The Next Chapter

Last night I stayed up on my computer until 1:00 a.m., and this time I was not on facebook. I decided to look into how to become a teacher of English as a foreign language (EFL). This is something that I have been interested in for a while, and working in the writing center last semester really confirmed this interest. I love the satisfaction that comes with helping people express their ideas and communicate with one another. I also love learning about other cultures and travelling. Italy has been a great experience so far, and I would love to have more experiences like this one. Given these interests and passions, teaching EFL seems like the perfect fit for me. I have mentioned to a few people that I would eventually like to teach at the university level, but there are also so many opportunities for teaching in elementary and high schools abroad. Right now it just seems like it would be so much fun to experience different cultures while teaching English abroad. Then when I get to a point in my life when I want to settle down in one place, I could pursue a more permanent placement in a university setting.

I discovered a lot about getting TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certified during my Internet search last night. I learned that the certification is not actually a uniform thing internationally and that there can be many scams where the promised certificate really doesn't mean anything. After looking into things a bit, I found that there are many programs that are certified to administer a certification test through Cambridge University, and this test, called CERTA, is internationally recognized. Most programs that prepare you for the CERTA are about a month long, and they are offered in countries all around the world. I just think it would be so awesome to take the course in Spain, since I have a decent amount of exposure to the Spanish language. I was thinking about trying to take the course right away when I was done with my program in Italy, but I couldn't find anything that had dates that matched up.

Another option for becoming a teacher of EFL is to get a graduate degree in TEFL from an actual university. The programs tend to be very intensive, such as one in Seattle that allows you to earn a certificate along with 12 graduate level credits in one month during the summer. The website promises that you will be in class from 9-3 each day and will have six hours of homework each night, including weekends. While this program doesn't actually give you a degree, it does give you a certification, and the graduate credits would be applicable if you ever decided to earn your degree. I do not think the CERTA courses that I was looking into actually offered college credit with the certification, so that may be something to look into.

I don't really know what I'm going to do yet. I will probably try to talk to someone who teaches EFL at the university level to see how they went about doing it. I am thinking about possibly enrolling in a certification course for this coming summer. This is something that I am really excited about, and I think I will be good at it. I have spent a lot of time thinking about what I want to do after college, and I know that I want to do something that I am passionate about, and I do not want to have a career that consumes my entire life. Teaching EFL seems to be something that will combine my passions while still allowing me to have time for other things besides work. Also, I have come to realize that I am not ready to settle down quite yet, and teaching EFL would give me some time to travel and explore. On the flip side, it is also a career that would be very compatible with settling down and having a family someday, God willing. So I will see where this new adventure takes me. I am just very excited about it right now, and I wanted to share that excitement with all of you faithful blog readers.

Oh, and in case you're wondering about what I'm doing in Italy besides surfing the net for TEFL programs, I had art class today and went to the cathedral of Santa Maria Novella in Florence. It was another truly beautiful cathedral. I want to go back there for mass sometime, so that I have some time for prayer and reflection, instead of listening to my art teacher dissect every art piece to death. She is kind of an annoying teacher, and, although I am learning a lot about art from her, it would be nice to just enjoy the art for its aesthetic appeal sometimes. Plus she always gets mad at us for not knowing the answers to her questions, which gets frustrating for me because I am really trying to pay attention and learn the information, but it is just very difficult. I guess art history is just not my subject. Tomorrow morning we get on a bus to go to Assisi at 7:30 a.m. I am really looking forward to this visit. The weather is supposed to be great, and I have heard that Assisi is beautiful!