MA In Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

Our distinctive, well-established, and popular MA Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) is designed for those with less than one year’s language teaching experience. We explore different approaches to the teaching and learning of English and study the close relationship between language teaching theory and practice.

The programme encourages you to use the concepts and theories that you encounter during your course of study in your own classroom. It is a set of interactive course materials to complete in part-time, self-study mode over a period of at least 30 months. We also offer a full-time, on-campus programme over one year.

Why Study this Course?

• Flexibility – We have multiple start dates throughout the year so you have the option of choosing when to commence your studies with us. You can study at home, in your own time and at your own pace, so you can combine achieving a qualification with other commitments. You also have the benefit of developing your career without having to leave employment.
• Study from anywhere in the world - You can access the online course material from anywhere in the world, so if you change jobs or even move countries, it is possible to continue your studies.
• Real-life application – you can begin to apply new knowledge and insights to your working life whilst you are still studying. Many students choose to tackle work-related topics in their dissertations.
• Opportunity to attend our summer school – you will be able to attend one of our summer schools in Birmingham, Japan or Korea to learn more about the discipline and meet with academics and other students on the programme. We also run training events such as inductions and workshops for our students in some Asian countries.
• Access to excellent resources – you will also have free access to a range of online resources and corpora held at the Centre for Corpus Research. You will also have access to the resources such as the Academic Writing Advisory Service and the Bank of Assessed Work to help with transitioning to postgraduate studies. We also have an extensive and growing range of books and journals available through the University’s online library.
• Personal tutor – As a distance student you will have your own personal tutor whose job it is to guide and support you through the programme. He or she will be on hand to answer questions regarding the content of your programme and give advice on what to read and on writing your assignments.
• Excellent reputation – The Department of English Language and Linguistics is one of the oldest and largest of its kind in the country. The distance programmes have been running for more than twenty-five years and have gained an excellent reputation. The online materials have been developed by experts in the field with a range of research interests and specialisms. The University has also been ranked as one of the world's top 50 institutions to study English Language and Literature in the 2021 QS World University Rankings.

• The University's Careers Network provides advice and information specifically for postgraduates that will help you to develop an effective career and skills development strategy and to make the most of your time with us at the University. The College of Arts and Law also has a dedicated careers and employability team to deliver local support.
• In addition to a range of campus-based events and workshops, Careers Network provides extensive online resources and comprehensive listings of hundreds of graduate jobs and work experience opportunities.
• You will also be able to access our full range of career support for up to two years after graduation.

Postgraduate Employability: English Language and Linguistics

Birmingham's English Language and Linguistics postgraduates develop a broad range of transferable skills that are highly valued by employers, particularly in relation to verbal and written communication. They also develop crucial skills in organization, time management, analysis, and interpretation of information.

Many of our graduates enter roles for which their program has prepared them, such as becoming a language analyst or data scientist. Others use their transferable skills in a wide range of occupations including teaching, research administration, and events.

Core Modules

You will study four core modules:

• Classroom Research and Research Methods
• Language Teaching Methodology
• Pedagogic Grammar
• Syllabus and Materials Design

Optional Modules

You will also choose two optional modules from a range which may include the following:

• Corpus Linguistics
• English Language Teaching Management
• Functional Grammar
• Language and New Media
• Language Testing
• Multimodal Communication
• Psycholinguistics
• Second Language Acquisition
• Teaching Language to Young Learners

Dissertation

In addition to your taught modules, you will conduct a piece of independent research with the support of a supervisor, culminating in a 15,000-word dissertation.

We have three teaching terms per year, the autumn, spring, and summer terms.

As a full-time student, you will typically take three modules in each of the first two terms, followed by your dissertation. If you are a part-time student, you will typically take three modules each year, followed by your dissertation.

Each module represents a total of 200 hours of study time, including preparatory reading, homework, and assignment preparation.