Don't do your CELTA with ECC, if at all.
For a start, the equipment is below par. All of the computers are set up with Thai as the default language that you have to switch every time you open a seperate programme, All of the computers are set up with different programmes that don't work in different ways (different versions of windows, different default programmes for images etc), the internet doesn't work properly sometimes, and they blame it on it being a developing country even though they're the only c*nts on the f*cking block with a toilet that accepts toilet paper, just so they can wipe their privileged English assh*les. Each room has separate air conditioning, but the fat, sarcastic, condescending tutors still blame it on the fact that its a developing country. Eat sh*t and die.
Most people who fail just call the course harsh, and nothing more. There's quite a bit more to it.
Everyone who passes is just happy to have the CELTA certificate, and had to kiss a lot of ass and bite their tongue and work very hard. What you gain is all of the reasonably positive things that you can gain from someone who is a c*nt with a lot of teaching experience and knowledge being really negative toward you after judging you from a lot of lessons. If this sounds like something you could benefit from, do it, but its a load of bullsh*t.
The tutors are totally idealistic and incoherent. I got failed on a lesson that had speaking as a secondary aim. I provided 15 minutes of speaking exercise in partners, all of which involved the second partner to be listening to the speaker and making value judgments about what they're saying. (a guessing game). These people are so idealistic that a listening exercise is exactly as they teach, and intermediate Thais spending 15 minutes speaking to one another doesn't involve any listening.
My tutors looked at the draft of my lesson plan before a lesson that I gave, and approved the plan, and then in feedback told me that I shouldn't have done the plan that I did. I failed my final teaching practise where the second tutor, who had looked at my draft two times and given it the O.K., on the day decided to fail me because I didn't do an ENTIRE SECTION THAT WAS REQUIRED. EVEN THOUGH HE APPROVED OF 2 LESSON PLAN DRAFTS THE DAY BEFORE, AND THE DAY BEFORE THE DAY BEFORE, BOTH OF WHICH DIDN'T HAVE THE SECTION.
All of the students who get failed are a suprise to the other students.
The first tutor failed me similarly on a teaching practise. The difference here was that he actually invented and dictated to me my lesson plan.
All of the students who go through the course have to kiss ass. The tutors are not negotiable and frequently sarcastic and personal, and take advantage of the fact that you've paid a lot of money and need the CELTA. I don't have to please you kind of attitude prevailed, although the tutors were admittedly quite nice for the rest of the time.
Quite a lot of the content was similarly abstract and incoherent. We spent an hour learning the difference between an Exercise and an Activity and the tutors assign real value to these differences . Problem is, the tutors have random interpretations themselves and contradicted one another, which the tutor was pulled up on, and he laughed it off.
The reason why so many people say not to argue with them isn't because they know a lot and are constantly correcting people, but because they aren't sensible people. All of their value judgements are based simply on whatever random negativity they feel like spewing up, and is usually incoherent in some way.
I had quite a few negative comments on my lesson plan that were addressed a few lines down in the plan, and he didnt cross any of the comments out.
All people who do the CELTA give you the advice don't argue with them for a reason. You will want to argue with them, because their arguments aren't sound and usually condescending, personal and reasonably ignorant. They got their degrees from being uptight and anal, not from being useful, and are riding off the name of cambridge.
It's not possible for students to always be wrong. You should really doubt the integrity of a teacher who is teaching something that isn't set in stone that has no clear answer, where its common that people give you advice don't argue with them, because its quite clear that a lot of people want to argue with them, and usually have a very valid point.
The first thing that struck me about the ECC CELTA was the general quality of the candidates who went into the course. Really smart, hardworking people, some with experience. All of whom were arguing over points with the tutors.
What this boils down to is that the tutors aren't problem solvers. They thrive on problems, and everything they have a problem with is a really random, emotional gripe that doesn't have much of a bearing on the situation.
