Assessment on a CELTA course

Is there an exam on CELTA?

There is no exam on a CELTA course. The assessment is all continuous and it's made up of two components - teaching practice and written assignments. The certificate that you receive from Cambridge depends on passing these elements and there's no final assessment on the course.

Do I have to pass my assignments on CELTA?

There are four written assignments on a CELTA course. Each one is 750-1000 words. You have two chances to submit every assignment, so it has absolutely no bearing on your final result if you have to resubmit your assignments. The assignments are all based on course content and are not research-intensive, though of course some background reading is necessary when writing these.

Do I have to pass all my teaching practice on CELTA?

No. It's quite normal to have a lesson that doesn't meet the standard required, but to still pass the course overall. For the teaching practice component, you need to teach for 6 hours, which are typically divided into 8 or 9 lessons. You will teach students of at least two different levels on your course. All of these lessons are assessed against a range of criteria and what's important is not how many of your lessons are successful. What is important is that you demonstrate that you have met the criteria overall across the period of the course.

What is the pass rate on CELTA?

The good news is that the pass rate is high. About 95% of people who start a CELTA course get the certificate. The other five percent are a mix of people who withdraw and people who fail. It is possible to fail the course. If you're ever in danger of failing, you're always given a clear warning and you're given information on what you need to change in your lessons or assignments to pass the course. You can find the most recent official pass statistics from Cambridge here.

Can I re-take CELTA if I fail?

There's nothing to stop you from doing the course again, though you would need to carefully consider how you would do things differently second time round!

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About the author:

Dr Connor O'Donoghue hails from Ireland and he started teaching English as a foreign language in Poland in 2003 and he became a CELTA trainer in 2008. He has taught and trained in Ireland, the UK, France, Italy, Slovenia, Macedonia, Poland, Russia, Kazakhstan and Vietnam. Connor also holds a Masters and a PhD in Education from Trinity College in Dublin. He has previously managed large teacher training centres in Vietnam and in London before founding DC Teacher Training.