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Maybe I work as a teacher because I myself have always liked to learn. I acquired the profession of a special education teacher as well as of English language teacher at the University of Tartu. I have worked in both specialties in a number of educational institutions. In addition to Multilingua, I also work as a special education teacher and teacher in English at a school for children with special needs and as a speech therapist in a children’s club.
I started adult education in 2003, and I enjoy this work very much. I have given group and individual lessons in the language school and in different companies. I have taught ordinary language, business language, and specialty language. It’s exciting to communicate with people from different disciplines and thereby expand horizons.
I like the saying that while we teach others, we always learn ourselves. In a language class, I am rather a partner than the know-it-all teacher for the learners. It’s fun to see how a study group made up of people from different backgrounds starts to work, and function together stops being ashamed to make mistakes and begins to come to the assistance of co-learners when mistakes are made. Playful exercises and humor help to release tension. I think that my education and experience as a special education teacher are also beneficial in the language school. We all have our own smaller or larger special needs. As learners, we need, in particular, encouragement, success, and recognition.
As an adult educator, I:
- identify the needs and expectations of the study group, prepare the training content and select the teaching methods based on the intended learning outcomes and previous feedback;
- support learners in identifying and achieving their individual goals and in aligning them with the overall objectives of the training; support the learners, notice and recognise changes in the learners’ development, and respond to situations in the learning process in a supportive manner;
- continuously gather feedback from the learners about the learning process, analyse the learning process, and assess learners’ learning outcomes.
- analyse and evaluate my own activities in the learning process; recognise my strengths and development needs; reflect on and analyse my professional role and behaviour; seek solutions when problems arise;
- use relevant information and communication technology (ICT) tools (e.g., interactive smartboards, online platforms such as Zoom and/or Teams, ML information system, cloud services such as Google Drive and/or OneDrive, e-learning platforms, etc.) in the preparation, delivery, and evaluation of the teaching and learning process, as well as for supporting my own professional development; am able to create, use, and share web-based learning materials.
I participate in the EPALE network for adult educators. I follow posts and read articles and blogs. An article has been published about one of my Erasmus+ learning mobility experiences.
As part of the international training course “How to integrate coaching into teaching?”, I co-conducted a workshop together with a colleague on finding intrinsic motivation and setting goals. I have also shared the experiences and knowledge gained from the Erasmus+ training “Creativity and Motivation in the classroom with Teacher Language Development” held in Malta with my colleagues.
I have participated in the following Erasmus+ learning mobility projects:
2024, Barcelona – “Life Coaching for Teachers: Happy Teachers for Better Students”.
2023, Potsdam – “Train the Intercultural Trainer.”
2021, Malta – “Creativity and Motivation methodology course with language development.”
I have created learning materials, such as language learning games in the Wordwall environment.
