ESL / EFL Abbreviations Explained (March 28th 2008)

You might be a bit confused by the all the abbreviations you see connected with teaching English. To start off with here are the most common abbreviations that you will need to know:
ELT - English Language TeachingESL - English as a Second LanguageEFL - English as a Foreign Language

The main difference between these are that ESL is English taught to foreign language speakers living in an English speaking country like The United States, Canada, England, Australia, etc. English as a foreign language, on the other hand, is taught to those wishing to learn English for their study / work / hobby needs but who live in countries where English is not the first langauge.

Here are some more important abbreviations related to teaching, teaching certificates, and English exams:

*AAAL - American Assocation for Applied Linguistics
*ACTFL - American Council on the teaching of Foreign Languages
*AE - American English
*BAAL - British Assocation of Applied Linguistics
*BC - British Council
*BEC - Business English Certificate - Cambridge business English exam certificate BrE - British English
*BVT - Bilingual Vocational Training
*CAE - Certificate of Advanced English - the fourth Cambridge Exam Cambridge Exams - The standard in English examination throughout the world outside of the USA (where the TOEFL is preferred).
*CALI - Computer-Assisted Language Instruction
*CALL - Computer-Assisted Language Learning
*CanE - Canadian English
*CAT - Computer Adaptive Testing
*CBT - Computer-Based Teaching
*CEELT - Cambridge Examination in English for Language Teachers. Tests the English competency of non-native teachers of English.
*CEIBT - Certificate in English for International Business and Trade for advanced levels.
*CPE - Certificate of Proficiency in English - the fifth and the most advanced of Cambridge's series of exams (roughly comparable to a score of 600-650 on the TOEFL).
*CELTA - Certificate in English language teaching to adults (Cambridge/RSA Teaching Certificate also known as C-TEFLA)
*DELTA - Diploma in English language teaching (Cambridge/RSA Language Teaching Scheme)
*EAP - English for Academic Purposes
*ECCE - Exam for the Certificate of Competency in English (Michigan University) - lower level.
*ECPE - Exam for the Certificate of Proficiency in English (Michigan University) - higher level.
*EFL - English as a Foreign Language
*EGP - English for general purposes
*EIP - English as an International Language
*ELICOS - English Language Intensive Courses to Overseas Students. Government registered centres teaching English to overseas students in Australia.
*ELT - English Language Teaching
*ESL - English as a Second Language.
*ESOL - English for Speakers of Other Languages
*ESP - English for special purposes (business English, English for tourism, etc.)
*ETS - Educational Testing Service
*FCE - First Certificate in English - the third of Cambridge's series of exams (comparable to a score of 500 on the TOEFL and 5.7 on the IELTS).

*GMAT - Graduate Management Admission Test. The GMAT measures general verbal, mathematical, and analytical writing skills.
*GPA - Grade Point Average
*GRE - Graduate Record Examination - an evaluation test for graduate admission to colleges and universities in the U.S.
*IATEFL - International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language
*IPA - International Phonetic Association
*K12 - Kindergarten - 12th grade.
*KET - Key English Test - The most elementary of Cambridge's series of exams
*L1 - Language 1 - native language
*L2 - Language 2 - the language you are learning
*LEP - Limited English Proficien
*LL - Language Learning
*MT - Mother Tongue
*NATECLA - National Association for Teaching English and other Community Languages to Adults (UK)
*NATESOL - National Association of Teachers of English for Speakers of Other Languages
*NCTE - National Council of Teachers of English
*NLP - Neurolinguistic Programming
*NNEST - Non-Native English Speaking Teacher
*NNL - Non-Native Language
*MTELP - Michigan Test of English Language Proficiency
*OE - Old English
*OED - Oxford English Dictionary
*PET - Preliminary English Test - The second of Cambridge's series of exams.
*RP - Received Pronunciation - 'standard' British pronunciation
*RSA/Cambridge C-TEFLA - Certificate of Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults. A professional qualification for prospective EFL teachers.
*RSA/Cambridge D-TEFLA - Diploma of Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Advanced qualification for EFL teachers who have already completed the C-TEFLA.
*SAE - Standard American English
*SAT - Scholastic Assessment (Aptitude) Test - pre-university entrance exam in the USA
*TEFL - Teaching English as a Foreign Language
*TEFLA - Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults
*TEIL - Teaching English as an International Language
*TESL - Teaching English as a Second Language
*TESOL - Teaching English to Speakers of Other Langauges
*TOEFL - Test of English as a Foreign Language - the most common English proficiency exam for North American universities and colleges, also accepted by some British universities and employers as proof of English proficiency.
*TOEIC - The TOEIC (pronounced "toe-ick") is a Test of English for International Communication.
*VE - Vocational English
*VESL - Vocational English as a Second Language
*YLE - Young Learners English Tests - Cambridge Examinations for young learners