Case Studies: Teachers

Hi, Maria! Please can you tell us a little about you and your professional background?

My name is Maria and I have taught online for Language Trainers since April 2020. As a native Greek speaker, I offer language teaching services in Greek but both my professional training and background involve teaching English, French, Spanish and Italian.

Wow, you’re quite the polyglot, then! What are some of your qualifications?

Having a genuine passion for language learning and constant development, I completed an undergraduate degree (a BA in Translation and Interpreting with French and Spanish at the University of East Anglia) and a postgraduate degree (European Master’s in Translation and Interpreting at Swansea University) in the UK, where I spent a large part of my adult life as a student and employee. Also, I have professional teaching qualifications from the University of Cambridge, Instituto Cervantes and the French Ministry of Education.

And how did you come to work with Language Trainers?

Actually, Language Trainers kindly approached me. At first, they suggested I carry out a 30-minute taster with a potential student and I was more than happy to address their request as I immediately thought it would be an ideal opportunity for me to put all my language knowledge to very good use. Having established a well-determined career path in the translation and interpreting market, I seized the opportunity to work alongside a language teaching provider which would gladly live up to the expectations of any professional in the field.

Well, you obviously did well and were contracted to work with the company. What have you enjoyed most about it?

I love conveying my language knowledge to people of all ages, origins and cultural backgrounds who are always eager to learn, regardless of their country of residence and place of work. In that respect, every time I was in need of immediate assistance, Language Trainers has been kind enough to offer valuable support by liaising me with members of staff to assist me with organising my materials, resolving any issues encountered during my classes, and always providing useful guidance through their dedicated advice team that comprises a wide range of industry professionals i.e. course coordinators, academic advisors etc.

You mentioned that you primarily teach online. Some people worry they will not get the same benefit by learning virtually as when student and teacher are in the same room. What do you think about this?

Students who study their preferred language online should expect the results to be no different from those who learn through face-to-face classes. In fact, having taught professionally for quite a few years now, I can confirm that, on some occasions, my online students demonstrated greater achievements than those receiving in-person tutoring. One major advantage to online classes is that the teaching material can be better monitored and recorded. This ensures both the student and the tutor have a better understanding of the performance goals and, more importantly, the variety, form and quality of the teaching resources is practically infinite. Apart from the traditional textbook, students can benefit from a huge variety of internet sources, ranging from up-to-date grammar and vocabulary websites to online video streaming and speaking and listening practice material.

If you had to summarise your time with Language Trainers, what would you say?

Overall, if I had to choose one word in order to describe my experience working with Language Trainers so far, that would be “exceptional”. As the great philosopher Aristotle once said, “Teaching is the highest form of understanding.”