In this blog, written for Macmillan in 2023, you will find a handout with some practical activities to help grow your young learners’ social awareness, but first I explore what social emotional learning is and why it matters. The well-known psychologist and educational reformer Dewey once wrote that education is not only about what one… Read more
For many learners taking exams is an important but inevitable and often stressful part of life. Key to learners succeeding in exams is not only teaching them the necessary language knowledge and making them test-wise but also helping them to develop ways to manage their well-being in this stressful period. In this blog, we will… Read more
Image by pixabay @shawnc125 The below podcast by Macmillan Education, called TEATime, was recorded with Nathan Waller to celebrate March the 8th, International Women’s Day 2023. Read more
In this blog, written for Oxford University Press in January 2023, I discuss teacher confidence and how we can grow this. Most teachers have been there. One student disagrees with your answer and next, other learners start to disagree, ‘that’s not what you told us last week, teacher….’ Suddenly you are no longer sure if… Read more
We all have learners that come to class but just don’t seem to be that motivated to be there. Don’t worry, it’s got most of the time nothing to do with you. In general, making learners stay focused and motivated is one of the biggest challenges (Healey, 2021). According to Scheidecker and Freeman (cited in… Read more
I’m obsessed with the brain. How it works and maybe even more so by how it doesn’t work. Whilst brain research has made headway in the past 15-20 years, there is still a lot we do not know about the brain. However, one thing we can say for sure is that our students’ brain certainly… Read more
If COVID-19 has a silver lining, it undoubtedly is the learning opportunities the shift online has provided. Even though there have been challenges, most ELT teachers and teacher educators have developed digital knowledge and skills, pedagogic beliefs and confidence with technology which would not necessarily have happened without the forced transition online. This blog post below,… Read more
As a practicing teacher and teacher training, I very much believe that our learning should never stop. English language teachers have continued to develop their own practice, formally but mostly informally for generations (Richardson & Maggioli, 2018). And the recent shift online has reinforced the importance of this: the pandemic became a huge learning opportunity,… Read more
In this blog article written for CAE, I explore the benefits of reflective practice. Learn the benefits of reflecting, to promote a self-improving culture of learning and increase your ability to adapt during these unpredictable times. Read more