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*UPDATE: The free TEFL course was discontinued. This article is old and if you want up to date information visit the course home page for the latest.

Disregard the rest of this article.

Available TEFL courses

There is currently a "Basic" course, an "Advanced" course and a course focused on classroom management. These courses were renamed and were formerly the 20, 60 and 120 hour course. 

Read more about TEFL course hours.


There are several other affordable online TEFL courses (60 & 120 hour) which include certification that range in price from about $120-210.

The 120 hour course is currently the best (most thorough) TEFL course that ESLinsider offers. Getting certified online is more convenient as you can get this certification from anywhere in the world and it can be faster than an in-class course.

About the Courses

There are currently two courses that offer TEFL training. These courses are well rounded with a focus on teaching young learners. You will need to obtain an 80% through the course and an 85% or higher to be issued a certificate on the exams. For updated information on how to get your TEFL/TESL certification online see the course.

Some people think that online courses are not effective or worth it. But why not try it out? People seem pretty happy with them. I personally have taken both in-class and online and I think that there are ways in which online TEFL courses can be better. It really depends on the course.


Resources that are nearly free and quicker than an online course

These resources are very cheap and practical.

Can you afford just a small fee of $2.99? How to Teach English Summary

How to teach English summary

This is a compressed summary of the classic book by Jeremy Harmer called, "How to Teach English". You can buy the summary here or the whole book here for $49-67.

Or how about the small price of $3.99? The Lazy Teacher's Guide To TEFL

Lazy TEFL Guide

The Lazy Teacher's Guide To TEFL is the less is more guide to teaching English abroad. This can be especially good for beginners. It is designed to not overwhelm you with extraneous information. It is practical and user friendly.


Why take a free course?

Well, it's free you'll save your money. You can try it out.

Why take a paid course?

1. You'll get certified. The paid online courses include certification. This is something you can put on your resume. This will improve your job prospects. Some employers will want to see certification.

2. You'll get more thorough training. You'll be better equipped to teach abroad, have fewer problems and be able to handle any problems that you do have in the classroom.

3. You'll get unlimited access. This is good as Tony Robbins said "repetition is the mother of skill".

"I took the course last winter and I loved it! I looked at over 30 different courses online and at local schools and I kept coming back to this course - and I'm very glad I did! This course was thorough and I felt very prepared as I completed the course. Ian's new book is a great course companion guide for keeping the lessons at the forefront of your mind while teaching ESL.

I look forward to taking the 1000 hour continuing ed course and I will always tell others that this is the must take course for preparing to teach English as a second or foreign language. Impressive and not overpriced as so many out there are." - Sandra's review of the 120 hour course

Course content

You can see some content in the online TEFL courses here and an outline below of the basic course.

  • Teaching methods
  • Public speaking
  • Learning styles & are they accurate?
  • Lesson planning
  • Presenting language
  • Teaching writing
  • Teaching reading
  • Teaching listening
  • Teaching speaking
  • Teaching phonics and pronunciation
  • Grammar
  • Teaching songs
  • Classroom management
  • Culture shock
  • Writing your resume & finding jobs

free tefl course

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Learn more about TEFL courses.