ESL?

[sarahcd]

Hi everyone,

 

Ive always been interested in becoming an ESL teacher as a part time job and I was wondering if anyone found that teaching ESL helped them develop skills they use being an SLP/ if it would contribute anything to my grad school app. It seems like the job would really help in terms of client contact with multiculturally diverse populations and experience with phonetics/dialects but I'm not sure if it'd be worth it to go through the certification and everything now before I apply to grad school in the fall, or if it wouldnt really do much for me and I should hold off until after graduation when I have more time.

 

Thanks!

[combustiblecake]

I say it's worth it. I'm going to be an intern at the Intensive English Institute at my school to get more experience in diversity/multicultural populations. I'm thinking if I don't get in I'll be teaching English abroad in order to learn about language education from other countries as well as learn other languages to expand a future clientele

[caligirl002]

I think it comes down to the question of whether you are going to use it as a plan b.  Do you have scholarships that will pay for this undertaking? If you're not wanting ESL as a potential career, would you be better off volunteering at an ESL center? I'm not trying to talk you out of it, just curious about the reasoning. Depending on where you live, you could get diversity experience from tutoring, or volunteering with different organizations. I taught ESL and other core subjects at the high school level-- there's some correlation but as this is my first time applying, I am not banking on those skills getting me into graduate school. If money and time is not an issue, then go for it.

[laurengreen1]

Hi there! I am an ESL teacher (well, was). I taught kids in Korea for 3 yrs and multicultural adults in CA for a year. I loved it, and that's actually how I became interested in the SLP field. The fields are highly related, and you're right--you get some great experience working with diverse populations. However, it's tough to get an ESL teaching job stateside. Also, maintaining your credential requires ongoing courses, professional development, etc. However, I am referring to public schools in CA--don't know about CT.

If you were like a year away from applying, I'd say go for it! But honestly, unless you're guaranteed a good job after the course, or you want to specialize in accent reduction or want to work overseas, I wouldn't recommend spending the time and money on certification. I'm working in a sped class now as an assistant, and it's also highly related AND most of the kids are ELLs anyway--so you can get similar experience, beef up your resume, and skip the hassles of getting certified. It's also pretty easy to find a job.

Good luck!