TESOL bachelor’s degree program

Typical coursework in a TESOL bachelor’s degree program may include:

• Standard English usage

• History of the English language

• ESL methods

• Acquisition of languages in children and adolescents

• ESL assessment, placement, and advocacy

Graduate TESOL Programs

Master’s degree programs in ESL are typically found throughout state-approved teacher preparation programs for initial teacher licensure/certification, while perhaps just as many are designed for current educators who are seeking to advance their ESL teaching career and/or earn an add-on endorsement in ESL through their state board of education.

Master’s degrees in ESL may be a Master of Arts (M.A.), a Masters of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.), or a Master’s in Education (M.Ed.). Further, a master’s degree may be in TESOL, which is generally focused on pedagogy, or on applied linguistics, which is generally focused on theory and language research. Therefore, individuals seeking initial certification must typically complete a TESOL-based master’s degree. Typical coursework found within a master’s degree in TESOL includes:

• Methods and/or learning theory

• Second language acquisition

• Structure of English/English grammar

• Language and culture

• Methods of assessment in an ESL curriculum

• ESL curriculum and materials design

• Research methods

Depending on the graduate program, students may be expected to complete an internship/practicum in ESL; a capstone project/portfolio; and/or a thesis.

Generally, admission requirements into these programs are quite stringent, with applicants often required to show language proficiency through the completion of a graduate-level essay, English proficiency examination, and/or post-secondary credit hours in a single language.

TESOL Certification/Post-Baccalaureate Options

Licensed educators often seek an add-on ESL endorsement to their current teaching license through a TESOL certification program designed specifically for current educators who already hold a valid teaching license. These endorsement programs, which may be available through approved colleges or universities or as state-sponsored programs, include specific TESOL coursework (generally between 12 and 18 credit hours) for endorsement.

TESOL certificate/post-baccalaureate programs may be designed specifically for educators seeking an add-on endorsement, or they may feature graduate-level courses that not only meet the minimum requirements for an add-on endorsement, but may also be applied toward the completion of a master’s degree.

Required coursework in a TESOL certificate program may include:

• Introduction to linguistics

• Reading foundations

• Cross-cultural communication

• ESL trends and practices

• ESL methodology

• ESOL assessment and curriculum design

Accredited ESL Teacher Preparation Programs by State

It’s estimated that 10.5 percent of students in the U.S. do not speak English as their first language, or as the primary language spoken at home. And with this comes a serious shortage of qualified ESL teachers nationwide, especially in states that have a large immigrant population – California, New York, Texas, Florida and Illinois, chief among them.

Do you hold a bachelor’s degree but want to qualify to add an ESL endorsement to your teaching credentials by completing graduate studies? Perhaps you hold your undergraduate degree in an area other than education but would like to make a career change? Maybe you’re not that far along yet, but you’re ready to get your teaching career started by earning your undergraduate degree?

Colleges and universities nationwide offer undergraduate and graduate-level teacher preparation programs for every situation that will prepare you to effectively teach students who speak a language other than English. Whether you’re looking for a Pre-K cert, a standard K-12 endorsement, or even if you’re looking to teach English to adults, your best bet in selecting a quality program is to look to accreditation.

Accreditation takes two forms: 1) programmatic accreditation that verifies that the specific program meets high quality standards and 2) institutional accreditation that confirms the school is committed to high quality standards for all the programs it offers. And, of course, many programs available through accredited schools will also hold programmatic accreditation.

The primary reason to look to accreditation is to ensure your program meets the education standards your state board specifies for teacher licensing or additional endorsements. This means that the specific type of accreditation the school or program must hold depends on the requirements of your state board. In most cases, institutional accreditation through a regional accreditation agency meets the requirements, but you are advised to verify the specific requirements as stated by your board.

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