• Experienced and qualified English teachers who are looking to develop professionally
• People with little or no previous teaching experience
• Teachers with no formal training in English language teaching

Dates 2011

From 15 August to 9 September.

• Your level of English must be C2 (Common European Framework)
• You should be over 20 years of age
• You should have a tertiary level education
• You will need commitment and enthusiasm

The course

• teaches you the principles of effective teaching
• provides a range of practical skills for teaching English to adult learners
• gives you hands-on teaching practice
• builds your confidence

You will attend input sessions; plan and practice teaching; observe experienced teachers and complete four written assignments. Input sessions on language awareness and methodology are held in the mornings, and teaching practice is in the afternoons. Each trainee is assessed on six full hours of observed teaching practice with two groups of students at different levels. In addition, trainees have to complete four written assignments and observe British Council teachers on four occasions during the course. The course is very intensive and you should be prepared to spend a good deal of your free time reading, planning lessons and writing assignments. It is unreasonable to expect to work part-time while doing the course.

The CELTA programme is designed to enable candidates to:

• acquire essential subject knowledge and familiarity with the principles of effective teaching
• acquire a range of practical teaching skills for teaching English to adult learners
• demonstrate their ability to apply their learning in a real teaching context

Candidates who complete the course successfully can begin working in a variety of ESOL teaching contexts.

1. Learners and teachers and the teaching and learning context
1. Cultural, linguistic and educational backgrounds
2. Motivations for learning English as an adult
3. Learning and teaching styles
4. Contexts for learning and teaching English
5. Varieties of English
6. Multilingualism and the role of first languages
   
   
2. Language analysis and language awareness
1. Basic concepts and terminology used in ELT for describing form and meaning in language and language use
2. Grammar - Grammatical frameworks: rules and conventions relating to words, sentences, paragraphs and texts
3. Lexis: What it means to 'know' a word;  semantic relationships between words
4. Phonology: The formation and description of English phonemes; features of connected speech
5. The practical significance of similarities and differences between languages
6. Reference materials for language awareness
7. Key strategies and approaches for developing learners' language knowledge
   
   
3. Language skills: Reading, listening, speaking and writing
1. Reading
• Basic concepts and terminology used for describing reading skills
• Purposes of reading
• Decoding meaning
• Potential barriers to reading
2. Listening
• Basic concepts and terminology used for describing listening skills
• Purposes of listening
• Features of listening texts
• Potential barriers to listening
3. Speaking
• Basic concepts and terminology used for describing speaking skills
• Features of spoken English
• Language functions
• Paralinguistic features
• Phonemic systems
4. Writing
• Basic concepts and terminology used for describing writing skills
• Sub-skills and features of written texts
• Stages of teaching writing
• Beginner literacy
• English spelling and punctuation
  
  
4. Planning and resources for different teaching contexts
1. Principles of planning for effective teaching of adult learners of English
2. Lesson planning for effective teaching of adult learners of English
3. Evaluation of lesson planning
4. The selection, adaptation and evaluation of materials and resources in planning (including computer and other technology based resources)
5. Knowledge of commercially produced resources and non-published materials and classroom resources for teaching English to adults
   
   
5. Developing teaching skills and professionalism
1. The effective organisation of the classroom
2. Classroom presence and control
3. Teacher and learner language
4. The use of teaching materials and resources
5. Practical skills for teaching at a range of levels
6. The monitoring and evaluation of adult learners
7. Evaluation of the teaching / learning process
8. Professional development: responsibilities
9. Professional development: support systems

CELTA is awarded to candidates who have completed the course and who have met the assessment criteria for all written and practical assignments. The overall assessment aims for each unit (1-5 see syllabus overview) are that candidates should be able to:

1. assess learner needs, and plan and teach lessons which take account of learners' background, learning preferences and current needs
2. demonstrate language knowledge and awareness and appropriate teaching strategies
3. demonstrate knowledge about language skills and how they may be acquired
4. plan and prepare lessons designed to develop their learners' overall language competence
5. demonstrate an appropriate range of teaching skills at this level and show professional awareness and responsibility

Assessment is continuous and integrated; it takes place throughout the course, and each assessed component contributes to the overall grade.

Full fee: Bs 9900

Two instalments: Bs 5150 each

Once the selection panel certifies that you have the English level for the course, you can make one full fee in May (Bs 9900) or a payment in two instalments, Bs 5150 by the end of May (May 30 - June 3) and Bs 5150 in the third week of July (July 18 - 22).

You can pay by cash, debit card or credit card.

Please write to celta@britishcouncil.org.ve for the following documents:

• application form
• application language awareness and writing task

Send your completed application documents to celta@britishcouncil.org.ve or bring them to British Council Caracas. Deadline for applications: 25 May 2011.

When the completed application form is received and checked, we will contact you to arrange an interview.

Afterwards candidates will be contacted to let them know whether or not they have been accepted on the course.

As soon as applicants have been accepted they can register on the course and pay.

If accepted on the course, we shall send you a pre-course task focussing on language awareness and other aspects of teaching in order to prepare you for the course. This represents about 25 hours’ study time.