Check out what this recent Bootcamp graduate had to say about the course:
1) Why did you sign up for the course? What did you need help with?
I signed up for the course, as I wanted to learn about a new take on teaching IELTS. After having taught it for many years, and having been an examiner for the same amount of time, I already had a clear idea of how to deliver and exam for IELTS, but I’d always had a gripe with how preparation courses “prepared” students for the exam. After my chat with Fatime, it was clear that we both had similar ideas on the importance of developing skills, as opposed to testing them.
2) What had you already tried before coming to me? How successful was it?
I’d always used standard IELTS preparation coursebooks, along with my own materials. These had varying levels of success and I always ended up supplementing a course with my own materials to focus on developing students’ overall English skills, as this is one area of language development that is often omitted from IELTS preparation courses.
3) Why did you choose me?
I remember reading your profile on LinkedIn and hearing about your course from members of Rachel’s Confident ELT Freelancer Collective. What I liked about your course was the focus on developing skills and not just testing them. After our initial meeting, I had a good feeling about the course content, as it was clear that we were on the same page when it came to how to prepare students for IELTS. More importantly, I knew that working with Fatime as a person would be fun, as we have similar personalities.
4) What difference has working with me made? How has your situation changed since working with me? What are three benefits you’ve experienced as a result of working with me?
The course content has reassured my own beliefs of teaching IELTS. I was already using some of the ideas that we learnt on the course, so being able to add more of these was perfect. Although I’m not teaching any IELTS preparation at the moment, I am working on creating my own IELTS preparation course and these new ideas have certainly helped me change my course design to be more in line with my own beliefs. In terms of benefits, I’ve learnt that: my own philosophy of teaching IELTS is correct; developing skills is key to IELTS success.
5) What was your biggest ‘aha!’ moment when working together?
There were several ‘aha!’ moments in this course which happened when we analysed the problems and possible solutions. I was surprised to see that someone else had not only thought about this issue, but had also used a similar approach to me to solve it. This was very reassuring to know that my philosophy to teaching IELTS is also shared by someone else.
6) Was there anything which made you hesitate before deciding to work with me? Please be honest about this because it could help someone else in a similar situation. How do you feel about that hesitation now?
I didn’t have any hesitations before deciding to work with you. As I mentioned in a previous question, I had a good feeling about the course content and working with Fatime and I wasn’t disappointed.
7) Was there anything I could have done differently or better?
The course content was clear and detailed. There was a lot to cover (25 problems per skill), so maybe we could have focused on 10-12 key problems and had more of a discussion about these and then have the rest to read for homework.
8) Has anything about our work together exceeded your expectations or surprised you?
What surprised me on this course was how in sync the problems and solutions are with my own IELTS teaching beliefs, as I mentioned in previous questions.
9) If there’s one word you could use to describe your experience working with me, what would it be?
One phrase I’d use is ‘a breath of fresh air’ as your approach to IELTS teaching is what is needed to help students succeed.
10) What would you say to someone who is considering signing up for the course?
Sign up now for some in-depth IELTS teaching CPD!
—
You can DM Ste on LinkedIn if you need a good IELTS teacher in 2023, and watch this space for details on the my course becoming modular and self-study in 2023 as well! 😉
