Tefl/Tesol International Paris

05/01/2013

The cathedral Notre Dame has free concerts every Saturday at 8:00 pm. Classical music! If you enjoy listening to Bach or Mozart, it's a very good opportunity!

02/01/2013

Feedback from December:

Yaron:
I'm very glad I took this course. I learned more in the past month than I thought possible. The course load was heavy, but all of it served a purpose. We were lucky to have an amazing teacher with an incredible depth of knowledge about teaching and English. Excellent classroom management skills despite ur 'cheeky' group. If I become helf so good a teacher I'll count myself lucky.
Please, get a better printer and revise the FLJ assignment.

Marc:
Even though the course is really intensive, Aga managed to create a pleasant and fun atmosphere, which means that we went through quite a lot of boring things such as grammar with a smile on our faces! Aga, thanks very much for all the hard work you put into this course.

Kiana:
I had had some teaching experience before I attended TEFL. I've never thought teaching could be that much in difference. TEFL and our course teacher, Aga, have given me a brand new concept of teaching. I've now known that there are many different ways to motivate students and the advantages of direct teaching. Besides, the teaching practices were also a great experience.
Although there were a lot to do this month, they were all great preparation in preparing us to become a teacher.

Alex:
Dear Aga,
The last 4 weeks have been truly amazing for me. I have finally discovered something that I really enjoy: teaching. I was really fortunate to find this course in Paris. My classmates were really great and supportive through the course.
Although the course was more difficult than I expected to be, I enjoyed it a lot. I am 100% all of us did enjoy it. The atmosphere was relaxed though, and we did have moments when all of us just burst into laughter. I enjoyed every single moment of the course from the very beginning. I actually believe that this course transformed my life in every possible way.
I really really want to thank you for being there, for guiding us and for helping us with every aspect of the course, from the nerves of the first teaching practice to offer advices with our CVs or clarifying new concepts.
I believe you are a truly amazing teacher having a great gift and I hope you will never forget this.

30/12/2012

07/12/2012

Have a look at the feedback from the November group:

Aga!
I enjoyed the course a lot. I learnt many new things that will be by all means useful in the future. Thanks to your classroom management and good organization we stayed motivated (Ok, you rushed us sometimes, but it was for our benefit, so all in all thanks for that). You’re definitely one of the best trainers I have had. Good luck with all your projects!
Marta

First, I wanted to say that the course is challenging, not because of the content, but because of the sheer mass of work that we had to do. You were able to teach us all this with great precision, enthusiasm, and skill.
For me personally, I ask a lot of questions and sometimes it’s just to double-check if I understood correctly. And when I would ask a question a few times, I could see how frustrated you are. Please, if you happen to get someone like me (the 21 questions person) be understanding, we just want to do things right.
I had such a good experience with this course, and you taught me so many things in such a short period of time. You really are a master of teaching. You were a great model for me to begin my teaching career, and I won’t let you down. Hopefully, we’ll see each other again.
Thank you,
Ryan

Aga,
+ great instructions,
+ good feedback during evaluations,
+ friendly disposition,
+ knowledgeable about the subject matter,
-sometimes too positive, for me, on feedback or when giving advice.
You are a great teacher and I am thankful that I met you and had a great experience learning from you. Thank you for the honesty and the words of advice. You don’t have anything to change in my opinion. You are a well-balanced teacher and a great person.
Zachary

Dear Aga,
You had an extremely difficult job here: everything to organize on your own! Different ‘levels’ of trainees. A lot of material to be covered in a short time span. You were very professional, patient, had everything down on time (return corrections), your motivation was essential to keep the group going. You have a lovely manner with trainees and make sure that all get equal attention. And you’re extremely patient!
You did a great job and I’d like to thank you for this interesting training.
Best,
Vince

07/12/2012

Have a look at the feedback from the October group:

Dear Aga,
I can’t thank you enough for your professionalism in being encouraging, supportive, helpful during the duration of this course.
I am impressed by your ability with languages and your ability to train. They are separate skill sets and you do both exceptionally well.
I am pretty sure if you hadn’t been our instructor I wouldn’t have stayed in the course to complete it after the end of the second week. I am glad I stayed with it and you stayed with me with support, coaching and encouragement. Thank you. I still think one of your greatest training skills is to provide correction and criticism in a non- personal way that does not dampen enthusiasm for learning.
I am in awe of your organizational skills and of how much you care about your students.
Many thanks and warmest regards,
Suze

This was the worst course I’ve ever taken! Hehe, just kidding!
Even though it was very tiring, I loved the pace of this course. During class sessions I like the way you teach very concisely and keep things going at a quick pace (not too quick but quick enough). Also, I found it helpful (and hilarious at times) how you would basically use the techniques that you were teaching directly on us! It took a few sessions for me to even realize this…but shows its effectiveness! I think I could think of one area of improvement it would to be a little more expansive or specific on project/assignment instructions. I found that sometimes there would be a misunderstanding as to to everything you wanted or how you wanted them, that I would end up finding that I didn’t do it 100% correct (i.e. the best example I can thing of is the Materials Compilation Project, I misunderstood a bit what the questions were asking/wanting). Though overall this is good for learning, my perfectionist self felt a bit under- prepared.
Thanks for everything, Aga!

Dear Aga,
Hello. This course has been a wonderful experience and although the work was non- stop it was always very useful and informative. Your experience with teaching is very obvious and you have taught me to have a student- centred view that will without a doubt help me in future employment. You were always very patient (much appreciated) considering my classroom management wasn’t always great. It’s definitely hard to keep so many of us on task, but somehow you managed. The materials and assignments you gave us were incredibly useful in helping me understand all the aspects the teacher must focus on.
Thank you for all your feedback and all your hard work that is clearly evident in our improvement as teachers.
Edward

I think you did very well. You provided us with good constant feedback and always encouraged us. A good example to follow. I will always hear ‘why?’ in my head. The course was all about learning the TEFL way and you taught us using the methodology we were supposed to learn. All the feedbacks were extremely helpful and I will be taking them all into account. I have so much to work on! But, I know I can do it. Thanks to you. That is what I have always expected from a trainer. So keep it up. You have good energy, you love your job and you are swift at responding to any issues that I had.
Shamsa

I enjoyed this course. While it was a bit stressful at times due to the workload and short time frame, I realize that it was an intensive course, so this should be expected. I think that you were a great trainer. I enjoyed our class sessions and thought that you were always helpful and supportive when I found things to be difficult. After this course I feel much more prepared and confident to become a teacher. Just a note – we needed more time for the final test! Other than that, I had no issues with the course. Thank you for all of your hard work and your helpful feedback. I don’t know if I would have seen as much improvement a progress in my teaching abilities without your help.
Thanks again for everything!
Stephanie

Aga,
You’re a very warm and compassionate trainer. I really appreciated that while I was training. You have a great teaching style. It really helped me as a trainee to see you modeling the principles that we were learning in class. You push your students in a good way; it helps us do our best (or at least try to).
You set limits and deadline and stick to them for the most part (thanks again for the extension on the Student Evaluation Project by the way… I had to get some sleep. So, once again, you’re a very understanding teacher).
I’d have liked it if you’d allotted a little more time for the tests.
Overall, you’re a wonderful trainer: organized, together, knowledgeable. You help your students with your feedback, being careful to balance praise and criticism.

06/12/2012

06/12/2012

Check out the photos of my lovely November group! Good luck, guys, and it's been pleasure training you!

15/11/2012

A Christmas Gift from our TEFL Training Centre in Paris to You
One of the most beautiful times of the year to visit Paris is at Christmas. Although Paris may not be snowy white, it’s so festive due to the Christmas decoration you find everywhere.
The City of Lights justifies its name in a large scale. The trees that line the Champs-Elysées are decorated with strings of lights, and the Eiffel Tower lights up the night sky with shimmering colors.
In fact, enjoying the holiday lights in Paris is one of the top things to do when you’re visiting the city in December. And here the best places to see are the famous Champs-Elysées, Rue Montorgueil and Rue Mouffetard, the Place Vendome, and the windows of the big department stores. Another unforgettable experience is a visit to the Notre Dame Cathedral with its beautiful Christmas tree and a wonderful Christmas Eve service in the famous church.
Another Christmas-in-Paris tradition is the ice skating rinks around the city. Generally speaking, to go ice skating in Paris on these temporary rinks won’t cost you anything, but if you need to rent the ice skates that’ll be a few euros.
Christmas in Paris, as well as the rest of France, is a family holiday – which means that rather than dining out and partying with friends, Parisians are more likely to be dining with family and celebrating privately. Still, for a traveler, Paris during Christmas time is magic – there’s a sense of peace and quietness that you may not experience in Paris at any other time of year, and there’s something about the way this city feels when it’s preparing for a family holiday that makes it feel warm…

Christmas is the time of giving. Our TEFL training centre wants to share the magic of Christmas with you.
If you decide to come to Paris in December, we’ll give you 300 Euros off the regular price for TEFL certification. Please mention code 112612 in order to claim your discount. Hopefully, for some of you out there, this will be a gift that makes it possible for you to obtain TEFL certification and work as an English teacher either in our beautiful France or anywhere in the world.
Please contact us before November 27, 2012, to claim your gift.

13/11/2012

Half of the November course is over, and for now you can have a look at the pictures from October. The group were lovely, and I loved working with them. Good luck with the job hunt, guys! I hope to get lost of postcards from great places (where you're gonna teach English, of course). :)

12/11/2012

15/10/2012

Free grammar course available! People who want to brush up their skills before the course or the ones who have already pass it - feel free to contact me! The grammar course is supposed to help you with your teaching skills and is a great option if you want to be well prepared for interviews and potential employers' tricky questions :) Contact me on: [email protected] !

07/10/2012