About Us
From The Florentine
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Letter dated November 7, 2001, from Professor Sandra Silberstein (then Director, University of Washington MATESOL Program) who had examined "course syllabi, extensive and detailed course materials, and other relevant documentation" of TEFL International course then offered in Thailand, China, and Morocco. [Note: Professor Silberstein, who sent this letter to TEFL International for it to use for possible accreditation purposes, has no current opinion as to TEFL International operations].
‘I feel that I will emerge from the course not only with a qualification, but with valuable les- son preparation skills and teaching experience. I will, as a consequence, feel confident about embarking upon my TEFL career...’ Alex Seago TEFL International graduate
‘I want to teach English abroad. They are showing me exactly how to make that a practical reality.’
Robin L. Christ TEFL International graduate
Kristin Lanese
has been in the field of education for the past 10 years. She has taught ESL/EFL for private schools, such as Berlitz, in the US and abroad. In addition, she has a valid California State Teaching Credential with the CLAD certification and has taught in public schools. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English, a Bachelor of Arts in Italian, and a minor in the Teaching Profession awarded from the University of Southern California. She also possesses a Master’s degree from Middlebury College in Italy. Kristin has spent the past two years working for the largest textbook publisher, Pearson Education, as a sales representative/English Language Learning (ELL) Specialist, traveling the US and interacting with various program coordinators, authors, consultants, and teachers. Kristin, who is fluent in Italian, will be residing in Tuscany, Italy, and will be overseeing the day-to-day operations of the franchise and actively recruiting and marketing.
Sheila Corwin
is currently pursuing an MATESOL at the Monterey Institute of International Studies (Monterey, California) with an emphasis in Language Program Administration. She has been involved with TESOL/TEFL education since 1989 and possesses a TESL certificate (year-long program) from the linguistics department at Sonoma State University. Sheila has a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies with a concentration in French Language and Culture. Sheila was the owner of her own home-stay placement agency, California Experience, for two years through which she organized English program study and other activities for international students. She has taught English to students in California, Florence, Italy; and in the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, at the Universidad del Mar. In addition, Sheila owned and managed an international telecommunications company for 8 years and has traveled extensively throughout the western world. Sheila, who is fluent in French and Italian, plans to relocate to Tuscany permanently before the end of 2007. http://language.miis.edu/newsitem.html?id=5
Rachele Lawton
has worked in language education for nearly ten years. She has taught ESL and EFL for private institutes, universities and community colleges in the US and in Cuenca, Ecuador, and she has also taught Spanish at the community college level. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Loyola College in Maryland, a Master of Arts in English from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland, and a Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics / TESOL from the University of Leicester in England. Rachele will begin a Ph.D. in the University of East Anglia’s School of Language, Linguistics and Translation in the fall of 2006. She currently coordinates and teaches for an Academic ESOL program at The Community College of Baltimore County in Maryland and is involved with both International Education and the profession of TESOL, serving on the board of directors of Maryland TESOL. Rachele has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Latin America, is fluent in Spanish and possesses basic proficiency in French and Italian. She resides in Baltimore, Maryland and will be recruiting and marketing on the East Coast as well as strategizing for the franchise. She also plans to spend some time teaching in Tuscany during the summers.
Mario Alberto Dubielzig
has worked in education in England, Greece, the USA and Italy since 1998. Following a first degree in Business and an MSc in Politics, Mario has been involved in the design of online courses and taught Economics and Media in London, England. He also worked as a translator and editor for QVC Television in London. Mario did his teacher training at the Institute of Education, University of London, and in 2004, he completed an MA in TESOL from Saint Michael's College, Vermont. He has taught EFL in Nafpaktos, Greece. At the Hellenic American Union, Athens, he has taught EFL at elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels. He has also prepared students for the Michigan Proficiency and ECCE, GMAT, GRE, and TOEIC exams. In addition, Mario has worked as materials writer and educational website designer for a major English EFL publishing house. He is co-author of the publication BCCE Practice Tests, published by the Hellenic American Union and well as the author of the WebCase http://www.press.umich.edu/esl/compsite/teachspeak/ch3.pdf, published by University of Michigan.
Mario has worked in teacher education since 2003 and is very involved in professional development. In fact, he served on the board of TESOL Greece from 2004-2005. Currently, he is working as the academic director and teacher trainer for TEFL International in Florence, Italy.
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