Certificate of Educational Studies in TESOL with Business English

This modular course is designed to provide a thorough introduction to the theory and practice of teaching English to speakers of other languages and may be seen as an initial step on a modular pathway towards a more advanced TESOL qualification.

The course is recommended to a wide range of people including:

those who are looking to establish a career in TESOL but have no ESOL teaching experience.
practising teachers with no experience of TESOL who seek a practical introduction to English Language Teaching methodology and approaches.
modern language graduates who are planning to teach at ESOL/EFL Summer schools perhaps for the first time.
partners of business or professional people going to live abroad and who may wish to teach ESOL/EFL there.
those who would like to learn more about TESOL but do not, at this stage, wish to commit themselves to an expensive residential programme.

For specific course detail select from the following menu:

The course is organised to provide a systematic approach which is simple yet thorough, easy to read and understand. Each module follows a series of simple steps with plenty of examples and guidance leading to practical self-assessment exercises followed by tutor-assessed activities. Facilities for guided self-revision are built in.

The distance-training programme consists of twenty-four modules comprising the following five units:

Study Skills
Language Awareness
The Practice of TESOL
Writing Instructional Objectives, Lesson Planning and Preparation
Practical Phonetics

All the Training Link Online tutorial staff are extremely well-qualified and experienced in the teaching of English to speakers of other languages.

Teaching Practice

For anyone without teaching experience it's now possible to undertake a two month teaching development practicum.

Duration

No two people work at the same pace, have similar commitments or study time available. You can pace yourself and work as quickly as you wish or take as long as you need. The Cert.(ES)TESOL takes on average 150 hours to complete. With full-time study (16-20 hours weekly) it is possible to complete the programme in eight to ten weeks. On a purely part-time basis (9-12 hours weekly) the course can be completed in twelve weeks.

Teach Business English

Course designed and written by
Dr Brenda Townsend Hall of
Teach Business English.

Because the input modules and worksheet format of 'Teach Business English' is different from the Training Link Online format the Business English programme is completed entirely online.

The course covers the main issues in teaching English for business so that you can transfer your newly acquired TESOL expertise to this new field. It includes:

the approaches and techniques needed to deal with specific business activities —
telephoning, meetings, negotiations and presentations, written communications;
the relationship of the trainer to the client, group dynamics and ways of interacting to provide constructive feedback and supportive instruction;
the linguistic component of courses with emphasis on cross-cultural awareness and the social elements of business English training;
preparing and evaluating materials;
the needs of one-to-one students;
how to increase your knowledge of business terminology.

Modules and competencies

The five modules are:

Why Teaching Business English is Different
Spotlight on telephoning
Making Presentations
Business Meetings
Materials, Negotiating and Evaluation

The competencies dealt with on the course, either directly or indirectly are:

Identify differences in motivation and attitudes between general English students and business English students.
Be aware of main learning styles
Identify key qualities needed by business English trainers
Improve knowledge of the business world
Identify desirable features of a business English training room
Know how to gather the information needed to plan a course
Know how to relate language items to practice activities
Understand the significance of intercultural awareness
Know how to raise clients' awareness of their own culture
Can help clients understand the implications of working with people from different cultures
Understand the elements that combine to make communication effective
Can evaluate published material in the light of the needs of your clients
Can select appropriate authentic material
Can devise suitable materials
Can use the Internet for both materials and as means of giving clients support before, during and after their course
Can adopt appropriate styles of teaching
Can integrate reading, writing and oral practice
Can set up preparation, practice and feedback stages of a session
Can adapt activities for one-to-one students
Understand how the issues concerning vocabulary are different for business English students from learners of general English
Have a good grasp of the techniques needed to help clients acquire new vocabulary
Can advise clients on how to organise their learning and continue to acquire new vocabulary after their course
Can help clients devise various learning and compensation strategies that will help them gain confidence
Be aware of the key issues related to pronunciation and its practice
Can offer supportive feedback in a professional and non-threatening manner
Know how to encourage fluency
Understand how people use language to manipulate people and situations and recognise some of the ways in which this can be done
Can set up a full-group role-play
Understand the importance of evaluation and can write an informative report on your clients' performance
Be informed about the main external examinations in this field and can advise your clients which ones suit their needs
Understand why telephone calls can be more difficult than face-to-face conversations
Identify kinds of telephone calls made in business
Identify key stages of a telephone call
Identify key language items associated with telephone calls
Identify main language functions associated with telephone calls
Can prepare participants to handle difficult calls
Can work with clients to identify key stages of a presentation
Can plan lessons to help clients prepare and practise key stages of a presentation
Can set up role-play activities to help students prepare for the various types and stages of meetings
Can devise reading and writing activities that feed into preparation for handling meetings
Have a good grasp of the appropriate language to use at the different stages of a meeting
Can help your clients improve their ability to build rapport for negotiating partners
Understand the key stages in a negotiation and can devise appropriate sessions to give students the practice they need to handle each stage effectively
Understand the main forms of written communications in business and the styles appropriate to each

Validation

The Business English Course is formally validated by ACTDEC

End of Business English Course Certificate and Report

Upon successful completion of the course, you will receive a certificate noting the level of pass achieved. You will also receive a detailed report on your work based on the competencies covered in the course.

View a sample Business English Certificate.

View sample Business English course material.

Assessment and Award of the Certificates

Examination is by continuous assessment of the worksheet assignments for each unit module. There are no formal written examinations.

Re-submission of unsatisfactory assignments for regrading, except for Practical Phonetics, is at the discretion of each unit tutor and the Director of Examinations.

Award of the Certificate is restricted to those who successfully complete the course and all assessment assignments.

Certificate holders are entitled to use the postnominal designation Cert.(ES)TESOL. They may also use the ACTDEC level 2 Associate Teacher of ESOL qualification status title.

Eligibility

Applications for course participation will be considered from teachers and graduates of all disciplines. Consideration will also be given to applicants who have professional or other qualifications, are capable of communicating clearly, and who feel confident in their ability to bring a clear, analytical approach to the English language and to develop a teaching style appropriate to learners with a wide range of needs. Such applicants will be expected to have a good general education up to the usually accepted level for university entrance.

Applications from non-native speaker graduates or teachers are very welcome.

Course Start Dates

Enrolment is continuous and you can start as soon as you have enrolled and paid your course fees.

Regulations and Syllabus

A copy of the formal regulations and syllabus for the Cert.(ES)TESOL is available separately.

Course Fees

Cert.(ES) with Business English course fees.

Finding a job

See information about finding a job.

Teaching Innovation

See our Innovation page for fresh teaching ideas.