Meet Our Trainers

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Linda Herbert

Linda Herbert

Academic Manager

Linda's love of language and has taught EFL learners at several universities in South Africa, USA and Canada.

"Linda loves the challenge of helping students understand and use English in a variety of contexts."

Linda started teaching English for Academic Purposes in 1992. In 1993, she started teaching Business English courses to EFL and ESL learners. She has also taught EFL learners at several universities in South Africa, USA and Canada. She loves the challenge of helping students understand and use English in a variety of contexts; and finds it very rewarding to see new teachers develop a passion for their job.

Linda loves travelling, and has visited Europe, the Middle East, Canada, the United States of America and the United Kingdom. When not teaching or travelling, Linda loves helping animal rescue organisations, and has a passion for Zumba dancing.

Luan Midgely

Luan Midgely

Senior TEFL Trainer

Luan is a Language Practitioner and certified ESL instructor.

"I believe that the best way to effectively train aspiring teachers is to be myself, immersed in the environment."

She has worked in the publishing industry as a researcher and writer but her love for the English language has ultimately led her into the classroom. After gaining experience at the top language schools in Cape Town, she went on to become the Head Teacher of a well-known English institution. This is where she discovered and practised her passion for teacher training. She now runs the TEFL courses for The TEFL Academy in Cape Town and continues to teach second language learners – both in the classroom and online. She believes that the best way to effectively train aspiring teachers is to be herself immersed in the environment – giving them first-hand insight into the ESL classroom.

When she isn’t teaching, she reads, writes and spends time with her family and friends.

Judy Alden

Judy Alden

Senior TEFL Trainer

Judy has 16 years of experience teaching EFL/ESL.

"I have a keen interest in supporting both new and experienced teachers."

Judy Alden has taught English as a Foreign Language for over 16 years around the globe (Asia, Europe and North America) to young children, teenagers and adult learners from absolute beginner to advance EFL students in a wide range of contexts. As a teacher trainer, she has a keen interest in supporting both new and experienced teachers so they can strategically assist their non-native English speaking students with their language learning process. Judy is also involved with the writing of English language assessments from A1 to C2 CEFR levels with an internationally recognised language assessment provider.

Mark Hurney

Mark Hurney

Senior TEFL Trainer

Mark had a career in law before wandering off to teach on 5 continents.

"The best thing he did in teacher development was learning another language"

He’s taught all ages across the range of levels from true beginners to proficiency.  After 17 years of teaching general, professional and academic English, he still yearns for those lower levels where students bloom.  He claims the best thing he did in teacher development was learn another language.  He loves coffee, running and David Attenborough.

Tiffany Probasco

Tiffany Probasco

Senior TEFL Trainer

Tiffany started her TEFL career in Barcelona, Spain.

"I realized that being an EFL/ESL instructor was what I wanted to do with the rest of my life"

She originally thought that teaching English would just be her gateway to international living, but only after a few months of teaching, she realized that being an EFL/ESL instructor was what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. After living in Spain for almost 2 years as a TEFL instructor, Tiffany decided to return to the US to continue her education by getting a Master’s degrees in Adult Education and later in Applied Linguistics. Currently, she is an academic English specialist and teaches English composition courses for international college students at a state university. She also works directly with educators at Master’s degree and practitioner levels as a teacher trainer. She hopes that by sharing her passion for teaching will inspire new teachers to continue to grow as educators.

Lisa Topolniski

Lisa Topolniski

TEFL Trainer

Lisa has worked in the English Language Learning and Training sectors for over 25 years, with 14 experience as a trainer for different Cambridge Teacher Training Courses, and over 13 years working in varying capacities in the IELTS realm

"I am passionate about the relationship between language and culture and the means by which people choose to express themselves. "

Lisa has both CELTA and DELTA, and  attained her M.A. in TESOL and Applied Linguistics from the University of Leicester, with her dissertation titled: An Evaluation of the Endangerment Level of the Henqeminiem Dialect Spoken by First Nations Communities in Vancouver. Lisa’s expertise in teacher training coupled with her in-depth understanding of IELTS has allowed her to assist a wide rand of trainers, teacher and students. In her free time, she is enthusiastic about exploring new countries, going on road trips and being in nature with her 7-year old son and partner.

Ian Appleby

Ian Appleby

TEFL Trainer

Ian has taught in amazing places such has Russia, Malaysia and Vietnam

"I’m excited by the way in which teaching can help everyone to realise their maximum potential, and by the power of language to build bridges and foster cross-cultural communication. "

Working as an EFL teacher has allowed Ian to explore both those functions, as well as giving him the opportunity to live and work in some amazing places, such as Russia, Malaysia and Vietnam. Ian obtained his first teaching qualification in 1994, and since then he has accrued many years experience teaching a wide range of learners in a variety of contexts. Ian really enjoys the opportunity to share that experience and to accompany trainee teachers on their first steps in a journey that he hopes will be at least as exciting and fulfilling as his career continues to be.”
Harvey O'Leary

Harvey O'Leary

TEFL Trainer

Harvey has been teaching for over twenty years and has worked as a Director of Studies at a private Language School and for seven years was Head of English at a Further Education college in London.

"I like to make the teacher training course fun and interactive"

His career has included work in Ireland, France and Greece and, apart from TEFL teaching, he has worked in school management and quality assurance. Harvey likes to make the teacher training course fun and interactive and to give trainees as many opportunities as possible to practice and develop the skills that they will use in their future teaching practice.

Nicholas Edwards

Nicholas Edwards

TEFL Trainer

Nicholas has 12 years of classroom experience in various educational settings and is currently the Director of Studies at ILC Bristol

"I believe that the key to successful learning is to build a strong rapport with learners and tap into the life experience that they bring. "

Nicholas started his career teaching science in a secondary school in England and completed a PGCE in 2010. After deciding to move into English Language Teaching, he did a CELTA in London and subsequently spent 3 years there teaching a range of courses and students, from absolute beginners to proficiency-level learners. Nicholas also became a course leader for IELTS and ran the social programme. From there, he moved to Australia and then finally to Spain, where he completed the Cambridge Delta. This led to teacher training and management roles. He was also a speaking examiner for the Cambridge English language exams.
Nicholas has a lot of experience mentoring new teachers and helping them develop the skills required to create student-led content and emergent language in the classroom. He has been mainly influenced by the Lexical Approach and Dogme, preferring not to rely overly on elaborate or generic printed and digital materials. He believes there are no better resources than the teacher and students themselves.
Delia Ortega

Delia Ortega

TEFL Trainer

Delia Ortega was born and raised in NYC and moved to Barcelona in 2006, leaving her job as a Corporative Lawyer and College English Professor new beginnings. Following her passion for teaching, she opened her own English center in 2015, and currently serves as the founder and director of it.

"Being able to teach another human being how to communicate in a different tongue is like magic. Granting another the gift of speaking a new language makes a long-term difference in a person's life like nothing else can."

Delia found success in her students’ ability to speak English by applying a peculiar approach to learning a new language: no books! By forcing students to communicate in their own words without relying on textbooks, Delia has managed to teach over 1,000 of her students how to speak English. Her promise? You will leave her first class speaking English (even if not perfectly at first).

Her background in law and experience teaching for various Universities has given Delia the ability to tailor each course to a specific student’s needs. Whether it is preparing a businessman for an interview, or for a business meeting or presentation; helping a college student excel in an official English exam, or simply preparing a traveler with confidence for an upcoming trip overseas; Delia prides herself in knowing that she can apply pertinent content to each class.

So, why did a lawyer and businesswoman become an English teacher? You may ask. Her answer is simple: Being able to teach another human being how to communicate in a different tongue is like magic. Granting another the gift of speaking a new language makes a long-term difference in a person’s life like nothing else can. She considers making a student realize their own potential and learning that they are more resilient than they ever thought possible to be the greatest joy of teaching. “They teach me as much as I teach them”, she says.

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