TEFL Courses & Certification in Antigua, Guatemala

I did the hybrid TEFL course in June 2026 in Antigua Guatemela. My first two weeks were self paced online and the second two were in person. It was located in the beautiful city of Antigua with create culture and food, I really enjoyed living here. My instructor was Lewis Murphy, he was very English: lots of energy and very experienced and knowledge. There were 4 other onsite students and I joined half way through their 4 weeks in person. I am graduating today and very happy I did this course!

My expectations have definitely changed, although I’m not quite sure I have a solid set of expectations now. TEFL has really taught me to be prepared for anything and everything, and for that reason I think I’m having trouble setting expectations for the rest of the course. What I can say is that my expectations regarding how I’d be teaching have changed drastically. I’ve always relied on my explanations and speaking skills to teach, so having that taken away and replaced with eliciting and CCQing was quite a challenging task. Though, as said in the faithful TEFL certification manual, the best teaching method is eclectic, which in my terms means : trick question, there isn’t one. Every student, every classroom, and every situation will differ, and that will require multiple different methods in different moments. After being “TEFLed” myself, I really started to understand how and why the method works. A standout moment in this realization was when our instructor, Lewis, taught us a TEFL class as if we were native speaking students. He did this by teaching it entirely in German. I speak English and French, and I’ve learned Spanish, but without that one simple hour I don’t think I’d ever truly comprehend how it feels to be a student in a TEFL class. As you can imagine, it was very confusing and overwhelming at first, but with good elicits and CCQs, I actually felt like I was beginning to understand in a language that had absolutely no meaning in my brain. It was incredible, and since then I’ve been holding on to the compassion I felt in that mock class. So yes, my expectations have changed, but I think it’s fair to say that change is purely positive

Lewis Murphy was my TEFL teacher in Antigua and it was really awesome. I never even knew what TEFL was and I had so much fun with my friends and I will teach in honour of Lewis he isn’t dead but he is leaving Maximo so RIP

I spent 4 weeks on the TEFL course in Quepos, Costa Rica. This is a relatively intensive course including multiple opportunities for practical teaching and theoretical assignments. This is not a cheap course, but you pay for what you get. Lewis is an excellent instructor. His lessons are high quality, thorough and very engaging. You will not be bored! For the first two weeks our class had only myself and one other, which was not what I had been expecting. However, this allowed for a more personal lesson environment, which was very nice. There are frequent feedback opportunities and the learning curve is appropriate. You are not jettisoned right into full teaching right away. Things build up nicely so that you are fully prepared for full class teaching. There is no stress, But do expect to work hard and dedicate time away from class to prepare for lessons and complete your assignments.

I took the 4-week TEFL course at Maximo Nivel Antigua and loved it. It was a lot of work, but I learned so much in such a short period of time. My teacher Karen was amazing. She has so much experience and knowledge and she is so generous and will do anything to help you succeed. She made the course 100% worth it. I also really liked the real practical teaching aspect of the course where I taught for one week in an actual English class at Maximo. I also took private Spanish lessons and Maximo was accommodating to make sure it fit in with my TEFL schedule. My teacher Sandra was a blast. She was so funny and nice to practice with. Overall, my experience at Maximo was excellent and super rewarding.

Wayne, my tutor was excellent throughout the entire course and helped massively in getting us to the finish line. It is a very difficult program, but the benefits of the hard work become clear towards the end. Everyone involved was absolutely lovely and great to talk to. The structure of the course is also great, moving methodically through grammar, teaching experience, eliciting skills etc. Overall, although tough, it is very rewarding and taught almost flawlessly, so I would certainly recommend this program.

Embarking on a career transition in one's sixties can be a daunting yet ultimately fulfilling endeavour, particularly when fueled by a desire for change and a latent passion waiting to be ignited. The shift from a long-standing career in finance, specifically as a Senior Bookkeeper/Accountant, to the realm of Teaching English as a Foreign Language represents a significant departure, driven by burnout and a yearning for a more stimulating and personally rewarding professional path. I found all this, beyond expectation, when I took the TEFL online course. I found the course material to be comprehensive and the manner in which it was presented, made learning so much easier and a lot more fun than one would expect from doing an English teaching course. My personal trainer, Sean Barter, who is stationed in Peru, was immensely patient, extremely helpful and was more than happy to have me listen in on others' classes. The online teachers gave me invaluable advice and during my practical training, Sean guided me through with unstinting advice , not just on the teaching but also how to better use the Zoom platform. This is the best thing I have ever done and I look forward to my new life as an English teacher.

Sean and Christina were welcoming, instructive, flexible, and accommodating. I could not have imagined a better facilitating team. Great people, great teachers, and as we would say in Maine: A1 FINEST KIND! All in all, very enjoyable experience.

The TEFL program is a hard one, this is for sure. However, Wayne is one of the most wonderful people I have had the pleasure of knowing. He is the best instructor, so very helpful, encouraging, and enthusiastic. This experience would not have been the same without him or his support. Through this course, I was able to learn more about the English language, and also how to efficiently teach the subject. Currently, I am employed at a language institute in America, and could not have felt more prepared. I owe it all to Wayne, the course, and the wonderful people I met along the way.

It was amazing, Americo and Isa are both super kind people. I saw a lot, they also showed us nice places. The food was also very nice and I liked that there were also people from the other project. And I liked the work.

It's very hard to describe just in a few words how great studying with Maximo Nivel was! Everyone in the institute is genuine, kind and very supportive. Completing a TEFL course is a lot more intense than I could have imagined (probably the most challenging 4 weeks of my life) but 100% worth it. I feel so grateful I had the best teacher: Wayne Summerbell :) Be prepared to feel challenged (this is definitely NOT a holiday), and more important: be prepared to feel satisfied and happy with yourself once you've made it :) Antigua is the most beautiful city too! It's very easy to get around. As a woman travelling alone, I felt safe during my whole stay there . You'll feel at home in no time :)

My experience was as full of challenge as it was with stress. But the Maximo team was always there to support. It's truly an intensive course to complete in just four weeks, but if you are studying with TEFL trainer Wayne Summerbell, have no fear. The man is genius who brought the best out of all of us TEFLers, regardless of our experience level. Know that through this experience you will meet great challenges, but you will come away with great friends and still have time to experience Antigua or the rest of Guatemala on the weekends. It's a good idea to come a week before the course, or stay a week later so that you can see more of what Guatemala has to offer. You may not have time while taking the course to many tourist activities, but you're sure to enjoy Wayne's wonderful and humorous approach to teaching! I hope some of his magic rubs off on me as I enter the field of ESL!

I had such a wonderful time with the TEFL course in Cusco, Peru. I learned so many fascinating facets of language while developing an amazing friendship with my fellow TEFL-er! Sean was an incredible instructor who made each day fun, engaging, and enjoyable. I left ignited with a newfound passion for teaching I didn’t even know was inside of me! I’m very excited to share it with the world :) Thank you Máximo!!

I had such a wonderful time with Wayne as my teacher. English language is not typically something I find very interesting, but Wayne was able to make the classes fun and engaging. My entire experience was really positive despite how difficult the content was and I would highly highly recommend anyone do this course if they’re considering it. It’s a month of hard work for endless work opportunities and it’s really shaped the way I think and helped me to grow in the way communicate. The content challenged me in new ways and has left me feeling accomplished and capable.

I loved my Spanish classes here! I learned a lot really quickly and they have tons of resources to help you out. Highly recommend! It is hard work but so worth it and I really enjoyed my teacher, Tatiana, she was very conversational and explained things in detail which was very helpful!

I was in Antigua for four months and wanted to do something useful, so I stopped by Maximo Nivel a Friday and asked if they needed some teachers to teach English. They recommended to take a TEFL course first, I said yes and luckily it was a course starting the first Monday. The course was hard and tough, but very very useful, fun and interesting at the same time.

I had such a positive learning experience all thanks to my amazing TFL trainer Wayne Summerbell, who has been such an incredible teacher and mentor! The 4 weeks of training were compact with so much information but with the smooth delivery and energy of the classroom, the time flew by so quickly! I have left the course with so much knowledge, transferable skills, and most importantly, passion and excitement for my own teaching journey. I have learned so much from observing what a successful teacher looks like.

This course exceeded all expectations! Sign up if you are considering it. Our instructor, Wayne, was kind, supportive, and incredibly knowledgable. Each step of the way I felt encouraged and supported.

This TEFL course exceeded all my expectations. It was more work than I expected, and pushed me more than I expected, but on the other hand... The teacher, Wayne, was more fun, supportive and knowledgable than I anticipated. I was closer to and more charmed by my fellow classmates than I could have imagined. AND, teaching and working with the adult learners was one of the most enjoyable experiences I've had in a long teaching career. I highly recommend this program!

This course was awesome. Wayne was my instructor and he was fantastic. He had great energy and made sure that we had everything we needed to be setup for success. Each day was fun and engaging. Each assignment was clear and Wayne was there to help us every step of the way.