CELTA
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CELTA, the Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults, (pronounced selta) is a professional qualification for teaching English as a foreign language. The full-time CELTA course runs for 4 weeks; it can also be taken part-time over several months. CELTA courses are run by many different institutions, while the courses are validated and certificates are issued by Cambridge Assessment (UCLES).
The CELTA is a common requirement for teachers of English as a foreign language, and is widely recognised throughout the world. Many people take this qualification in order to travel and teach around the world (see TEFL for an extended discussion).
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[edit] The CELTA course
The CELTA is awarded upon passing the course which includes at least 6 hours of supervised teaching practice to real English language students, at two different levels. The course grade is determined primarily by the performance of the teacher in this teaching practice; there are also a number of written assignments due throughout the course, which are graded on a pass/fail basis only. The grades awarded are pass, B and A. As of 2000, worldwide 5% of trainees withdrew, 3% failed, 63% received a pass, 25% received a B and 4% received an A grade. [1]
The full-time 4-week course is very intensive and students are expected to put their life outside of CELTA "on-hold" for the duration of the course.
Each year around 900 CELTA courses are run by around 280 centres, primarily language schools, in 54 countries, producing over 10,000 graduates annually. [2] Each course is moderated by an external assessor.
[edit] The award
The CELTA is awarded by Cambridge Assessment (UCLES) a part of the University of Cambridge. It is accredited by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The current Cambridge CELTA replaced the RSA/Cambridge CELTA in 2001. In 1996 RSA/Cambridge CELTA replaced the RSA/Cambridge CTEFLA (the Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults) - this was jointly administered by the RSA and UCLES. The RSA/Cambridge CTEFLA replaced the RSA Certificate in 1985.
[edit] Other awards
A less common qualification from Cambridge Assessment is the CELTYL — Certificate in English Language Teaching to Young Learners. Like the CELTA, it runs as a fulltime course for four weeks. It is equal in status, having the same number of hours of instruction, teaching observation, and supervised teaching practice, but focuses on the teaching of children. Candidates who have already been awarded a CELTA can take a "YL extension course" in two weeks, which adds a qualification in teaching young learners to their existing qualification in teaching adults.
The DELTA is the diploma in ELT offered by the same people who offer the CELTA and the CELTYL — Cambridge Assessment. It can be taken as a follow-up to the CELTA by those seeking further qualifications in EFL.
In order to meet the UK government's criteria for teachers of ESOL (ESL) in the Learning and Skills Sector (ie adult education) in England and Wales, holders of CELTA need to undertake an additional qualification, known as CELTA module 2.
The CELTA and the Trinity College CertTESOL are often considered to be roughly equivalent qualifications although candidates of the latter are not officially graded.
