Svetlana Starikovitš

I have taught Estonian and Russian at the Multilingua Language Center since 1998, supplementing my practical experience in studying at Tallinn University. My learners have always been adults, so I felt the need to develop myself in the field of adult education. In 2016 I received a Bachelor’s degree in andragogy at Tallinn University, and in 2018 I graduated with the Master’s degree on the same specialization.

As a language teacher for adults, I focus on the needs of the learners, be it daily communication, professional communication or preparation for a language proficiency examination. A native Russian speaker and as an independent speaker of Estonian, I know how to highlight the peculiarities of both languages, which I can draw attention to by drawing parallels with the mother tongue of the learners. Often, similarities in languages ​​often help to learn the language, however, sometimes it is on the contrary: the language’s specificity is better remembered.

As a teacher of adult education, I can take into account the expectations of an adult learner, which is learning the things necessary for life and work, and the opportunity to be involved in the learning process. I am the implementer of active learning methods, and in language lessons, I put emphasis on developing communication skills and crossing the language barrier. I am convinced that learning a foreign language is better in a stress-free environment that is created together by the language teacher and language learners during a language lesson.