Company Response
8/22/2023
The customer registered for International TEFL Academy’s part-time online March 6, 2023 TEFL Certification course led by university-level instructors who hold a MA or PhD in TESOL or closely related field. Instructors of the course host weekly virtual office hours, virtual lectures, and provide written and video feedback and guidance on course work for small sections of 20 students or less. This course is externally monitored and approved at a Level 5 Ofqual (British Government) accreditation by TQUK (authorized accreditor of Ofqual) and all students must show their ability to meet the assessment criteria set for this credential. If a student does not pass an assessment on the first attempt, they are given additional time to review the individualized feedback from their instructor and make edits to their work for resubmission. The customer’s instructor was not threatening to fail him, rather she was explaining to him the areas where he did not meet the assessment criteria and needed to show his ability to do so on his second attempt.
On March 8, 2023, the customer requested to transfer to a different course start date through our Student Affairs department on the premise that he had upcoming medical procedures that would limit his ability to engage with the course fully. His Student Affairs Advisor informed him of the transfer policy. He never transferred to another course.
On March 29, 2023, the customer emailed his Student Affairs Advisor about his instructor stating “I seem to be getting a great deal of negative feedback from [Instructor name] as she is myopic and simply wants me to parrot the lessons back to her without any leeway for imagination or intellect.” At the same time, his instructor reached out to the Director of Student Affairs and Academics (DOSAA) concerned about the language being used in emails she was receiving from this individual.
The customer sent several disrespectful emails between March 8 and March 29 to his instructor, disparaging her professional knowledge and indicating she was not smart enough to understand his work including the following statements “If you want I’ll dumb it down,” “Being pedantic means, in this instance, someone (you) whom cares too much about small details in order to feel important,” and “If you would like to train seals or parrots to regurgitate lessons verbatim, perhaps you should join a circus or work at a zoo.”
The customer then inquired about transferring to an upcoming course start date and the DoSAA requested that he “commit to interacting with staff, instructors, and peers without the intent to demean” before assisting him with a transfer. He refused and stated “I will agree to transfer the course to a later start date but you will not extract a concession out of me in this instance.”
At his refusal to commit to interacting respectfully, theDoSAA invoked the Termination clause in the International TEFL Academy’s Terms and Conditions (which he agreed to upon registration prior to the course starting) using provisions (b) and (c). The Termination provision states: ITA may terminate this Agreement and all Services, including without limitation by terminating Student's right to participate in any course, to refuse admission to any course, and to eject Student from a course, with immediate effect upon written notice to Student, (a) if Student fails to pay any amount when due under this Agreement; (b) if Student's conduct is deemed by ITA to be disorderly or disruptive, (c) if Student uses abusive language, or (d) if Student otherwise fails to perform or comply with any of the terms of this Agreement.
The customer was not eligible for a refund per the Terms and Conditions, which state “Student will receive no refund if Student withdraws or cancels on or after the start date of the earliest course for which Student has enrolled.” He filed a dispute with his credit card company and was not issued a refund through their chargeback channel.
At International TEFL Academy, we strive to provide an environment that allows for education, growth, and development. We do not tolerate students or staff that disrespect anyone they associate with during their work or studies. He chose to use communication to harm and disrespect his instructor and would not commit to interacting with future students, instructors, or staff with respect and we made the very hard choice to remove him from our program.
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