Graduate
Certificate Programs
TESOL
The graduate Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) is offered to students who have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution and who would like to be trained in teaching English to non-native speakers of English. Students will become familiar with the major theoretical foundations of teaching English as a foreign and second language and acquire experience through practice teaching in authentic ESL classrooms. The student who completes the TESOL certificate will be able to teach ESL and EFL to adult and post-secondary learners in the U.S.A. and overseas. Students may choose to add the optional English for Specific Purposes (ESP) emphasis. ESP focuses on the teaching∂ of English as a second language for academic, occupational, and professional purposes.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students completing the TESOL certificate will able to:
- Describe the features of both second language and first language discourse.
- Explain the theoretical principles of second language learning from linguistic, psychological, and social perspectives.
- Explain the principles, strategies, and features of second language teaching in a variety of contexts.
- Describe how learning a second language differs from learning one's first language.
- Exemplify the theory-to-praxis connection in second language teaching in a variety of contexts, modes, and genres.
- Devise and use instruments for adequately and appropriately assessing language learners’ educational needs and language development in diverse contexts.
- Design and implement pedagogically-sound lesson plans, teaching materials, courses, and curricula for second language learners in a variety of contexts with respect to reading, writing, listening, speaking, and culture.
- Evaluate and refine (one's own) teaching practices on the basis of second language learning research and specific students’ learning outcomes using the tools of self-reflection and classroom observation.
Admission Requirements
- Students should have a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution, with a minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) or equivalent, documented by an official transcript. Students with an undergraduate GPA between 2.5 and 3.0 may be conditionally admitted , but must receive a grade of B or better in ENG-G 500, which should be taken as their first class, in order to continue in the program.
- Students who are non-native speakers of English must have a TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of at least 600 (paper), 250 (computer), or 100 (Internet).
- Students should provide a personal statement describing their interest and goals in the program.
Student Consumer Information for the Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) . For more information about our graduation rates, the median debt of students who completed the program, and other important information, please visit our website.
Course Requirements
The TESOL certificate requires 19 credits, including 16 credits of "core" courses and 3 credits of electives. The core courses are:
- ENG-G 500 Introduction to the English Language (4cr)
- ENG-Z 520 Second Language Development (3cr)
- ENG-Z 523 TESOL Methods (3cr)
- ENG-Z 541 English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and Materials Development (3cr)
- ENG-Z 545 TESOL Practicum (3cr)
Elective courses (At least 3 credit hours)
- ENG-G 625 Discourse Analysis and Introduction to Research (4cr)
- ENG-G 652 Sociolinguistics (4cr)
- ENG-Z 536 Pedagogical Grammar (3cr)
- ENG-Z 570 Second Language Writing (3cr)
- ENG-Z 575 Second Language Learning and Technology (3cr)
- ENG-Z 598 TESOL Internship (3cr)
- ENG-Z 600 Seminar in TESOL (variable topics) (3cr)
- ENG-Z 690 Advanced Readings in TESOL (1-4cr)
- ENG-Z 699 M.A. Thesis – TESOL (3cr)
Students wishing to earn the TESOL certificate with ESP emphasis must take LING-T 600 as their elective course and complete their TESOL Practicum LING-L 535 in an ESP setting.
