Do you want to study a TESOL course online for free? You’re in the right place.
Studying a free TESOL course (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) is a great way to open up the opportunity to teach overseas or online from the comfort of home.
Yet, they only teach the basics, and are not accredited by a teaching authority like ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) or provide certification.
We recommend that if you don’t have one already, you study an accredited TESOL course of 120+ hours. Read more on the Best TEFL / TESOL online courses in Australia.
FYI: it’s also known as TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), with TESOL being more common in Australia and TEFL being an international term. If you consider teaching in Australasia later on, you’ll want to do an accredited TESOL course.
When to study a free TESOL course?
A free TESOL/TEFL course is great for both a new teacher looking to learn more about how to help your students or an experienced teacher searching for professional development opportunities and a way to grow.
A TESOL/TEFL course that you can study online allows you to upskill and work on your professional development from the comfort of your own home. Even better, these courses and certifications below are completely free*.
*NOTE: Some of these courses require payment to issue a certificate, which is always optional and at your discretion. Some may be for teachers from certain locations only, so please check course details. Also, course dates are constantly changing so keep “an eye out” for newly available ones and let us know of any updates in the comments.
Introduction / TESOL
- Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Being a Teacher [Commonwealth Education Trust via Coursera.org]
- TESOL Professional Certificate [Arizona State University via Coursera.org]
- TESOL Certificate, Part 1: Teach English Now! Specialization [Arizona State University via Coursera.org]
- TESOL Certificate, Part 2: Teach English Now! Specialization [Arizona State University via Coursera.org]
- Introduction to Applied Linguistics and TESOL [University of Leicester via FutureLearn]
Grammar/English language
Teaching Online
- Teaching English Online [Cambridge Assessment English via FutureLearn]
- Teaching English Online: China and Beyond [Cambridge Assessment English via FutureLearn]
- Get Interactive: Practical Teaching with Technology [University of London via Coursera.org]
- The Online Educator: People and Pedagogy [The Open University via FutureLearn]
- Teach English Now! Teaching Language Online [Arizona State University via Coursera.org]
- Learning to Teach Online [UNSW via Coursera.org]
- How to Create an Online Course [The University of Edinburgh via FutureLearn]
- Blended and Online Learning Design [UCL via FutureLearn]
Professional Development
- Teaching for Success: Lessons and Teaching [British Council via FutureLearn]
- Understanding Language: Learning and Teaching [British Council/University of Southhampton via FutureLearn]
- Teaching EFL/ESL Reading: A Task Based Approach [University of London via Coursera.org]
- Blended Language Learning: Design and Practice for Teachers [University of Colorado-Boulder via Coursera.org]
- New Learning: Principles and Patterns of Pedagogy [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign via Coursera.org]
- Teaching Tips for Tricky English Grammar [University of California, Irvine via Coursera.org]
- Teaching for Success: Learning and Learners [British Council via Coursera.org]
- Language Assessment in the Classroom [British Council via Coursera.org]
- Dyslexia and Foreign Language Teaching [Lancaster University via FutureLearn]
- Understanding Classroom Interaction [University of Pennsylvania via edX.org]
Young Learners
IELTS/Other
If you know of any other FREE courses for Online English teachers, please comment below.
Kate (GradCertEd TESOL) studied a TESOL certificate in 2010 and has been teaching English ever since. Tutoring ‘freelance’ for many years before starting an independent teaching business, she began Teach English Online to support Australians and New Zealanders to do the same. Just starting out, want to apply to one of the 300+ global companies or build your own small independent teaching business? She can help.
Thank you so much Kate for your advice and viewpoints and I shall take everything we have discussed together onboard. Over the next few days, I shall be focusing on how to approach my niche market as per your suggestion.
Your site is wonderful – very interesting, very informative, factual, and formatted in a simple but yet detailed outlay.
I would have no hesitation to refer this website to anyone interested in teaching English as a second/other languages.
Hi Irene, Thank you so much for your comment! Good luck with your teaching. Kate