Natasha AJ

My name is Natasha and I'm from Macedonia. I have been an English teacher for 29 years and I have taught students of all ages, however, last 20 years I have been teaching mostly adults. My concept of teaching is student centered which means that I focus my classes on students' needs. Whatever skill they need to improve, I use it as a starting point to tailor my classes. I like using available online teaching tools (for ex. Kahoot, Wordwall, Quizlet, etc.) in order to make classes more fun and memorable. I am a dedicated teacher and flexible towards creating materials and planning content of my classes according to students' needs. I love reading books, listening to music, swimming, and long walks in the woods. I have been teaching for 29 years, and I have BA in English Language and Literature (grad. in 1994), MA in Applied Linguistics (grad. in 2016). I am a Teacher Trainer (grad. in 2007) ARKA TT course organized by British Council. I started teaching in 1994 in a language school in my home town, Veles. From 1996 - 2002 I was teaching English to children from 10-14 years old in a state school. In 1998-1999 I spent 6 months on a course in the USA - (DLILIC, SA, TX) which helped me get my next job in PEP (Peacekeeping English Project) at the Defence Department of the UK Embassy in Macedonia, supported by the British Council, from 2002 - 2008. From 2008 till present I have been teaching English in the Army. Besides teaching, my obligations at work include creating teaching materials, designing curriculum for different levels of English, and ESP courses. I have attended many courses and seminars abroad and in-country. I have taught teachers in-country and abroad in PLTCE (BILC in Germany). I focus on students' needs. Firstly I determine the level of English the student is at the moment by using a placement test. Then I do an interview with specific set of questions to get to know them better and to establish their ability of interaction in English. Then, I plan according to the result of this placement test. I choose materials from my rich bank of class materials, including some online tools. I am a dedicated teacher, and my students usually are dedicated and eager to learn English. Using authentic materials is my preference, so I dedicate a lot of time and effort in adapting them into class materials.