world that are doing the same thing as you, you are not alone! And while different countries will have differences being able to get advice and help from your tutor and colleagues is so helpful.