I am a native English speaker, university-educated in the UK, with a BA Joint Hons degree (2:1) in English Language and Linguistics. I also have a TEFL certificate (120 hours), a certificate in Teaching Business English (Qualifi), and a Distinction in both IELTS (CPD) and ESOL (CPD). In addition, I have a Level 5 Teaching Assistant Advanced certificate (CPD), and a QLS Level 5 Diploma in Proofreading.

In terms of my experience, I have taught English on a self-employed basis for 8 years, mostly face-to-face, in London and Bristol. I have helped English learners from different backgrounds, for different purposes (business, study, conversation skills), and at different levels (mostly intermediate to advanced).
I have also gained many years of experience as a proofreader, assisting students and professionals with presentations, research papers, business reports and conferences. I have supported overseas students preparing for the IELTS exam for university, and have helped both native and non-native English speakers with their CV writing skills. I also have experience of translating written material from German to English, and have been learning Japanese for 4 years.

For my English lessons, I often begin with a warmer, to ease the student into the lesson by using their existing knowledge to generate interest in the subject. I then present an article or dialogue, to bring the subject to life in an authentic context. Comprehension questions follow, to test the student's ability to recall specific details (facts, figures), as well as open-ended questions to test their ability to interpret the text using full sentences. A gap-fill exercise may be used to check understanding of keywords. Any unknown words are explained with examples, and understanding is confirmed through concept-checking questions. Finally, I will ask the student for their opinion about several statements in the text, moving towards their own situation/culture and encouraging free discussion. This is effective for improving their conversation skills, and for building up their confidence to express themselves on a wide range of topics in everyday life.