How to Complete the CELTA Pre-Interview Task Successfully

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When you apply for a CELTA course, you’ll have to complete a task called “CELTA Pre-Interview Task”.
But what does this really mean? And what should you do to complete this task successfully?
That’s what we’ll cover!

What Is the CELTA Pre-Interview Task?

The Pre-Interview Task is a series of activities and questions. The aim is to understand your level of language awareness and your ability to simplify complex ideas into easily understandable concepts. It also helps tutors better understand your reason for wanting to become a teacher and to understand your attitude.

There isn’t a standard idea of what a Pre-Interview Task would be; other centres want you to identify grammatical structures. The underlying reason for every Pre-Interview Task is to ascertain what you already know about language learning and teaching.

You don’t need to worry, It’s only used so that the tutor understand whether you’re ready for the course or not.

How Many Parts Are There in the CELTA Course Pre-Interview Task?

Most Pre-Interview Tasks comprise of three parts. However, those parts might include some shorter exercises. For example, International House Cairo includes questions that help us to understand your level of English awareness, your knowledge of the course and gives you an opportunity to ask questions. It also involves an interview and the interviewer is always a CELTA Tutor at IH Cairo.

You need to bear in mind that nobody is expecting you to be an expert at such an early stage in your CELTA journey. So don’t stress yourself out and expect perfection; you’ll definitely be learning as you go.

CELTA Pre-Interview Task Preparation Tips and Answers

As we mentioned earlier, this course focuses on your attitude towards becoming a certified English teacher and not so much on your previous experience. That’s why a very common approach to the questions you’ll be asked is your motivation behind wanting to become a teacher. “Why did you apply for this course?” or “What made you want to start teaching?”.

There’s no right or wrong when answering these questions. However, a common approach to them could be saying that you wanted to change your career or that you’d like to travel and experience life in different cultures. You can also highlight a learning experience you’ve had in the past and why you think this specific experience was important in your life.

You might also be asked about any previous experience. This question is broader than it seems; it basically highlights whether you have experience of standing in front of a group of people before or not.

You’ll also be asked about your awareness of language terminology. This might require a bit of research on your part which is completely fine. Doing prior research will show that you’re able to actively research content for the course.

Lastly, it would be great for you if you could show them your time management skills and your ability to meet deadlines.

CELTA Application & Interview Tips

Generally speaking, you can expect to find questions about English grammar like:

• Verb tenses (past, present, etc.)
• Types of grammatical functions (instructions, threats, requests, etc.)
• Identifying language mistakes.

You’ll also be asked questions about what qualities you think a good teacher would have, what you are expecting from the first lesson, etc.

Following the interview, the tutor will send you an email with the result of your application. Those accepted will be sent an invoice to book their spot on the course.

The Bottom Line:

Success on the CELTA Pre-Interview Task requires you to follow the tips above and allow yourself some time to prepare. You have to show your confidence and your passion for teaching English, in addition to doing the required research before applying for it.