Video transcript - 3 Signs You’re Not Ready for CELTA (Yet)Let me start with this. Not being ready for CELTA does not mean you’re not capable of doing CELTA. It usually just means… not yet.
I’ve been training teachers for more than two decades and I’ve seen people thrive on CELTA. I’ve also seen people make it much harder for themselves than it needed to be.
And it’s usually about how ready they are.
So here are three signs that you might want to pause and prepare before you apply.
1. Your English Is Below C1
This one is non-negotiable, I’m afraid.
CELTA assumes you already have a very high level of English - C1 or above- and you just won’t be accepted onto a course if you don’t. Are there many English teachers in the world who don’t have C1? Yes. But you need to be at that level for CELTA because some of the learners you teach on the course will have C1 level English so you need to be more proficient than they are.
Just as an added note here: English definitely doesn’t have to be your first language, you just need C1+ proficiency in it.
2. You Don’t Know Any Grammar Terminology
OK, next point. You don’t need to be a grammar expert. But if words like:
- subject
- auxiliary
- modal verb
- past participle
- conditional
mean absolutely nothing to you…You’re going to spend your entire CELTA just trying to decode the language of the course and it’ll take you much longer to plan your lessons.
CELTA moves really quickly and tutors will say things like:
What problems might learners have with the form of the second conditional? or
How would you clarify the meaning of this phrasal verb?
If you’re still at the stage of thinking,
Wait… what is an adverb again?, it becomes overwhelming.
A short grammar refresher before you start can make a huge difference and my
Grammar for Language Teachers course has helped thousands of trainees over the years. Check it out at the link above!
3. You’re planning to ‘just wing it’
Finally, if you don’t take it seriously enough, you’re going to struggle. I know, I know, life is busy and you might be thinking,
I’ll pick it up as I go along. Surely they’re going to teach us everything on the course.
To a large extent, this is true. But I cannot stress enough that CELTA is fast-paced. It’s intensive. And there’s not a lot of time to figure things out while you’re in the middle of it.
You’ll be:
- planning detailed lessons
- analysing language
- writing assignments
- teaching
- receiving feedback
- and then planning again
So if you start ahead, especially with grammar knowledge and planning, it’ll take a lot of the stress out of the course and allow you to do your best in teaching practice, where it really counts.
If you recognise yourself in any of these things, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do CELTA. It just means you’ve got a bit of groundwork to lay first and that’s where my preparation courses come in, to take the pressure off and give you a solid footing before the madness begins.
Check out my website. There’s lots of helpful material there to get you nearer to your goal.
See you on the inside!
