FAQ - Costa Rica TEFL - Earn your TEFL certification

FAQ

Most frequent questions and answers

Broadening horizons by traveling overseas is an idea that appeals to a wide range of people: students looking to fill a gap year, professionals yearning for a career change, recent graduates stifled by the lack of job opportunities. The challenge for many becomes finding a way to travel with a purpose, to contribute to a local community and experience what the average tourist cannot. TEFL/TESOL certification offers a unique opportunity to earn a living while residing abroad and to become an active member of a foreign community.

We are unique in that we are not a chain school, we are privately owned and not driven by profit and want to be accessible to anyone who has the passion to teach and travel. Our goal is to train our teachers to become the most effective teachers they can by providing a hands-on, student-centered experience in a small classroom environment. We do not accept more than 12 students per course. We are one of the most established TEFL courses in Costa Rica and have been providing quality, personalized TEFL courses since 2007. We have graduates around the globe who are more than happy to share their experiences.

There is no better place to get TEFL/TESOL certified than in a beautiful beach town like Playa Samara, which is foreign friendly while still maintaining the rich culture of Costa Ricans and exemplifying the pura vida lifestyle. In addition to our internationally accredited TEFL school, Playa Samara boasts plentiful opportunities to learn and practice Spanish, delicious international cuisine, and a variety of touring options to appeal to every type of traveler.

Housing assistance is available free of charge for those interested and can be either in shared housing, independent living, in local hotels/hostels or with local families. For more information click here.

We provide job placement assistance including resume building, setting up interviews within our wide range of contacts, and interview preparation. For more information click here.

Every teacher trainer at Costa Rica TEFL is hand picked by our founding director, Barbara Miller. They each possess a M.Ed or higher, a minimum of 5 years of classroom experience, and a TEFL or equivalent certification. Furthermore, they have been characterized by course graduates as some of the most passionate, effective, and dedicated instructors in their educational experience.

Yes, we are accredited by the International TEFL Accreditation Council, ITEFLAC. Additionally, our course is evaluated and recognized by EuroTEFL, CactusTEFL and ITTO, which are independent agencies who review the course content, qualifications of instructors, and testimonials of graduates to determine whether or not to recommend our course. By gaining recognition from EuroTEFL, CactusTEFL and ITTO, we have ensured that our TEFL certificates are amongst the most widely recognized anywhere in the world.

Students complete 160 hours of training over four weeks, including a minimum of 10 hours of hands-on teaching practicum to our local Costa Rican students.

Yes, the course contains a large module on grammar including the thirteen tenses and parts of speech as well as semantics and pragmatics. Students receive approximately 16 hours of in-class instruction on not only grammar but more importantly, how to TEACH grammar affectively to ELL students.

Yes, methodology is addressed right away in week one of the course and reinforced by hands-on application of our methodology throughout the course.

Yes, the course contains a large module on grammar including the thirteen tenses and parts of speech as well as semantics and pragmatics. Students receive approximately 16 hours of in-class instruction on not only grammar but more importantly, how to TEACH grammar affectively to ELL students.

Yes, methodology is addressed right away in week one of the course and reinforced by hands-on application of our methodology throughout the course.

Depending on the size of the TEFL class students complete 10(min)-20(max) observed teaching hours.

Teaching hours are observed by both teacher trainers and peers. The teacher trainers here at Costa Rica TEFL each posses a M.Ed, TEFL/TESOL or equivalent certification, and have over 20 years of combined classroom experience. Our teachers have taught EFL here in Costa Rica and various countries around the world.

Yes, the English students are local Costa Ricans who come 2-3 times per week to receive free English classes.

You will teach each level a number of times and observe your peers on days that you are not teaching. This will give you exposure to teaching a wide range of students and levels while still allowing you to see the progression of the specific classes over the course of the month.