Quisqueya TESOL validity
I just wanted to thank everyone for their comments about and support for Quisqueya TESOL and give some additional information that will clarify our position.
Both myself and my business partner have been in the EFL/ESL language industry for a long time, as teachers, teacher trainers, and curriculum developers. We were both tired of the mediocrity and cloned programs available in North America, as well as the incestuousness and pettiness of the privatized sector of the industry. Quisqueya TESOL was born out of our experience and desire to be better than the rest.
The global EFL industry offers amazing opportunities to those who either love language teaching, or who want to get paid to see the world. I have placed people in small villages in Mongolia and in corporate settings in Mexico City and everywhere in between. Whoever you are and whatever you do, a good teaching certification in EFL is an invaluable ticket to carry that will open unimagined doors for you. We like to be able to give people that opportunity, and we do it well. We are knowledgeable about our field, and the global marketplace.
Why are we in the DR? Four reasons:
1) Simply, I have family ties here, I am familiar with the country, etc, etc., and it is a wonderful opportunity for novice teachers to experience what it is like to live and work in another part of the world.
2)We want to work with Dominican teachers to upgrade their pedagogical approaches to English language learning and teaching and can do that by placing native speaking teachers in schools as well as bring our teacher training program to Dominican teachers as a professional upgrade.
3) We believe strongly in putting back into the community, instead of taking from it. We offer affordable (20 pesos or free) classes to the local community to make English accessible for them and we are building an English language resource library as well, to give students of all ages access to materials when they want it.
4) I have seen so many people who, because they speak English, believe that they can teach English, and who have consequently turned many potential learners away from something so badly needed in today's world because of their lack of expertise and training. And it happens in destination countries like the DR and other "exotic" countries, including Indonesia and Thailand. Many Dominicans have had experience with bad teachers - we want to turn that around, to the best of our ability, and join other serious English language educators in the country to maintain a level of quality and legitimacy to the field.
Those who wish to teach either in the DR or around the world will benefit from the program. Salaries in the DR vary according to the school - either public, private, or international and to education and experience - B.Ed, BA, MA, TESOL or any combination thereof. Many teachers take on private or corporate clients as well. The current difficulty is the devaluation of the peso, but hopefully this will stabilize in the near future, and teachers will be able to earn their keep more comfortably.
In the interim, please feel free to email us or visit us in Los Cacaos, Samana.
Joanne