I’ve been fascinated by languages ever since I can remember. Nothing impressed me more than the people who easily switched from one language to another – I so wanted to do that! I speak English, Polish, Italian, Spanish, and German. I can see learning another language (or two) in the future too!
I count myself as really lucky to have been able to turn one of my biggest passions into a profession, as they say – do what you love, and you won’t work a day in life. That definitely resonates with me, and I can’t imagine doing anything else.
I’ve spent over 15 years teaching in Poland, England, Italy (where I lived for 5 years). In that time, I’ve had a chance to teach students at all levels, and of different ages, in groups and individually. Recently, for obvious reasons, teaching online has become the new reality and it’s been way more fun that I expected! Although very different from the face-to-face classroom, it has loads to offer including some techniques that wouldn’t be possible to use in a brick-and-mortar classroom.
My other professional endeavours include material design, as with me you have the chance to learn what you really want or need to, rather than follow the coursebook that may not necessarily help you achieve your goals or meet your interests. I really enjoy creating learning materials, which include a solid bit of language practice, but also introduce various aspects of the culture of the country where the language you are learning is spoken.
Having learnt the languages myself, I really get what is like to be in your shoes! I’m aware of which vocabulary, grammar or pronunciation points are tricky, and see many things that are worth knowing, and which might be too commonplace for native speakers of the language to point out. When teaching about the culture, I go beyond the stereotypes and teach you the real stuff.
My qualifications and credentials
My qualifications include a Teacher Training College of Foreign Languages Diploma, a BA and MA degrees in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. I also hold a QTS for England and Wales, and its counterpart for Poland. Currently, I am doing an MFL Teacher Subject Specialism course at King’s College London to be fully qualified Modern Foreign Language teacher.
When I’m not teaching or preparing materials, I write e-books (I’ve published 2, and got the next 2 underway), and sometimes speak at international conferences. So far, I’ve spoken at EAQUALS conference in Madrid 2019, and at AISLI 2019 in Turin. My next talk is going to be at BELTA 2021.