Lost in translation

Classic miscommunication error tonight! 

I was taken out to dinner by my excellent hosts from Chongqing University of Technology to a buffet restaurant, approx 100 dishes not including seafood which was in the other room. 

Everything looked amazing, so I followed one of the group around as nothing was labelled in English. She chose nice looking dishes so I copied, At one cauldron I loaded a large ladle of meaty casserole onto my dish and she said "oh no you won't like that it's duck meat", I said I love duck and carried on. 

At the end of that course the head of the table said " Kevin you are truly international!" I graciously thanked him for the compliment and asked why. He "replied our western guests always refuse to eat dog!" At which point the young lady who tried to warn me off said " oh yes dog, I thought I used the wrong word, not duck , dog!" 

It was delicious so I tried to act like I wasn't surprised! ( Sorry Rog I ate one of your relatives!

Here I go again!

Currently sitting in Heathrow departure longe waiting for my delayed flight to Hong Kong.

Oh the glamourous life I lead! Up at 03.00 this morning to gt a 04.10 coach from Swansea to Heathrow, you know you're part of the jet set when sat in a freezing cold town centre bus station, chatting to some poor guy who uses the place as his house most nights of the week!

I'm off on a short trip to China as you may have guessed, I'll arrive in Chongqing some time today or tomorrow depending on my body clock's view of the time zone, then into meetings for a day or two before flying on to Zhuzhou City on the weekend.

I should be home more or less this time next week, give or take an hour or twelve!

I shall update as I venture forth.. what new experiences lie in wait?

Well, That Went Really Well!

What a great day the LEW Conference turned out to be! (I'm not as surprised as I sound here, I know who put the work in to ensure the success.)

We welcomed over 115 delegates from all over Wales to the Emily Phipps Building for the day on Saturday 10^th November.

This was the first event of its kind, and feedback from all participants indicated an overwhelming view that it was long overdue.

Here is a Wordle image describing the feedback, the largest adjectives indicate the most commonly used in feedback.

The highlight being the Plenary Lecture from David Crystal, even though Mr Crystal couldn't attend in person due to a family crisis we were extremely grateful that he gave up some of his precious family time to deliver, via Skype. 

David Crystal via Norway on Skype

Audience enthralled by David Crystal

 Isn't technology marvellous? (Not without its issues however!)

Martin Hewings’ workshop on Best Practice in EAP Writing, went down really well also and gave an excellent insight into the requirements for delivering this kind of programme.

Martin Hewings

ELTS was very well represented in the other presentations (3 out or 12) with:

• ·         Neil Harris discussing the need to meet student needs and expectations in terms of IELTS preparation and the need for English for Academic Purposes,
• ·         Liz Stratton describing English for Specific Academic Purposes Presessional development
• ·         Jon Lishman showcasing ELTS' plans and developments in Curriculum Mapping, and Assessment and Feedback. These developments were described as “Jaw dropping” by more than one delegate.    

Sandy George also presented her SALT award winning poster on Portfolio Based Assessment, again causing much interest from delegates.

Assessment for Learning

Colleagues from Cambridge ESOL and Cambridge University Press were also delighted with the event and delegates took great pleasure in clearing out the selection of free publications.

Overall an excellent day for Learn English in Wales, ELTS and Swansea University, I have to thank all involved in the organisation of the day and especially the amazing team of people at English Language Training Services.

Learn English in Wales Conference Tomorrow

A BIG day for us tomorrow, ELTS is looking forward to welcoming around 130 delegates from all over Wales to the Promoting Best Practice in English Language Learning and Teaching Conference.

Preparations haven't been without their challenges and sadly David Crystal is unable to attend due to personal issues but he is will be delivering his plenary address via Skype.

The presentations from our other guests cover a interesting and varied range of topics that are current themes  within the field.

We'll be taking photos and videos of the day, and I'll be updating here.

Back to the preparations.

Conference Advertising

Cambridge University Press are now advertising the event too.

ELTS to Host Inaugural Learn English in Wales Conference

“Swansea University English Language Training Services is pleased to announce its hosting of the inaugural Learn English in Wales Consortium’s English Language Teaching Conference “Promoting Best Practice in English Language Learning and Teaching”.

The conference to be held in Swansea University’s  Emily Phipps Building at Hendrefoelan Student Village will welcome over 100 delegates and speakers on November 10^th 2012 and is sponsored by Cambridge University Press and supported by the British Council.

Learn English in Wales and Swansea University  are  very proud to report that it’s Keynote speaker will be the internationally acclaimed linguist David Crystal, who will also hold a 30 minute ‘Language Clinic’. 

Another esteemed guest will be Dr Martin Hewings from The University of Birmingham.

The conference will be the first of Its kind in Wales in as far as it will be hosted by Wales based English language providers and papers will be presented by professional practitioners from across  the Welsh  private and public sectors on topics relevant to current English language learning and teaching themes.”

This a really exciting event for us, not only as we’ll be the first hosts for what will hopefully become a regular activity but also because David Crystal will be our honoured Key Note Speaker , he has the event listed under forthcoming lectures on his blog. 

For many of us who have worked in English language teaching and training many of David Crystal’s publications have  been and continue to be  works that have guided our professional development and absolutely  essential reading , for professional practitioners.

For many of us he is the guru! I am really looking forward to meeting him.

The New Academic Year, Already? Surely Not!

Wow what happened to the summer? Not just the weather, which was terrible here in the UK but to the time! It seems like only yesterday I posted about how busy we were preparing to be.

Fortunately the hard work put into those preparations paid off.

ELTS had a fantastic summer, we welcomed and worked  closely with over 300 students across all of our programmes and from all parts of the world. All the programmes, again, proved really popular with our students and the positive feedback they have provided is a wonderful testament to the hard work of the teaching teams on the General and Law Presessional Programmes, English for University Studies 4 Programme, the General Intensive Summer Programme, The Premasters Programme for our colleagues in ICWS and the fantastic Hamburg Project.  I need to say a really big thank you to all staff involved in providing such an excellent experience of and great introduction to Swansea University and the City.

We don’t stop there though, oh no!

No sooner had the Presessional wrapped up for another year two of the ELTS team began delivery of our 3 week induction Presessional for students interested in getting an earlier insight into what Swansea University expects of them before their academic programmes start.

This Monday ( 24^th September)  ELTS welcomed 26 Vietnamese Government employees on the 165 Program to the Emily Phipps Building, they will be staying with us for the next 12 weeks to improve their language skills and get a better understanding of British Culture.

Before that on the Sunday evening I was Master of Ceremonies at the University’s Welcome Reception for all our International students,  we welcomed over 300 new students with traditional Welsh dancing and music provided by the Llanarthne Dancing Group everyone was encouraged to join in and learn the dances and the interest from everyone was fantastic even if it did cause some ‘traffic’ issues on the dance floor!

Traditional Welsh Costume

Chaos on the dance floor?

Just a few of our hard working student volunteers with Swansea's Vice Chancellor and Director off Student Services

So we are busy now already teaching on 3 different programmes and preparing for the start of our English for University Studies Programme 1 and  the influx of our new 2012-13 cohort of students, we are also gearing up the Academic Support Programme for new challenges as the programme, at long last, will now open to all students who have the ambition of achieving the best quality degree they are capable of.

I’m breathless just thinking about all this!

While the team is focusing on these preparations and activities I am also working on a number of  other projects which I am hoping to make some rather significant announcements about in the next couple of weeks, so watch this space!!

Exciting News

Swansea University's English Language Training Services is playing host to the Inaugural Learn English in Wales  conference 2012 and we are interested in receiving proposals from practitioners in the field for presentations and poster presentations all details can be found in the Call for Papers page of the website.

If you're an experienced teacher or trainer, just starting out in English language teaching or a new or old academic with something you'd like to share with other like minded professionals please send your proposals in. If you're just as passionate as us about providing the very best you can for your students, do not want to present but want to attend then have a look at the booking section.

You'll be very welcome whatever.

No Long Summer Vacation in University…..Summer Starts Today!

Delivering English for Academic Purposes programmes and being a department within a Higher Education Institution can be a little frustrating at this time of year.

Just as many parts of the University are quietening down and colleagues in academic colleges and departments are preparing to leave or have already left for the summer period, whether to pursue further research or long vacations, we get set for probably the busiest time of the year!

We opened our doors this week to welcome an influx of 160 (so far) students from all over the world preparing to embark on English language Presessional Programmes that will lead on to their academic undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in business, law, engineering, health related studies etc., on successful completion, in October.

We also welcomed a group of 51 young rugby players from Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland who are in Swansea with the Ospreys Rugby Club for a combined rugby coaching and English course, a group of German students who are with us for language and work experience and a small group of students who have come simply to enjoy learning English and investigate the wonders that Wales and Swansea have to offer.

Presessional Students Exploring The Gower Coast

For our Presessional students (and my teaching teams) the stakes are high and so is the workload over the next 9 weeks, as they get acclimatised to the expectations and culture of UK higher education and the culture of this, to them, very foreign country. They have 9 weeks to adapt to a whole new way of studying, cultural behaviours, pass a number of assessments, attend 200 hours of lectures and classes to successfully complete and thus ensure progression to their academic programmes. All in a language which is not only not their mother tongue but also (for our Asian and Middle Eastern students) completely different in terms of structure, vocabulary, grammar, orthography, style and conventions etc from their own.

It staggers me to think of how ambitious, brave and committed they are, imagine being from an English speaking culture and moving to China for the next 4 years to achieve academic success! I couldn’t now, never mind when I was in my late teens.

As teachers we have a huge responsibility to ensure they receive the very best support and service we can provide to facilitate their success and protect their well being, a responsibility we all take very seriously here at English Language Training Services.

It's going to be an incredibly busy, dynamic, fulfilling and potentially life changing experience for all of us, as it is every summer and that's the way we like it to be.

'The Times They Are A Changing'

'TEFL teachers' are a rare breed of folk and, in my experience, an extraordinarily eccentric, eclectic mix of individuals.  We have to be to choose to enter a profession that offers;

• mainly short term contracts
• itinerant /  migrant worker status especially at the outset of your career
• poor rates of pay, especially when starting out as a newly trained teacher and most especially in the UK (when compared to other professions)
• little chance of stable career paths
• few opportunities of  working long term in your country of origin

Outside the UK, there is a notably positive attitude (almost respect) for the native speaker English teacher, I do not feel this is so at home in the UK and certainly, perhaps until recently, not the case in Higher Education and this is mainly due to the image I portray above.

For most of my 20+ years in UK HE I have witnessed attitudes that have ranged from amusement and puzzlement to suspicion from my colleagues in Academia and I can not say I blame them when I think about how we end up in this profession.  I was working on a building site when I decided to train, and my motive was to travel the world with a transferable skill not to enter a profession!

In my experience it is a reasonably rare thing to be recognised by academia for our expertise, our dedication to the quality of provision for our students and for being the highly (multi) skilled professionals we are. However, with the recent focus of higher educational institutions on the 'Internationalisation Agenda',  English language professionals in the sector are increasingly being approached to engage with the academic community and administrative departments to provide input across a range of institutional developments and strategic agendas, which go far beyond the delivery of English language teaching to class groups of overseas students.

This increased, invited, engagement in the wider context inevitably leads to us (the ELT professionals) being able to showcase just how multi skilled we are and to offer to further share our expertise in an even wider context. We are after all, even without the academic background, pretty knowledgeable in cross cultural communication, (usually) very able trainers for other skills other than teaching language and have a wide  range of intercultural competencies that we are able to share with others.

Today has proven to be quite a momentous one for my department as two proposals put forward by ELTS' staff members for papers to be delivered at the Swansea Academy of Learning and Teaching's Excellence in Learning and Teaching Conference have been accepted by the selection panel.  One paper describes the highly successful Professional Development and Support Programme for International Staff, the other is on ELTS' work on the development and delivery of our  Portfolio Based Assessment Methodology.

You'll have to come to the conference for more information!

The success of getting these papers approved for the conference highlights just how far the reputation of the English language profession at Swansea University has risen over recent years, and this acknowledgement of our ambition for excellence in everything we strive to accomplish is hugely motivating for my team and should offer added confidence in us for our exceptional student body.

Thoughts on The Appropriacy of Assessment

For the past 22 years it (assessment) has been a constant issue and challenge in my work with English language learners. The truth is, and it is an accepted truth in my profession, that there is no better form of assessment or assessor than the skilled language teacher, we work closely and for extended periods of time with our learners and therefore get to know their abilities, capabilities and aptitudes and are therefore able to make far more detailed accurate judgements than any summative test ever could. However, this 'subjective' form of assessment has not and could not be recognised as entirely valid as none of the recognised criteria for the creation of  a valid test could be applied and ultimately the subjectivity could always be questioned.

Discussion of assessment in the form of formal examination has been an educational strategy driving theme ever since practical examinations to widen access to state employment were introduced in Imperial China approximately 2000 years ago. In the UK formal qualifying examinations were first introduced in the early nineteenth century, industrialisation had led to an ever expanding middle class who now realised that education was a means to improving social status and so encouraged their children to aim for the professions who, in tun, desired to control membership.  Formal examinations were subsequently introduced into the university system, and the educational system in general, as a major part of the selection process.

Historically assessment can be seen as a tool of social control and eduction is required to serve the particular values of the society in which it is placed.

What has always interested me is to what extent culture, both social and academic, affects the development of a particular form of assessment, we know that students are educated differently in different cultures and are also assessed differently; we regularly deal with students who have been accused of plagiarising or committing 'Unfair Practice' for activities which in their culture are acceptable, even required academic performance.

At ELTS we have been doing some ground breaking work over the last 18 months looking, especially, at how we can assess students in a way which provides them with a method with which they can engage, in terms of their reflection on the learning process, providing detailed feedback that offers clearly defined stepping stones to their progress and which allows a great deal of formative and self assessment take place along the way to summative final assessment, and at the same time meeting the requirements of the academic culture in which they have chosen to study.

While engaged in some background reading on this subject I came across the following quotation which I think perfectly supports my introduction and now has a place on my office wall as a constant reminder of the potential pitfalls that need to be reviewed as we meet the ambitions of the direction we are moving in.

A response from the Indians of the Six Nations, 1744, to a suggestion that their send boys to an American College.

“But you, who are wise, must know, that different Nations have different Conceptions of things and you will therefore not take it amiss, if our ideas of this Kind of education happen to not be the same as yours. We have had some Experience of it. Several of our young people were formerly brought up at the Colleges of the Northern Provinces: they were instructed in all your Sciences; but when they came back to us, they were Bad Runners, ignorant of every means of living in the woods....neither fit for Hunters, Warriors, nor Counsellors, they were totally good for nothing.

We are, however, not the less oblig’d by your kind Offer, tho we decline accepting it: and, to show our Grateful Sense of it, if the Gentlemen of Virginia will send us a Dozen of their Sons, we will take Care of their Education, instruct them in all we know, and Make Men of them.” 

(Clark.J 1987. Curriculum Renewal in School Foreign Language Learning. Preface)

The Joys and Rewards Working in English Language Teaching!

I've been involved in English language teaching and training for the last 22 years and hardly has a day gone by that has not provided me with tremendous rewards in one way or another for the work I do.

Those who know anything about the EFL world will know that financial reward can not be the main driver for working in this field, far from it, most English language professionals are compensated quite poorly in comparison with other professions, this is especially true if they work in the UK. Working overseas is different, a properly qualified native English speaking teacher will nearly always earn around the average national wage if not just above it for the country they are working in, but it is rare to be in a position where you are able to save money to return to the UK with.

I believe the rewards we get are nearly always far less tangible than the monetary, I don't mean altruistically either as seeking a reward for yourself could not be described as such.  The rewards that give me a sense of fulfilment, achievement and satisfaction with the world come from the realisation that others have been positively affected by my actions, Mike's story in my last post is a wonderful example of this.

As a teacher of language we are rewarded on a daily basis when we see one of our students better positioned to take on the everyday activities that we take for granted, in our language, as a result of participating in our classes e.g. asking for directions, opening a bank account or simply walking around a supermarket able to read and understand the contents of packages that contain products which are completely alien to them.

My role these days necessitates that I teach far less than I would really like to but I consider myself extraordinarily privileged to now be in a position, working with an incredibly talented team of colleagues, that can impact positively on the students who study here in ELTS and the wider institution and so continue to enjoy the rewards that fulfil me.

Here is an example of such a reward, this is an extract from a blog written by a current student who wishes to remain anonymous but has agreed to let me use it here and for that I am very grateful to the student.
I look forward to celebrating with her/ him at the Graduation ceremony in a year or so!

"Some notes of my educational journey.. 

I am a firm believer that' ' Success is a journey, not a destination'', I decided to travel to UK. After long months of preparation, and as soon as I received my confirmation letter to study English at Swansea University, I went there with a little knowledge taken from some websites of I will see and confront, it is a totally different culture..

Actually the first thing which can be described as a huge gate ofUK was Hethrow Airport, with all its pretty organization, attracted my attention. Along the way to Swansea, I was fascinated by the beautiful natural scenes with wide green spaces and some lakes and rivers here and there , though I was shaken of cold weather, it was January. But also that cold weather had a special taste of mystery.  

The chains of surprises never ends, when I arrived to my flat at Marina, the scent of the sea refreshed me, because the balcony was overlooking the sea,,Yes..!! It was the day before my first school day at '' ELTS ''- English Language Training Services- , and I had to sleep very well..

With the singing of the birds on three beside my bedroom, I thought that would an encouraging start of my day. While I was preparing myself for going to ELTS, I was so enthusiastic about the idea of starting my long '' journey'' of '' success''- I hope..!

 I reached my destination -ELTS-, the huge- two floor-building on a small hill surrounded with an amazing nature. Although I thought I was earlier, many students were already there earlier than me, not only me who was enthusiastic..!

We were informed that will be a placement test in order to put students in levels according to their grade in that test, I was in level 4. Then, we completed our enrollment procedures with the help of lovely teachers- Jo, Lisa, Kate, Neal and Lucy. Those were just the first teachers I met on my first day.

Here, I would really speak about that place. So, I will start - not by describing policy initiative- but by describing the characteristics of what I think most of previous and current students would agree would be a high quality educational experience. I am going to ask you to imagine with me, if you will, an institution for English Language Training:

- where multi-national students were gathered in one place because of their confidence in that place abilities to give them what they want to complete their studies smoothly.

- where a lot of facilities were available for academic use, from well-prepared classes, miners library with many services involving quite places for study, network and most importantly librarians ready to help at any time.

- where teachers follow a specific strategy to deal with the courses, using variable teaching methods in order to convey the information to the student in a kind of constant process of learning. They always seem busy, their offices full of piles of papers and students` assignments, but with a smile on their faces, they tell us indirectly that they love their job.  

- where the head of ELTS- Kevin- with his small office directs this organization of teaching and learning with a high sense of responsibility with every member related to that building. Honestly, I was shocked when I first enter his office with my teacher Kate, with the small space of his office. That situation in some conveys an important message of being modest and highly practical to reach success..

- And finally, and most importantly, an institution where relationships are understood to be the key to good outcomes. Every employer is there to support students, know them, advocate them, inspire them and love them. All of the institution`s schedules, policies, assessments and standards are captive to this idea- the primacy of relationships-and not as is so often the case, the other way around.

These were how I used to see that place since three months until now. I am still following my dream, and with all the experience I have acquired from ELTS, I will continue my journey of ''Success'' towards the university.."

Who wouldn't want a career in English Langauge teaching?

I had to share this with the world, this is a short history of a person I am proud to call a friend. When I visited and lived with him in Zhuzhou City, last month, I asked him to write a short text about his experience since completing his CELTA with us at Swansea University, this is what he provided me with. An inspiration? If I wasn't an English teacher I think I'd want to be one after reading this! 

"My Experience of CELTA and TEFL teaching 

 All my life I have wanted to live and work abroad. I have a brother eight years older than me and when I was nine years old he left home and for twenty years he travelled the world. He periodically came home and told his little brother of the wonderful experiences he was having in all these foreign lands. I spent my youth dreaming of doing the same. However at fourteen I was labelled a defeatist and lived up to this self- fulfilling prophecy and at the age of thirty one I hadn’t succeeded in accomplishing anything worthwhile in my life let alone my dream. To cut a long story short I had experienced a breakdown in my value system which could not comprehend the pitiful demoralisation I was experiencing. I had adopted a lot of conceived values from others and ended up bankrupt in all areas of my life, mentally, physically and spiritually. I was close minded and unwilling to learn and had no concept of how to create a life for myself. 

When I was twenty six someone entered my life, who has been, and still is a great inspiration, teacher and friend to me. At that time he was unemployed, like me. He told me he was going to train as a Teacher of English as a foreign language at Swansea University by doing a CELTA course. 

 In the space of twelve years he had risen up the career ladder in the Centre of applied languages at (CALS) at Swansea University. Periodically, during the years of 2001-2005 he suggested that I train as teacher in his department at Swansea. I believe he could see something in me that I was unable to see myself. I declined every time until I eventually agreed to apply and to my great surprise they accepted this painter and decorator without a University degree onto the CELTA course at Swansea in July 2005. I was going to be a student again at the age of forty! 

 The Course 

There were eighteen people, all different ages and from different walks of life, on the course. The first morning we spent getting to know each other with Ice breaker exercises and a general introduction to the course. In the afternoon we had our first “teaching experience”, some peer teaching to the other students and the trainers on the course. I was terrified, I had never done anything like this before. However, it was a really fun afternoon teaching some basic things like the time, numbers 1-10, colours etc. I survived and thoroughly enjoyed my first teaching experience. 

 We were informed that the course would stretch us to mental and physical limits that we probably hadn’t experienced before. They were not joking. On the second day we were allocated our peer groups for our teaching practice, three groups of six, which we were to spend the next month together helping and supporting each other for our practice. There were three levels of students who we would be teaching: Pre- intermediate, Intermediate and upper Intermediate. The Students were actually foreign nationals who lived in the Swansea area and were offered free English lessons to be our students for our teaching practice in the afternoons. 

The course was split into two parts. In the mornings we were the students with our excellent trainers, Kevin, Peter, Emma, Jo, Lucy and Lisa delivering intensive lessons that covered all areas of EFL teaching to us. These included: Grammar, Vocabulary, methodology, lesson planning, phonology, games and songs, using video, error correction, types of learner and learner needs, classroom management, concept checking, reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. 

Then in the afternoons we were to use these lessons to help us in our afternoon teaching practice. As the course was four weeks and there were three levels of students the level you started with on the first week would be the level you finished the fourth week with. My group started with the pre intermediate level and unfortunately one of our peers dropped out of the course on the second day which reduced us to five. 

To be honest I struggled in the first two weeks of the course. I couldn’t seem to get it, but a great debt of gratitude goes out to my trainers and my peers who helped me through this difficult period. I suffered a lot of sweat and tears. Then after my mid- course appraisal with my trainer something clicked in my mind and everything became clear. I threw myself wholeheartedly into the course and fought it through unstintingly to its conclusion and I believe won a struggle to enlarge myself. 

 In the third week I grew in confidence and felt very comfortable in my teaching and believe I was becoming a kind of facilitator to the students learning. My good friend who I mentioned earlier was my trainer during this week and his observations and feedback of my teaching, even though I felt they were harsher as we were friends, have become invaluable to my experience of being a teacher and I sometimes hear his comments in my head today that still help me. 

In the fourth week my group returned to the Pre Intermediate students and it was a wonderful experience being reunited with them. I had grown as a teacher and the students level of English had greatly improved in a short space of time. The first week we were planning individual lessons that lasted twenty minutes. We had now progressed to planning with our peers a series of sixty minute lessons. I was becoming more confident each day and I even volunteered for extra lessons to fill in for the peer who dropped out. After passing through many storms, suffering some defeats and incredible insomnia the course was coming to its conclusion and I was given the fantastic news that I had passed the teaching component of the course. It was one of the happiest days of my life. 

 Subsequently, as part of the course there were two written assignments: 

•  A self- evaluation. Me as a learner on the course ( 1500 words) 
•  A case study of a learner. I chose a female student from the Middle East. This involved a taped conversation with the learner and a 1500 word study of them as a learner. Their needs and some problems they have in learning English and how I as a teacher could help them overcome these problems. 

 We were given a week at the end of the course to complete the assignments before submitting them. I spent a week, day and night, on my PC completing these assignments and sent them off in hope to the University. Six weeks later I received a certificate from Swansea University stating that I had passed the Post graduate certificate in teaching English as a foreign language. Yes!!!! 

 This course helped me without a shadow of a doubt to open the heavy door to life. It wasn't easy, indeed it was one of the hardest tasks, but one of the most satisfying I have ever accomplished. For opening the door to your own life is more difficult than opening the door to the mysteries of the Universe. But, the act of opening the door validated my existence as a human being .  No one is lonelier or unhappier than the person who does not know the pure joy of creating a life for themselves. The CELTA certainly enabled me to begin to create a life for myself. I returned to my job as a painter and sent off many applications for teaching positions. 

After three months I landed my first teaching job. I was going to work for Her Majesty in one of her establishments on the small island of Portland in Dorset, HMP The Verne a category “c” prison for medium risk offenders. I was employed on a six month contract as cover for a teacher on maternity leave. It was certainly an interesting baptism into the World of TEFL teaching. This was October 2005 and I have very fond memories of some of the students, Alex from Romania, Pavel from Poland, Carlos from Columbia to name a few. Some of these students were murderers and here I was standing in front of them on our first day of class a little anxious and scared to say the least. In fact it turned out to be a wonderful experience and I believe it certainly aided in my ability to manage a classroom. There were constant disruptions in the lessons and on many occasions I had to press the panic button for the security forces armed with guns to enter the class and dispel the near riots about to happen. On the whole the students were very keen to learn English and I was actually asked to teach extra lessons to individual students. In April 2006 I and many students were quite emotional when I left. I often ponder what they are doing. It is a wonderful feeling and a great gift to have some effect to aid in the change and course of someone’s life. 

In the summer of 2006 I experienced my first Summer school for the Salisbury School of English at Weymouth, Dorset. Teaching Spanish, Chinese and Italian teenagers on three, two week General English courses. This consisted of English lessons in the morning, games and activities in the afternoon, social evenings and trips to local tourist attractions and London on the weekends. Not only is it a great job being a TEFL teacher it also helps to make wonderful friendships. I am still in contact with some students from this summer school, Valeria and Claudia from Vicenza, Italy and Javier from Madrid, Spain. 

After the summer school I returned to painting for a few months and then out of the blue I received a phone call from my friend at Swansea University inviting me to work there for a ten week period. I thought it was a joke, but he was serious. Me working at University? 

In January 2007 I relocated to Swansea and began my employment as a fixed term tutor on a 10 week EUS (English for University Studies), course. An IELTS based course designed for non- native speakers of English who need to improve their level of an English to a level that enables them to enter the university as a full time student. It was wonderful to be reunited with my CELTA trainers and to be working alongside them. This was a great opportunity to further my career and was a very valuable learning experience for me.

The ten weeks turned into seven months and sadly due to the onset of the financial crisis and drop in student numbers I was laid off. It was suggested that I apply for a teaching position abroad. But where to go? One of the receptionists at CALS forwarded an email to me, it was a job description from a private language school in Pribram, a town an hour outside Prague in the Czech Republic. Maybe this was the path that would lead me to work and live abroad? After a few emails between the owner of the School, Katerina Klimova and myself I flew to Prague and on to Pribram for the interview.

The package was very good and after consulting with a few people I duly accepted the job. After an emotional farewell at Swansea I left the shores of the UK at Dover in August 2007 for the short ferry trip to Calais and so began my adventure as a TEFL teacher abroad. I had ten days before I started my new job and spent a wonderful time driving through Europe, with two girls from the Czech Republic as passengers, camping in France, Belgium and Germany before arriving in Pribram.

I was the first native English speaker to be employed by the School, so the students were very excited about my arrival. The school helped me settle into my new accommodation, a new self contained furnished flat on the weekend and I started work in my first teaching job abroad on the following Monday. I stayed in Pribram for one academic year and taught a variety of classes from pre intermediate general English classes to CAE exam preparation classes at the school only a ten minute walk from where I was living. These classes ranged in ages from teenagers to adults. I also taught in-company classes at various companies in and on the outskirts of Pribram. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and I certainly grew as a teacher. I was extremely busy working but it was also very important to enjoy my free time. I had learnt to snowboard a few years earlier and knew Central and Eastern Europe had a lot of snow so I was looking forward to the winter months to explore the ski resorts in the Czech Republic. Just one hour south from Pribram lay the Sumova mountains and two hours to the North were the Krconise (Giant) mountains. I spent many a weekend by myself and with friends I had made staying in quaint little cottages in the mountains. I tried cross country skiing but it wasn't for me. 

At the end of my contract in June, before driving back across Europe to Wales to work in the Summer for ten weeks at Swansea University in a similar role as before I had decided it was time to move to the big city in Prague. A friend and a student, Lenka offered me a flat to rent just outside the centre in a beautiful location called Podoli. I had somewhere to live now I needed a job. A very good friend of mine who was director of studies at a small private language school (P.A.R.K. school of English) in Prague offered me a position as a teacher for the following academic year . It was a wonderful year working at this school. A very warm, friendly atmosphere and the relationship with staff and students was like a family. There were about fifteen full time teachers and we formed very good friendships that are still strong to this day. I am going to a wedding in the Czech Republic this year for two teachers who met each other there. Even though the school was relatively small it had a great reputation in Prague and many of the students returned year after year because of the excellent service they received. However as we were a small operation, we only had nine classrooms and could have easily filled another nine if we had the space, we relied heavily on in- company classes and Tesco was our biggest customer providing us with 40% of our annual business. The financial crisis was starting to affect Central Europe and in January 2009 Tesco stopped their English language lessons for their employees and ended their contract with us. This was devastating to PARK school and sadly after nine very successful years of operation the owner had to close the school. It was a very sad day at the end of term garden party in June with many students and teachers shedding tears.

I had long before this fallen in love with the Czech Republic, the culture and the traditions. So here I was almost forty five, unemployed again and living in a foreign country, but I wasn't anxious of not gaining employment. I believe that I had acquired a set of skills that would be an asset to a language school. I needed to gain employment for an organisation that would survive or not be too badly affected by the financial crisis. I applied to one of the largest organisations in the World for teaching languages, International House, and I got offered a salaried position with then in September 2009. This was a much bigger operation with over seventy teachers working for them. IH at least in Prague are a very professional organisation. The training and development that was on offer to employed teachers was excellent. As I was a new teacher with them I was given a lot of in- company classes travelling around the beautiful city of Prague on the wonderful tram system ( in 2010 Prague was voted the 3rd best city in Europe for its integrated transport system). I was given a few classes at school, mainly Cambridge FCE and CAE exam preparation classes. I can honestly say that all my students that took these exams passed. Every Friday we had a meeting with our respective Dos which was followed by professional development workshops.. There were also a lot of training courses on offer and if you were employed by IH you could get a 90% discount. An offer to good to refuse. In my first year with them I obtained the IHBET (International house certificate in teaching business English). Towards the end of the academic year I started teaching young learners to make up my hours to the required 26 per week which I thoroughly enjoyed, but felt I didn't have enough experience or the necessary skills to teach them effectively. In May 2010 I was offered the opportunity to stay on with them for another year and to choose my own schedule. I duly accepted without any hesitation. To round off the twelve month contract I spent a wonderful three weeks on a residential summer camp in Southern Bohemia with a hundred and twenty children and teenagers from Prague and IH Bucharest. 

My teaching schedule for the second year was much more user friendly, mainly due to the great relationship I had with the staff in the logistics office. I had many more classes at school ranging from young learners to adult exam preparation and conversation classes and only a few in-company classes. I also obtained the IHCYL ( International House certificate in teaching young learners) which was/is a great asset to my teaching of children.

In January 2012 my friend from Swansea University called me and asked me if I would like to work in China for one year, on a collaborative teaching programme between Swansea University and Yandi Institute in Zhuzhou City, Hunan province.. Bin Chen, the owner of Yandi Institute's son had studied at Swansea's English language department and after graduating from his Masters degree had stayed on at the University & had formed an excellent relationship with the Head of the English Language Training Services department and over the following years the possibility of this collaborative programme had developed and was now coming to fruition. 

I had to seriously consider the proposition. As well as loving working for IH, living in Prague had given me the opportunity to visit many of Europe’s great cities such as Berlin, Vienna, Bucharest, Bratislava, Krakow to name a few. I did accept the job , the compensation package was excellent and to spend one year in one of the most interesting countries in the World was too great an opportunity to miss out on and after all it was just for one year. 

I left IH Prague on very good terms with the management and if the opportunity arose In the future I would be welcomed back with open arms. 

 I am writing this on Tuesday 3rd April, with three weeks left on my contract. It has been an absolutely fantastic, unforgettable experience living and working in this enormous country. I had some experience of teaching Chinese students but I don’t think you can prepare yourself for China. When I first arrived I thought I was on another planet, literally. It was so different from everything that I was used to. The sheer size of the place overwhelmed me, the amount of people was incredible, I live in Zhuzhou city, a population of 3.5 million the same as my country of birth, Wales, and this is a small city in comparison to Beijing or Shanghai. 

It took some time to get used to the very strange aromas that overpower you at times and the constant staring from everybody, young and old was very strange. 

 I was part of a team of five. A director, A deputy director and three senior teachers of which I was one. One senior teacher left after a week for reasons I am unsure of and the Director was removed from his position after 2 months for being incompetent at his job. 

This meant we were very short staffed for the scheduled teacher training workshops for Chinese teachers of English to be held here at Yandi. However we managed and then thirteen students from Swansea University came over for twelve weeks to assist in the summer camp and to deliver lessons to a state middle school in Zhuzhou. I felt overall they did a wonderful job and had a wonderful experience. 

Since October I have been working at Number Four Middle School delivering oral English classes to senior 1 and senior 2 level students (fifteen and sixteen year old ). The class sizes are on average forty five coupled with the fact Chinese students are very shy and I teach them for just forty five minutes every fortnight it has been a difficult, at times frustrating, but overall a truly gratifying experience. The Education system here is so different from the UK. Students start school at 7.15 and finish at 9pm at night and even attend school on Sundays also the amount of homework they are given by teachers of other subjects makes me want to weep at times. They work so hard as there is so much pressure on them to succeed. They have been fantastic to me and I hope I have been to them. I have over the last six months tried to deliver light hearted, interesting lessons to improve their speaking skills. There has been a vast amount of fun and laughter in the lessons. To quote a person I met on the bus the other day, she said she knew of me as she used to work at the school before I got there and one of the current teachers at the school, her friend told her that  "they have a very handsome teacher from Wales who is very funny and brings a ray of sunshine into the students life” What a beautiful thing for someone to say about you. 

I also had the opportunity of living out one of my ambitions to travel across China to Tibet by train. It took three days and was just amazing and Tibet is a truly remarkable place that didn't dispel my expectations. I am travelling to Beijing next week for a brief visit as I couldn’t leave without sitting on the Great wall. 

I am leaving this amazing country on April 27th and returning to the UK for the summer before moving to take up another teaching position in Southern Spain with my girlfriend, hopefully soon to be my wife, from the Czech Republic. Today and for the last six years I have been living my dream." 

Mike Anslow

Home, Happy and Busy.

Well it's the start of my second week back at home and even though I have great memories and had a wonderful time in China, it already seems a long time ago and I'm very happy to be home.

We were welcomed back to Wales by beautiful sunny, warm weather , some really good swell ( I was surfing 7 hours after getting home!)

The welcoming waves 24th March picture by Claire Beach

3 Cliffs Bay Sunday 1st April

Sunny morning view from the living room.

Fall Bay Saturday 30th March

Early Morning on Swansea Beach 28th March

One of the biggest surprises after getting back was just how quiet everything is here, I didn't really notice the noise of China, the constant thrumming of humanity all around you at all hours, car horns, people shouting vehicle engines etc. but while walking Roger in the park early last Monday morning I was struck by just how quiet the world was!  Only the sounds of birds and the occasional car on the Mumbles Road, it was quite a surprise and made me realise how startling it is for my students when they arrive in Swansea especially after living their entire lives in the mega cities like Beijing.

Work is as busy as ever, just the way I like it and it is really good to back with my colleagues here, I'm in the middle of writing up my China Trip report, a business plan outlining how ELTS will contribute to delivering the University's  strategic plan, a paper proposing the delivery of our English test overseas, and working with various stakeholders to put the plan for Hunan Province into action amongst other things.

Today we welcomed our Semester 3 intake of students, some returning and some having just arrived in Swansea and the UK for the first time,  all joining us from all over the world including China, and Jack who I met at his parents restaurant in Zhuzhou City is here.

Two of my team are heading out to the Yandi Institute at the end of the month to work with the team there in delivering 10 weeks of Teacher Training Workshops to local Chinese junior school English teachers.

The Bird's Nest, Water Cube and Temple of Heaven!

Yet another glorious day in Beijing, clear skies and cold but dry and quite comfortable. We started off with a visit to the site of the 2008 Olympics, and a stroll around the Birds Nest Stadium. The structure is as fascinating up close as it is from a distance.

Family Nest

Snowy Stadium Panorama

 The Water Cube equally impressive in its design. We spent a couple of hours here taking in the sights and the information provided by various multimedia formats. Then off for lunch in a very authentic eaterie, very cheap and very good, always go where the locals go you know you'll get great vfm, even if you have no idea what you're ordering! After lunch we visited the Temple of Heaven, the largest sacrifice temple in China, it was too big for words that are made up of mainly superlatives!

 After another 8 hours spent walking we crashed out early to re-energise for Today's visit to Beijing's biggest themes park.

Foot Massage

 Happy Valley wasn't looking as happy as the name suggested, out of season it is very quiet which was great for getting on the bonkers crazy roller coasters, I didn't queue more than 5 minutes for any, unfortunately neither Deb or Sen fancied the rides so I went solo! Biggest Child in the theme park in more ways than one!

The Sky Ride

 Sennen again proved to be more of an attraction than the attractions with crowds of kids and young women all wanting photos with him. It is starting to wear thin for him now.

Me ready for take off in the front seat.

 It's 16.30 now and Sen and I are chilling drinking Jasmine tea on the 16th floor while Deb is in her theme park, Beijing Macaua Plaza Shopping Mall! We're off to a Kung Fu Show tonight to finish this great visit off in style.

Sen and Deb Go Extreme!

 The Kung Fu Show was astonishing, without doubt the best theatre experience I've ever had, we all sat opened mouthed for the full 90 minutes, and wanted it to go on for another 90! No photos allowed so these are web advertisements.

Today has been very relaxed, late breakfast, Deb went shopping, Sen and I went to the gym and for a swim.  Then off for a massage for Sen and me and a manicure for Deb.

Trawl around the tat market having fun bartering for 'best price' and now all packed and ready for the off tomorrow.

Can not wait to get home sometime Sunday evening.

I've been away too long!

And all the roads that lead you there are winding

"I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me And after all, you're my wonderwall" Nothing more to say the pictures tell it all!

 Sen's New Friends!

 Breaktime

 Panorama displaying 1 millionth of what's available!

 Never ending

We walked no more than a mile, well Sen and I walked no more than a mile, Deb sat and waited after about .5 of a mile!  This was a really tough section of the Wall, with almost vertical steps and smooth slopes that were at least 60 degrees, some of the footings were quite treacherous where the snow and ice hadn't melted. It was pretty hard going for all of us and we were definitely feeling the effects this morning.

On getting back to Beijing we went for a lovely dinner followed by a family foot massage at a traditional Chinese spa, that took the aches away.

Lazy Day, Relaxing and Rickshaw Racing.

Last night was brilliant in a good way not in a shock or surprise wa .  Bo a long time acquaintance and all round good friend and his assistant Lucy took us out for a meal at his favourite restaurant.  Deb and Sen loved it as the food in this part of China is much less spicy than in Hunan province, they were able to eat everything not just try it and then take a glug of juice to cool their tongues down!

Sennen is amazing everyone with the way he eagerly tries everything (well everything that looks edible, he drew the line at the sea cucumber in Zhuzhou!), he particularly enjoyed the Beijing Duck and the Deep Fried Prawn & Horseradish Sauce Balls.

After dinner Bo took us to one of his Spas where we had the most amazing lavender oil deep massage, it was sensational.  If you’re ever in Beijing you have to visit ‘Hummingbird’ Wellness Spa No6 Chaowai Da Jie, Central Park Tower 26, Unit 103 Chaoyang District 100020 Beijing. Tell them Mr Kevin sent you.........It won’t get you a discount but it will present a few minutes of comedy as the lovely staff try to work out what you’re on about!

Today has been spent totally chilling, late breakfast in the executive bar on the top floor, overlooking the Forbidden City!  Sen and I took a stroll around, exploring the side streets while Deb went back to bed, then Sen and I had a running vs Cycling race in the gym (first to 5km) he beat me by 15 minutes! It did me good as I ran the 5km in 25minutes which is a personal best!  We jumped in the pool then to cool off.

Deb was up and about by the time we got back to the room so we went out for lunch, found a stunning noodle bar that offers the healthiest menu I’ve ever seen.  All kinds of lovely fresh veg noodle soups etc.

After lunch we headed off the nearest Hutong, an area of the city where the everyday people of Beijing live within the city’s central district, the fun touristy way to get around is by rickshaw.  After negotiating the many touts who approach claiming to be students wanting to practice English who then go on to tempt you to their local art exhibition, we easily found a rickshaw owner who was very eager to take our business ...... huh.... if only I’d thought harder about this........ we set off in two rickshaws as one is not big enough for three people. It was an interesting ride, especially negotiating the traffic before entering the hutong proper.

At tour end the pair of drivers demanded 600RMB for the 20 minute ride! I refused but realised that I was in a situation that would be difficult to negotiate out of, with Deb and Sen with me, and another local had joined in to help, I held out and paid 100 less than they asked.  My mistake her was not confirming the price before getting on, a mistake I knew I’d made just after setting off.  The tour was fun anyway and we all really enjoyed it.

We walked back to the hotel through the side streets experiencing the lively ‘real’ side of this gigantic metropolis.  I’ve chosen the hotel well it is bang in the centre of the city with many of the main tourist destinations within walking distance.

Tomorrow we’re off to the Great Wall and Ming’s Tomb, I CAN NOT wait, it has the potential to be mind blowing as there has been a fair fall of snow further out of the city.  The Great Wall is an unforgettable experience when hot and sunny, with snow on the mountains .......well.....you can tell how excited I am!

 Emperor Ming Memorial Temple

 Backstreet Beijing