Nigel Balfour, our main course tutor, talks about the CELTA interview.
What is the purpose of the interview for the CELTA Course?
The interview is designed to judge candidates' language awareness and to see if they have thought about what is involved in teaching. Candidates are asked to think about the role of the teacher, student involvement, appropriate activities, teaching skills, teaching grammar and vocabulary and the balance of teacher talking time and student talking time to encourage maximum student participation. We need to feel confident that applicants have enough language awareness for the course and very often if people are rejected it is because of their language awareness not their teaching skills. This is because if they have enough language awareness the teaching skills will come later.
I don't live in Spain, do I have to come to Barcelona to do the interview?
No, of course not. You can do the interview from anywhere in the world on the phone.
How long does the interview last?
About half an hour. Sometimes less if the candidate has a good grasp of language awareness and has thought about his/her ideas related to teaching and what the course involves. The interview can sometimes be longer for people who have less experience in this field.
How can I prepare for the interview?
Make sure you have a reasonable grasp of English grammar and try to analyse the sort of language learner you are. Also think about how you would go about facing a group of adults with a view to explaining difficult words, improving their language skills and presenting new grammar in context. A methodology book such as Jim Scrivener, Learning Teaching (Macmillan Heinemann ELT) or Jeremy Harmer The Practice of English Language Teaching (Longman) may help to give you some ideas.
What kind of questions will I be asked?
You will be asked to analyse what the mistakes are in some sentences and why these mistakes have been made by some students. You will be asked to talk about the kind of learner you are, the role of the teacher, how to encourage student participation, how to teach grammar and vocabulary and how to go about doing a skills lesson. The interviewer will also ask you about your reasons for wanting to do CELTA and for choosing Barcelona.
When will you tell me if I have been accepted on to the course?
In most cases at the end of the interview. This will follow in writing the same day or the following day.
