Training for teaching English as a second language (ESL) can be an intense endeavor that requires extensive course work on the part of the teacher. The best course to pursue is the one that addresses the needs of the teacher. For instance, if you will be teaching children, the best ESL courses will instruct you on how to effectively reach this demographic. There are courses that are more advanced than others, and the most appropriate training to select may depend on your experience and settings in which you will teach ESL. Also, there are ESL courses for non-English speaking students to choose from.
Obtaining ESL certification is the ultimate goal for an educator when enrolling in any ESL courses. Without this designation, you will likely be unable to formally teach non-English speaking students the language throughout the U.S. or other parts of the world. The best ESL courses will prepare you in the stringent requirements that need to be met in order to gain certification.
An American organization known as the Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Institute offers a series of courses to students looking to teach the language to others. This organization has courses devoted to teaching young people and entire businesses. It offers the convenience of Internet training but also the support of live classroom settings. Students should complete the course work with ideas for lesson plans in addition to communication techniques that will reach the desired audience. The best ESL courses might also have some type of job placement program to help students uncover appropriate employment opportunities upon obtaining ESL certification.
For students who are seeking to learn the English language, attending ESL courses may be offered free of charge by certain local high schools or colleges. The best ESL courses are the ones that correspond to the level of training that students may have with the language, such as basic, intermediate, or advanced. Students may have to be of a certain age to qualify and may be required to take aptitude tests to determine the appropriate skill level.
Instruction should train non-English speaking students for reading, writing, and speaking the language. There are free Internet courses available too, but training in a live classroom setting or at least one in which there is interaction available with a course instructor may be the best path to pursue. If the Internet program is the best choice, students should work alongside a friend or colleague so that the development can be tested and techniques be practiced in useful ways.