I’ve been an EFL Teacher for nearly 17 years.  For the last few years I’ve worked mainly in Further and Higher Education, and I currently work as an ESOL Lecturer at Cambridge Regional College.

Why did you become a TEFL trainer?

It’s really rewarding to pass on the teaching skills I've gained from doing the job for a number of years.  It’s also great to see people develop a side to themselves they haven’t used before.  Some people are just natural teachers, while others grow in confidence as the course progresses.  The training also feeds back into my own teaching in a positive way as it allows me to question what I do and why.

Where have you taught before?

My first TEFL job was in a secondary school in a rural part of the Czech Republic in the early 90’s, not that long after the fall of communism. I was straight out of university so it was quite a culture shock.  This was followed by 5 years in Spain, interspersed with summer schools in Cambridge, and a couple of short contracts in Italy.  When I returned to the UK I made Cambridge my home as a result of my experiences here in the summer schools.

If you could go and work anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I was recently offered some work in Kazakhstan which I intend to do at some point in the next 5 years.  Also my MA research involved Japanese students so I’d like to go and work in Japan one day.

What is your favourite part of the course?

I think that being able to see people gradually realise that they’ve got the potential to be really good teachers is hard to beat.  Also seeing the trainees interact with each other and form friendships is very rewarding.

Do you have a favourite group to work with?

I haven’t really got a favourite, as each trainee is so different. It’s more about a positive attitude and willingness to try new things.  Some of the best trainees have been young, while others have been older people looking to change their lives.

What are your future plans?

I’m quite interested in writing, and I do some blogging  at www.freethethought.blogspot.com. Hopefully I’d like to combine that with the teaching as I get older.

Any websites you can recommend for job hunters?

www.tefl.com is a good resource for EFL teachers

And finally...

See you at the next UK-TEFL course in Cambridge!