MA in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) (Field-Based)
For more information: (626) 815-3844
The field-based TESOL program offers in-service teachers the opportunity to earn the 6-unit TEFL certificate, the 18-unit TESOL certificate, or the 33-unit Master of Arts in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) while teaching abroad. A tuition discount applies to students in this program.
The master’s degree can be completed in two years. Students meet for two weeks of face-to-face sessions each July on the APU campus and reunite for two weeks of sessions each January in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Courses in the field-based program are completed in a sequential “A, B, C” format: three 1-unit courses are taken in sequence over three 8-week sessions, allowing students 24 weeks to complete the entire course. Three of the 11 courses in the program are completed online with no face-to-face sessions required. In lieu of writing a thesis or compiling a portfolio, teachers demonstrate their competence through an Action Research Project course.
In addition to the foreign language and professional conference attendance corequisites listed on the department’s catalog homepage, candidates must also have secured a teaching contract abroad.
Requirements
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses for the Field-based Master of Arts in TESOL | ||
| TESL 505A | Second-language Acquisition: Part I 1 | 1 |
| TESL 505B | Second-language Acquisition: Part II 1 | 1 |
| TESL 505C | Second-language Acquisition: Part III 1 | 1 |
| TESL 515A | Teaching English Grammar: Part I 1 | 1 |
| TESL 515B | Teaching English Grammar: Part II 1 | 1 |
| TESL 515C | Teaching English Grammar: Part III 1 | 1 |
| TESL 525A | Teaching English Pronunciation: Part I Phonetic Description | 1 |
| TESL 525B | Teaching English Pronunciation: Part II Teaching Materials | 1 |
| TESL 525C | Teaching English Pronunciation: Part III Needs Assessment | 1 |
| Select either the TESL 530A/B/C or TESL 535A/B/C group 1, 2 | 3 | |
| Intercultural Communication and Language Teaching: Preparing an Ethnographic Inquiry 1,2 | ||
| Intercultural Communication and Language Teaching: Implementing an Ethnographic Inquiry 1,2 | ||
| Intercultural Communication and Language Teaching: Writing up and Reporting an Ethnographic Inquiry 1,2 | ||
OR | ||
| Sociolinguistics and Language Teaching: Part I 1,2 | ||
| Sociolinguistics and Language Teaching: Part II 1,2 | ||
| Sociolinguistics and Language Teaching: Part III 1,2 | ||
| TESL 537A | Critical Perspectives on Christianity and English Language Teaching: Part I 3 | 1 |
| TESL 537B | Critical Perspectives on Christianity and English Language Teaching: Part II 3 | 1 |
| TESL 537C | Critical Perspectives on Christianity and English Language Teaching: Part III 3 | 1 |
| TESL 545A | Second-language Pedagogy I: Part I 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 545B | Second-language Pedagogy I: Part II 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 545C | Second-language Pedagogy I: Part III 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 550A | Second-language Pedagogy II: Part I 1 | 1 |
| TESL 550B | Second-language Pedagogy II: Part II 1 | 1 |
| TESL 550C | Second-language Pedagogy II: Part III 1 | 1 |
| TESL 557A | Reflective Teaching: Part I 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 557B | Reflective Teaching: Part II 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 557C | Reflective Teaching: Part III 1,4 | 1 |
| TESL 560A | Language Program Design: Part I | 1 |
| TESL 560B | Language Program Design: Part II | 1 |
| TESL 560C | Language Program Design: Part III | 1 |
| TESL 570A | Second-language Assessment: Part I | 1 |
| TESL 570B | Second-language Assessment: Part II | 1 |
| TESL 570C | Second-language Assessment: Part III | 1 |
| Action Research Project | 3 | |
| Action Research: Part I | ||
| Action Research: Part II | ||
| Action Research: Part III | ||
| Total Units | 33 | |
- 1
Courses needed for the 18-unit certificate.
- 2
Students must take either the TESL 530A/TESL 530B/TESL 530C or TESL 535A/TESL 535B/TESL 535C group of courses.
- 3
TESL 537 (the A/B/C sections) is an elective and may be replaced with a course that is transferred in from an M.A. in TESOL program at an accredited university.
- 4
Courses needed for the 6-unit certificate.
Admission
University graduate admission and program-specific requirements must be met before an application is complete (see Admission to the University). Program-specific application requirements are available online.
International students should contact Graduate and Professional Admissions for application procedures.
Program Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this program shall be able to:- Speak and write English at a level appropriate to their anticipated English teaching context.
- Reflect upon and apply the experience of learning a foreign language to one’s teaching of English.
- Analyze their own and other cultural and/or language systems and how this affects the teaching of English.
- Articulate a coherent understanding of the process of language acquisition and the effect on language acquisition of individual and contextual variables.
- Interact with Christian views of language learners, language teaching, and the nature of language.
- Describe the grammatical and phonological structures of English and analyze learners’ production to create appropriate/related learning activities.
- Evaluate and use technology in teaching English.
- Apply, through anticipated or actual teaching, the principles of classroom language pedagogy to teach oral and written English.
- Apply the techniques and principles of second language assessment, and to interpret the results of such assessments in determining language proficiency and student progress.
- Evaluate language teaching materials and design a course of language instruction based upon an articulated working philosophy of language learning and teaching.
- Use various classroom research procedures and integrate the TESOL literature with their work.
- Identify and discuss ethical issues entailed in English language teaching.
- Articulate how one’s worldview/faith, identity, and teaching philosophy impact one’s pedagogy and professional activities.
- Participate in the professional TESOL community, including the abilities to give and receive collegial feedback, participate in professional conferences, and apply insights gained to future or current teaching contexts.