Staff Interview with Anna Stubbs
Get to know Oxford TEFL's staff!
After graduating in Business and Spanish and working in a variety of jobs in London Anna discovered TEFL in 2000. She then did her Dip TESOL in 2002 while working as a general English and Business English teacher at Oxford TEFL. Once she had the Dip TESOL she started tutoring those who wanted to become teachers on the Cert TESOL and loved it. After a few years the Course Director position became available and she job shared with another tutor - we took turns one month CD and one month careers advisor. When her job share partner left, she took on the role full time. The training has also taken Anna to India and China.
What inspired you to work for Oxford TEFL?
When I first arrived in Barcelona I saw flyers around town advertising English language courses at Oxford TEFL that used humor which no other school was doing. It struck me as a school who wanted to do things differently. I decided to apply to be a general English teacher, and when I went for the interview knew straight away that I wanted to work there. It was a very small, professional school with a very relaxed family feel. In fact, the school was actually in a residential block of flats which felt like someone’s home. Since then we have moved several times to bigger premises but the family feel is still here.
What attracted you to the TEFL industry?
I studied Spanish at University and spent a year abroad in Alcala de Henares (Madrid). It was such an amazing year studying, working, and traveling around Spain. Once I graduated I knew I wanted another opportunity to live in a Spanish speaking country. I was also debating whether or not to do a postgraduate teaching degree to become a Spanish teacher but wanted to ‘test the water’ first and see if in fact I liked teaching and/or if I was any good at it. A TEFL course was the perfect way to combine these two things.
What makes Oxford TEFL unique compared to other TEFL organizations?
As I mentioned before, Oxford TEFL has grown and grown over the last 20 years but has managed to maintain the same philosophy of being a highly professional school while maintaining its very friendly, relaxed atmosphere. I believe this comes down to the fact that the school has known how to hire great people. These great people are not just the teachers but the administrative and reception staff too.
How have your previous work experiences helped you in your current role?
Before working in TEFL I had jobs in the Financial Services sector, in a wine merchant, a Psychiatric hospital, and as a lifeguard to name a few. I’m very used to dealing with the public and being calm and patient.
What does a typical day at Oxford look like for you?
The first thing I do is go to the training room to see if any trainees need help preparing their lessons or projects. I’ll then go to teaching practice to either observe the trainees teach or teach a class myself and be observed by trainees.
Afterwards we go straight into a feedback and lesson planning session to speak about what went well and how future lessons can be even better. Following a break for lunch, we get into the input sessions which are practical workshop style sessions to teach the trainees how to teach grammar, phonology, and the different skills. There are also sessions on teaching with technology, teaching young learners, and business English.
What is the number one thing future TEFL teachers should know beforehand?
TEFL is not an ‘easy’ option. There’s a lot of planning, preparation, and patience needed. It is not just a case of thinking “oh, well I speak English, it can’t be that difficult to teach it.” It can be extremely rewarding, but isn’t for everyone.
How do you help support participants in finding a job after certification is complete?
Our team at Oxford TEFL is committed to providing our participants with the best support. We work with the trainees throughout their whole journey with us—before, during, and after. We also provide TEFL career support for life. For 20 years, we have worked hard to help find our grads work around the world. We help our participants get their visas and work permits, help them write their TEFL resume/CV, help them prepare for interviews, help connect them with other alumni for advice and support, help send out their resume/CV, help them find private students, help them to stay informed about open TEFL positions, help them prepare for demo lessons, and help write references for them.
What is one thing you would like participants to take away from being TEFL certified?
When we ask our trainees what they have got from the course, without a shadow of a doubt they say that while the course was intense they are now ready to jump right in to their first teaching job feeling confident, ready, and prepared.
What do you love most about your job?
The people. I consider myself really lucky to be able to work with such amazingly talented and down to earth people from all over the world.
What is your favorite TEFL memory/experience?
While the course structure does not vary massively from month to month, the experience definitely does. Each month is unique depending on the individuals on the course so there are so many memories and experiences. I’m fascinated by the group dynamic each month and I love it when trainees come from varied backgrounds and there is a mixture of nationalities, ages, genders, and native and non native speakers, etc. Seeing such different people—who would never meet under other circumstances—work together and support each other through a tough but rewarding month is incredible.