Teaching English to non native speakers

Teaching English to non native speakers is something I've done for many years. From 1982 - 84 I taught one to one in Kyoto, Japan and then moved on to groups in Tokyo until 1995. The groups ranged from business men and women, children, housewives and then to junior high and high school students at a Catholic school for girls. It was  unforgettable and transformative. All together I taught for fourteen years in Japan. Then I taught in the Amazon jungle in a Brazilian village for two years and at a university summer intensive. From 1997 to 2010 in the UK I taught in summer programs to groups of children age 9-16, groups of adults in language schools, then year round at a college in Taunton. Since 2011 I have once again been teaching one to one, having gone full circle from 1981 when I was a beginner at language teaching to now,  2015. During the last ten years I also got my PGCE and TESOL Diploma which has transformed and expanded my teaching. The PGCE was good, but the TESOL Diploma at The Language Project in Bristol was great.

I love teaching and helping learners achieve their language dreams. All of my students have of course, been different, with individual hopes and dreams. I've learned from each of them. I wish I could go back and work with those I knew many years ago as I have become a much better teacher over time. My next student is coming in six days for two weeks of one to one lessons. Then after her, the next student will stay for four weeks. They are both from France and it may be their first time to live in another country. Another world, another language, a full immersion experience. I look forward to helping them reach their goals.