even if you have a tefl/tesol/celta, it is pointless!

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gravatar-icon Posted on · by Askin O.

l am from turkey. ı am a qualified teacher but many schools are looking for a native english teacher. ı have planned to get a TEFL certificate at july 2016 but ı think it is pointless to get it. because l am a non native english teacher!  I gave it up

dont waste your time and money

7 Comments

  1. gravatar-icon
    Abbass B.
    June 5, 2016 at 5.27 pm

    I think you are totally right, its just wasting time.

  1. gravatar-icon
    Askin O.
    June 6, 2016 at 12.43 pm

    They may be right but it does not mean that a native speaker will always become the best teacher. This is a very wrong approach. Moreover, someone who learns from a native speaker will never become like a native accent. this is nonsensical.

  1. gravatar-icon
    Praveen J.
    June 7, 2016 at 12.05 pm

    It's not much difference whether you are native speaker or else other,as far as you have command over English & soft skills, and class room teaching experience

  1. gravatar-icon
    Askin O.
    June 8, 2016 at 8.41 am

    yes you are right but at first they write on the posts ;
    Native english speakers from Aus,Canada,Ire,New Zeland,Uk,Usa
    ı am sure that they do not even look at the applications when they saw you are not one of them. Also many want to have a valid work permit or Eu passport. l wish they could evaulate to teaching experience or skills.

  1. gravatar-icon
    Nancy C.
    March 16, 2017 at 11.13 pm

    I applied for a job at this school :
    51Talk Location: Online
    and although I had an interview with a Chinese woman, they never answered back. I suppose they were looking for native speakers of English to teach English to Chinese children online. I am a teacher of English from South America, Argentina and I can speak apart from Spanish, French and Chinese and of course excellent English as I teach. It seems Argentina or Brazil are not attractive places to hire teachers, but we have the best ones here. Who knows that?

  1. gravatar-icon
    Pamela S.
    March 15, 2019 at 12.57 pm

    Even if you ARE a native English speaker, it is still pointless. I went to Mexico over an English teaching job offer but once they SAW me they started treating me like I looked like I must not be able to SPEAK English let alone have a TEFL in it....then over time I was told by Mexicans that Mexico doesn't give a fig about education, in getting jobs. It's "who you know." Not even "where you went to school." Since then I've been told over and over again that "they thought you were Latina" which is why even people who did speak English or who WERE English would start speaking to me in Spanish. Even here in New ENGLAND I'm encountering that one, people walk up to me and start speaking to me in Spanish when I'm French Polynesian and IRISH.

    So it's not that you're NOT a Native English Speaker. I AM and still can't get a job. Because to the racist world apparently I don't LOOK like one. Or like I could be qualified in or competent in Math or science, which are my REAL degrees, teaching licenses and fortes.

    So no worries, it's not just YOU.

  1. gravatar-icon
    Iman B.
    March 16, 2019 at 12.54 pm

    I wish they would care more about teaching skills and give different opportunities to non native teachers to prove themselves. Once I was in Kuwait and I passed by schools to apply but they never answered back .