CELTA syllabus
The aim of the course is to develop practical awareness of...
Learners
Cultural and individual needs, approaches to help learners overcome their difficulties and the motivation of adult learners.
Language
Linguistic form, function and meaning including a knowledge of grammar and its terminology, appreciation of structure and function, an understanding of the principles of selection and grading and an introduction to how subject matter and context affect language, and the importance of phonology.
Materials
Course books with their accompanying teachers' books and workbooks, supplementary materials, authentic vs. non-authentic materials and reference works for both teachers and learners.
Classroom Management and Lesson Planning
The ability to arrange the physical environment appropriately for different learning situations and to establish an appropriate atmosphere for learning. The ability to plan both individual lessons and a series of lessons appropriate to student needs.
General Procedures:
- setting up group work.
Possible Techniques:
- deciding on size and composition of groups
- giving instructions on group tasks,
- giving instructions on getting into groups,
- ensuring that all groups are working appropriately.
Presentation and Practice of New Language
The ability to select language items appropriate to students' needs and level, to divide the items into learnable units, to present the language clearly and efficiently to students, to devise and operate appropriate activities for the controlled and free practice of the language presented and to check learning and understanding at all stages of the process.
General Procedures:
- checking of learning and understanding.
Possible Techniques:
- devising context checking questions,
- using questions to check understanding of form,
- concepts and functions of language.
- devising non-verbal checks of understanding and learning,
- using simple tests of achievement.
Developing the skills of reading, listening, speaking and writing
The ability to develop the four macro-skills, using techniques which require not only their individual development but also their integration, to select appropriate materials and to have the ability to use a wide range of techniques to this end.
General Procedures:
- improving global listening ability.
Possible Techniques:
- deciding on the aims of a lesson within a series of lessons,
- selecting listening texts of the right length and level of difficulty,
- devising tasks or questions which check general understanding.
The CELTA is very intensive and demands total commitment on the part of the trainees.
A typical day consists of three hours of lectures/workshops, two hours of teaching practice, concise feedback from the previous day's teaching practice and preparation for the following day's practice. In addition, two to three hours need to be set aside at home for lesson preparation, homework and revision. Several times a week trainees observe Milner teachers.
Because of its demanding nature, applicants for the full-time course should not have any other concurrent work or study commitments.
Textbooks used in the course:
- How to Teach English (Jeremy Harmer) $75.00
- Teaching English Grammar (Jim Scrivener) $60.00
The above books are available from Milner International College
of English.
The prices, which include GST, are subject to variation.
