Together, we have the power to do so much – we provide funding for NGOs, we cook fresh meals, we create art, and much more. We always ask the centres and communities: what do you want, what do you need? And the most requested thing isn’t a thing at all – it’s education. Math, Chemistry, Physics, and above all, English. But how do students and parents, with no prior experience, teach well enough to positively impact local communities?
We found the answer: working together with teachers from TISA and local schools. We reached out to Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy (ADA), a local university and met our (soon-to-be) wonderful workshop leaders. The three of them – Alla, an English teacher, Amy, a fellow for the US State Department, and Tyler, a Fulbright Scholar – have been invaluable. So far, they’ve led two workshops for us. In fact, these sessions have been so successful and inspiring that the most recent attracted local English teachers along with parents and students from the TISA community. We were extremely excited to broaden our English-teaching community and increase the positive impact we can have!
The workshops have focused on a range of techniques – we all teach different communities, therefore Alla, Amy, and Tyler have had to adapt some of their sessions. But we were also able to learn so much from each other because of this. It’s been so inspiring to see how others solve similar problems with different people, and to think about how we can connect outside of the workshops to continue helping each other. The workshops have encompassed a variety of topics, such as how to give clear and concise instructions, effectively structuring lessons, and numerous engaging activities that demonstrate different teaching approaches.
As these workshops continue, we look forward to connecting with even more people. Even this small collaboration has already benefited us, and we can only imagine the impact that they’ll have as the participants share their knowledge. We’re extremely thankful to Alla, Amy, and Tyler for giving us this opportunity and helping us build this invaluable connection. These workshops have strengthened our community in supporting local organisations, and communities when teaching English.
Engage - Empower - Inspire
Written by Emma Villinski and Benjamin Jacob
