ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (2024)

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (1)

Module Two is the only part of Delta for which you have to take a course with a recognised and accredited centre. There is, therefore, no course as such on this site to prepare you for the Module. That does not mean that help is not at hand, of course.
Many courses preparing for Module Two are expensive and all are demanding and stressful. Anything you can do, therefore, to ease the way before you take a course will pay dividends later.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (2)

Demands on your time

However you are taking a course for Delta Module Two, by distance learning, intensively over 8 weeks, semi-intensively or spread over months and months, you will find that you do not have time to learn all you need to know from scratch. Anything, therefore, that you can do before the course begins will allow you to focus during the course on things you need to know and learn to do rather than things you should already know. It will also mean you can spend more time on research, writing, lesson preparation and your own development as a teacher.
The following applies whether you are taking a full-time intensive course, which, as the name implies, require you to do a lot of reading, writing and research in a short time, or a less intensive programme spread over many months, in which you will need to manage your study time around work and other commitments.

Over the course of a programme for Module Two, you will be required to:

  1. Research and write four Language Systems / Skills assignments. Each of these has a Background Essay of 2500 words, a Lesson Plan usually about the same length (often longer) and a Post-lesson Evaluation of 500 words.
    That's a total of at least 22,000 words.
  2. Complete the Professional Development Assignment involving planning and teaching an unassessed, diagnostic lesson, completing the remaining three stages of a Research and Action programme and researching and writing an essay for, as well as planning, an Experimental Practice lesson.
    That a total of roughly 3,800 words.

So, for this Module, you are going to write something like 26,000 words in clear, well-researched and accurate English. For a comparison, the average novel contains around 90,000 words and most Master's degree dissertations around 10,000 to 15,000 words. In other words, you are expected to produce one third of a novel or two MA dissertations on a course.
You will be busy.

Good providers will send you advice about preparing for course before you begin and you should follow that. If a centre does not do that, you need to ask whether it's the right one for you.
This guide is intended to help in a more general way and cover the inevitable gaps.

Links on this page open in a new tab or window or the page you are taken to contains a Back button.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (3)

Pre-course tasks

Good Delta centres will usually require you to complete a pre-course task of some kind. How long, how useful and how demanding such tasks are is variable but you would be foolish not to do what is asked of you. Often, parts of the course you take will depend to some extent on the assumption that you have completed the pre-course task and not doing it will place you at an immediate disadvantage vis-à-vis your peers.
What follows does not take the place of your course provider's pre-course tasks – it is intended to supplement them and help you be even better prepared.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (4)

What follows?

This guide is concerned with the following:

  • Identifying your strengths and weaknesses
  • Familiarising yourself with the demands of Module Two
  • Observing others
  • Preparing for development
  • Writing for Delta
  • Learning to transcribe
  • Aims and objectives
  • Timing
  • Published materials
  • Checking your knowledge

In each section, there are links to other guides on the site and sometimes a task for you to complete. How much you do will depend on how confident you feel, where your strengths and weaknesses lie and how much time and energy you are able to devote to this.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (5)

Identifying strengths and weaknesses

This is about prioritising your time. Nobody else is assessing what you write or say here so try to be as honest and objective as you can. To start you off, try this self-evaluation task to see where you need to focus your preparation.
Click here to download and fill in the task.

Any area which you scored as three or less deserves your attention. Use the menu on the left to go to the area of most concern to you.

The next thing to do is to write a list of the strengths and weaknesses in your teaching. No teacher is perfect so do not be afraid of being critical.
If you would like the checklist which follows as a PDF document on which you can score yourself, click here.
Consider:

Your relationships with your learners:
Do you treat people equally?
Are you approachable yet an authority?
Do you tend to favour the outgoing and contributive more than the shy and silent?
Do you know all your learners' names and use them to make sure everyone is treated fairly?
Your own language:
Are you always understood first time?
Do you use pidgin English?
Do you mumble and mutter?
Is it clear from your voice tone what you intend?
Giving information:
Do you always give the right information about language?
Do you always give the right information about skills?
Do you listen closely to what your learners produce and correct when necessary?
Are you confident that you have analysed what you teach?
Managing the classroom:
Do you have to repeat and repair your instructions?
Do you know why you are monitoring activities?
Do you often run out of time?
Can you confidently handle all the technological support available to you?

Now identify three of the most obvious weaknesses and write down what you are going to do about them and how you believe the Delta Module Two course will help you.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (6)

Familiarise yourself with the scheme

This seems obvious but it is surprising how many people come to Delta Module Two without having a good understanding of what they will need to do on the course. This means they waste time trying to understand the differences between Reflection and Evaluation, Reflection and Action, Experimental Practice and the Professional Development Assignment and a skills-focused vs. a systems-focused teaching assignment.
Go to the overview of the Delta on this site for slightly more detail but here's the summary to keep with you:

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (7)

In sum, you will need to produce 21 separate documents during the course. That does not include any pre-course tasks your centre may ask you to complete.
Don't let any of that come as a surprise to you. If you know what's required, you can plan your time.
If you like, try this little test to see what you know.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (8)

Observe others and be observed

The absolute minimum set by Cambridge is that you must observe other teachers for 10 hours.
On some courses, these observations will happen during the course, on others, you will be expected to arrange them for yourself. Some courses, too, have access to video recordings of teaching and they can be used for these hours.
You will save yourself a good deal of time and energy if you can do some observations of others before the course starts and keep a record of what you have done.
In particular, you should try to observe people teaching at levels with which you are less familiar and using approaches which are not the ones you use. One of the purposes of the Delta course is to get you to re-examine your own beliefs about teaching in the light of your experience and reading. Observing others is a good stimulus for thought.
For more on ways to observe, see the guide to observing others on this site.

Now is also a good time, especially if you aren't regularly (or ever) observed teaching to get yourself accustomed to the feeling of having other people in your classroom watching what goes on.
For some people, who teach in organisations where ongoing support and observation are not major priorities, being observed comes as something of a shock to the system.
Now is a good time to make sure that doesn't happen to you.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (9)

Prepare for development

Delta courses are not aimed at beginners who need to learn the basic nuts and bolts of teaching. You wouldn't be on a course if you didn't know those. The central concern of all courses for Delta Module Two is to aid you in refining, reflecting on and developing your skills in the classroom and in planning and preparing to teach.
If you scored less than 4 for statements 5. and 6. on the strengths and weaknesses task above, this is certainly an area you should consider carefully now.
A major section of this site is devoted to helping people to reflect on and evaluate their own teaching and suggesting some techniques and ideas for your own development.
Click here to go to that section and look around for ideas that interest you.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (10)

Writing for Delta

Most Delta candidates have taken some tertiary qualification such as a university degree or a diploma at the same sort of level. That may, however, have been in an unconnected subject area or some time ago.
In either case, it will help you considerably to look at the style guide on this site and work your way through it. It will also pay dividends if you re-visit it from time to time, especially when you are preparing to write your first Background Essay.
If you want to look through the guide now,click here to go there orhere to download a PDF file to keep beside you.

When you have looked at that (or right now, if you prefer)try this little test to see what you know.

There are, of course, guides on this site in the Delta section to writing Delta Module Two essay for teaching assignments and to writing plans and post-lesson reflection and evaluation documents.
There are also guides to the various parts of the Professional development Assignment covering purposes, style and content.
You can find them all from the Delta index.

Briefly, however, you should be aware now that essays for Delta Language Systems and Skills assignments should follow a recognised generic format. They are Information reports with, usually, an embedded discussion or two setting out the pros and cons of an issue.
They are not expositions because you aren't trying to persuade anyone that you are right. What you are trying to do is persuade the reader that you know what you are talking about and can analyse and discuss things at a suitable level.
Very briefly, there are four parts to all essays:

  1. Identification of and justification for the choice of area
    You need to be clear about your scope and say why, drawing on your reading and research and your own experience, you have selected this area of concern.
  2. Analysis
    Here you get to grips with the system or skill which is your topic exemplifying everything as you go along. You will draw on your reading and research, of course, but include your intuitions and understanding as you go along. In this section, you need to make it clear that you understand what you have read.
  3. Issues for learning and Teaching
    You can choose to combine this section with the analysis to keep you on track and make sure you cover what you have analysed and identify issues for all the key points you have made.
    Here, you need to think very carefully about the possible problems learners from a range of contexts and settingswill have with your topic area. You also need to discuss any teaching issues that are present.
  4. Teaching suggestions and solutions
    In this part you must link your ideas for what to do in the classroom and what techniques and materials to use to the issues you have raised and the analysis you have done. This is part of your essay, not a parachuted in section.
    In this section, you need to show you have thought about the ideas you present and can see any disadvantages as well as benefits.

For much more detail, start with the guide to writing an essay, linked from the general Delta index.
You can also go there to see what and how you write for the Professional Development Assignment.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (11)

Get to know your word-processing program

Cambridge and most centres require documents you submit to be in a certain format, containing standardised data. In particular, you need to know:

  • How to insert a running footer into a document with page numbers
    Most centres require your name, your candidate number and the title to be in a footer, along with the page numbers
  • How to use styles to make headings and subheading consistent across a document
    Having a standard font size and style for main headings and subsidiary headings helps the reader (and the writer) to see how the information is structured
  • How to make a contents list automatically from standardised headings and subheadings
    This will save you time and be more accurate
  • How to format images to control excessive file sizes
    Usually, the best way is to format the image outside the document using a standard graphics handler before you insert it
  • How to insert images into appendices and the main text
    And do not forget that text in images contributes to the overall word count
  • How to make a cover page
    So that the document looks the part
  • How to use indents or other style and font changes for citations to make it clear where they start and stop
    So you can't be accused of unintentional plagiarism
  • How to format bullet points, numbered points and tables
    So they stand out, have a standard form and aren't random lists
  • How to make sections alternate between portrait and landscape layouts in a single document
    So you can set out a lesson plan sensibly with landscape layout for tables and procedural grids and portrait for the rest
  • How to save files in a format your centre will accept for submission
    Normally, tutors will want to insert comments into your documents and a PDF document will make this more difficult
    Many centres require a standard format, such as Microsoft Word, because tutors cannot be expected to have access to a range of packages

If you don't know how to do any of the things in that list, learn before you start and save a lot of time and heartache.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (12)

Learn to transcribe

Oddly, some say perversely, the ability to transcribe spoken English in phonemic script is not on the Delta syllabus. However, if you are unable adequately to transcribe what you hear and what you intend to teach and research, you will be at a severe disadvantage and unable to analyse spoken language successfully or, probably, to teach it well.
You cannot get away with inventing some kind of amateur phonetic transcription which makes sense to you.

/ɪf.ju.kɑːnt.riːd.ðɪs.ju.niːd..səm.ˈpræk.tɪs/

If you cannot already transcribe reasonably accurately or read the example above, then you will not have time to learn to do so on a Delta course. There are simply too many other calls on your time. Do not hope for the best.

To learn how to transcribe, go tothe course on this site. That will give you the skills you need and suggest ways to get more practice.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (13)

Start to think about aims and objectives

An area that causes even experienced teachers considerable difficulty on Delta courses is matching aims to procedures and devising and expressing overall objectives for lessons.
The time to think about these things is now, not during a course.
You need now to acquire the habit of thinking at the planning stages not just about what will happen in the lesson and what materials you will need but about what the purposes of the lesson are.
Here are some places to start:

  • What language or skill is the main aim of this lesson?
  • What secondary aims does the lesson have?
  • What do I hope the learners will be able to do by the end that they can't do now?
  • For each stage of the lesson:
    • what is the purpose of the stage?
    • which part of the main aim does the stage target?
    • which secondary aim is served by this procedure?
  • How will I check the aims and objectives have been achieved?

There is a general guide to planning on the site and a detailed one tohow to write a Delta lesson plan.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (14)

Timing

This is an allied issue.
At first, and sometimes throughout Delta courses, many people find it challenging to estimate accurately how long things will take and what they can sensibly try to do in the time available. This is especially the case for people who do not usually teach in self-contained sessions between 40 and 60 minutes (as the Delta course requires).
In the weeks before you start a course, note down how long you think stages of a lesson will take and then, after the lesson, write down how long the stages actually took. If there is a disparity, you have a timing issue and that is not trivial. Ask yourself why the timings are different. For example, did you:

  • Forget to include the time for setting up and getting feedback from an activity?
  • Get sidetracked unnecessarily?
  • Get sidetracked usefully?
  • Allow things to drift?
  • Usefully respond to learners' needs and the language they were producing?
ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (15)

Published materials

This is important, especially if, like many teachers, you limit yourself day to day to the materials and course books with which you are familiar.
Delta courses require you to carefully match the objectives of your teaching to materials which are fit for the purpose. This requires a good deal of knowledge of what is available and what will serve your purposes. If you are spending time on a Delta course hunting around for materials, then you are using up time that could be spent on something more productive such as planning and researching the area you are going to teach.
Now is the time to broaden your horizons and do the research so you can build up a small database of published materials to use in your assessed lessons.
Look at a range of course and supplementary materials, especially those which claim to be using a methodology with which you are less familiar such as a task-based approach.
Read the introductions to the teacher's books (if any) and see what the authors think they are doing.
Try some of the materials out now (when it doesn't matter too much if it all goes hideously wrong).

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (16)

Check your language knowledge

Now is also a good time to do some serious self-evaluation of what you know, half know or don't know at all. If any of the following are unfamiliar to you, take some time before the course to visit the links and brush up or extend your knowledge.
The acid test of familiarity is to ask yourself if you would be happy explaining the area right now on a pre-service training course such as CELTA.
If the answer is No or Not really, you need to investigate the area.

Adverbs and AdverbialsCompoundingComplex sentences
Subordination and coordinationComparisonNegation
ArticlesWord formationRelative clauses
Condition and concessionPassivesReported speech
DeterminersSynonymyAspect
ModalityNominalisationModification
Take a testAnother way to assess yourself is to take the 25-item Delta grammar test.
Glossary of simple grammar termsThings that you really must know for Delta.
A glossary of grammar, lexis and phonologyThis is a much fuller list for reference.
Other glossariesThis will take you to the list to see what's available and what they contain.
The in-service guidesThe index of guides that you may need now and will need during your course.
The A-Z indexAccess guides to language systems, skills, background theories and much else.
Look through the index and click on links that intrigue, mystify or motivate you to find out more.
Use it during your course to investigate areas you need to research.

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (17)

Module Two guides on this site

You can, of course, use the Delta index to access all these guides and more but here is a list for your convenience. All the following are specific to the demands of Cambridge Delta Module Two but contain much that will be useful on any diploma-level English language teaching course.

Click for guides to:
Preparing for Module Twopreparing to teach a Delta lesson
the criteria explainedmeeting the teaching criteria
choosing an assignment topicwhat to avoid in the classroom
writing background essayswriting a reflection and evaluation
writing your first Delta essaythe Professional Development Assignment
10 things not to writethe Professional Development Assignment Part A
analysing systems in an essayobserving teaching
analysing skills in an essaythe Professional Development Assignment Part B
getting a distinction for a Delta essaywriting the Experimental Practice: Part B of the PDA
writing lesson plansthe external assessment: FAQs
ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (18)

Some pre-course reading

Good centres will have provided you with a pre-course reading list and some may even have given you access to the texts themselves one way or another. Before your course starts, you will have the time to do the reading carefully. During the course, you are going to be very busy so anything you can do now will save time and tears later.
You will need to have access to grammar references above the level of learners of English.
In case the centre hasn't given you a list or you find time hanging heavily on your hands, here are some ideas of what to read before you start a Delta course.
A more comprehensive list of grammar references is available on this site as well asa list of skills references.

Carter, R, 2006, Cambridge Grammar of English, Cambridge: Cambridge University PressAccurate and accessible
Harmer, J, 2015, The Practice of English Language Teaching, 5th Edition, Harlow: PearsonA useful starting point for many ideas and concepts
Hedge T, 2000, Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom, Oxford: Oxford University PressFor more detail and theoretical background
Huddleston, R and Pullum, GK et al, 2002, The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, Cambridge: Cambridge University PressA recent(ish) grammar of English which is above the pedagogic level and provides excellent coverage of critical areas
Lightbown, P and Spada, H, 2013, How Languages are Learned, 4th Edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press (especially Chapter 3)A good introduction to psycholinguistics and second-language acquisition theory
Quirk, R and Greenbaum, S, 1973, A University Grammar of English, Harlow: LongmanDon't let the date fool you. This is still a primary resource based on the more complete and more fully exemplified Grammar of Contemporary English
Thornbury, S, 2017, About Language, 2nd Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University PressMore accessible than Quirk and Greenbaum but less comprehensive and aimed specifically at English-language teachers

The Delta index

ELT Concourse Delta: preparing for Module Two (2024)

FAQs

What happens if you fail Delta module 2? ›

You can re-enter the examination as often as you like. For Module Two: There is a referral process and this means that you can re-try on two occasions. You must re-take within a one-year period following the issue of results.

How is Delta Module 2 assessed? ›

Module Two is assessed by a portfolio of coursework. This includes background essays, observed lessons and a professional development assignment. You need to complete five assignments (all of approximately 2,000 words), which all contribute to the final grade.

Is the Delta course difficult? ›

Obtaining a Delta is no easy task. Ask anyone who has passed one and they'll tell you that it was tough going. It takes over your life, absorbs your energy and pushes your boundaries.

What does Delta stand for ELT? ›

DELTA is one of the best-known and most popular advanced TEFL/TESOL qualifications in the world. It is a flexible way for experienced English language teachers to progress further in their careers.

Is Delta assessment hard? ›

What is the Delta Virtual Job Tryout Assessment? The Delta Virtual Job Tryout (VJT) is the second and most difficult assessment that candidates for flight attendant positions must pass as part of the hiring process.

What happens if you fail part of a module? ›

Resitting a module at university

When you fail a module, most universities provide an opportunity to resit the exam or redo the assignment. University can be stressful and failing an exam can happen to all of us so don't panic, being able to resit your exams is used for exactly this.

How long is Delta module 2? ›

The Distance DELTA Module 2 course is a 9 month programme and comprises: an online Pre-course Task. a Distance Component which covers all aspects of the Cambridge DELTA Module 2 syllabus and assessment including observations by a Local Tutor or your Online Personal Tutor. 8 Units to be completed to a set schedule.

How long is Delta module 3? ›

Module 3 is assessed via an Extended Assignment (4000 – 4500 words). It is completed during the Distance Delta Module 3 course and is externally assessed.

What is Delta looking for in talent assessment? ›

Delta seeks candidates with strong customer service skills, problem-solving abilities, teamwork aptitude and a commitment to safety. The Delta talent assessment test evaluates these traits to ensure candidates align with Delta's values and can contribute effectively to the team.

Is Delta harder than CELTA? ›

Known as the Diploma in English Teaching for Adults, the Delta is considered a more advanced qualification sought by those who have received a CELTA and also have previous teaching English language teaching experience. The Delta is an in-service training course that emphasizes the exploration of teaching theory.

Is Delta course worth it? ›

Many teachers simply want to develop further professionally and become more confident teachers and see the DELTA as 'worth it' in relation to this aim. The DELTA can also help you stand out as a teacher when looking for your next teaching role.

Is Delta harder to get into than Harvard? ›

Of all the stats I've ever seen, one that stands out is the controversial idea that it's harder to become a Delta Air Lines flight attendant than it is to get into Harvard University. Bottom line upfront: It's both true (or it was, not too long ago) and it isn't. Article continues after video.

How long does a Delta course take? ›

The Delta can be completed in as little as 8 weeks if you choose the full-time, face-to-face option. There are a variety of other deliveries for the Delta course and each has its own time frame. The Distance Delta Integrated Programme covers the full Delta and takes 9 months.

Is Delta equivalent to a master's? ›

The Delta is a level seven certificate in the UK (on the Regulated Qualification Framework RFQ). This is the equivalent level to a Master's degree.

How many modules does Delta have? ›

There are three DELTA modules. All three modules include a focus on theory and practice. You can take as many of the modules as you want, and in any order.

What happens if you fail an FAA medical exam? ›

The standards for medical certification are contained the Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR Part 67). Pilots who have a history of certain medical conditions described in these standards are mandatorily disqualified from flying.

What happens if you fail the pellet B test? ›

What Happens If You Fail the PELLET B Test? Don't worry – you can retake the test after 30 days have passed (this applies even if you're retaking the exam via another agency or department). Your test results will be invalid, however, if you retake the PELLET B exam sooner than 30 days have elapsed.

Can you fail Delta? ›

Possible grades are Distinction, Pass or Fail, and will be confirmed approximately 6 weeks after you receive the statement of results. You will, then, receive a certificate for each module.

What is the pass mark for Delta Module 1? ›

Paper 1 consists of 5 tasks and Paper 2 consists of 3 tasks. All tasks are compulsory. There are three passing grades: Pass with Distinction (approximately 150 marks required); Pass with Merit (approximately 130 marks required); Pass (approximately 100 marks required). Where and when can I take the exam?

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