Well this blog is really an end-of-year taking stock: I’m getting ready for the new academic year and at the same time looking back on my last year of teaching. And what stands out is the fantastic variety of teaching I’ve done, with a real variety of learners from many different backgrounds.
The Quartet courses have gone from strength to strength. Just before ELT closed I taught a small group of four students, which I really enjoyed, and (more importantly!) which the students thought was very stimulating and effective. So when I started working on my own I thought I would see if there was a market for this kind of course. And I’ve been so pleased to find out that there is.
This year I’ve had a range of groups: Intermediate, Upper Intermediate, FCE, Lower Advanced and CAE. The biggest nationalities have been German, French and Spanish, but I’ve also had students from Turkey and Venezuela – so a variety of level, and a variety of nationalities.
And then I taught a new course in the Summer Term, designed for students who had been studying hard for two terms for an exam, and wanted something different. So I did a ‘Projects’ class, where each week we focused on a different skill or topic. And, again, there was an incredible variety: Job Applications, Literature, Food and Eating Out, Business Phrasal Verbs, (now available as a short online course) London, Britain and the British, Jokes and Anecdotes, and many more.
It was great fun and the students really enjoyed it, so this is definitely a course I will offer again next year!
Now please read Part Two of this blog when I will talk about the in-company work and 1 to 1 teaching I’ve done over the last 12 months.