I taught in China from 2004 to 2005 and found most of it very challenging, exciting and different to Western culture. I didn't have a TEFL at the time, but I did have a degree and met quite a few TEFL teachers who didn't have either. I've taught EFL/ESL for 2 and a half years now and have met an alsortment of characters, some with fancy qualifications and others who have hardly any. I think there is a lot of snobbery in the EFL world especially since this is a demanding role which doesn't pay very well unless you work in Japan .etc. In my opinion, it doesn't matter how many qualifications you hold, but it's experience and the way you do the job that matters most. If you can hold the attention of the ss in the ESL classroom and they actually learn something as well as enjoy the lesson, then you're halfway there!!!!!
I found that I learnt through my mistakes and by researching via books, internet, word and mouth, experiments and so forth. I was impressed by the way that Chinese learners used the phoenetics chart to translate English and their thorough knowledge of English grammar, all of the tenses, conditionals and so on. I do not recall learning much of it back in school and had to teach myself.
I don't know about anyone else, but I find it hypocritical that foreign students have to know the ins and outs of English grammar, but a lot of us native speakers haven't got the first clue about what tense we use when we communicate. It ought to be taught in the UK (not sure about US, Canadian and Australian schools) as part of the national curriculum or not at all.