{"id":32148,"date":"2024-07-15T08:23:23","date_gmt":"2024-07-15T14:23:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bridge.edu\/tefl\/blog\/?p=32148"},"modified":"2025-12-05T11:16:36","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T18:16:36","slug":"meet-ideltonline-instructor-shelynn-riel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bridge.edu\/tefl\/blog\/meet-ideltonline-instructor-shelynn-riel\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A With IDELTOnline\u2122 Instructor Sh\u00e9lynn Riel"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Drawing from her extensive experience as a university academic English instructor, program director, and teacher trainer, Sh\u00e9lynn Riel is a Bridge International Diploma in English Language Teaching (IDELTOnline\u2122<\/a><\/em>) instructor and<\/em> Expert Series<\/em><\/a> moderator with a wealth of knowledge and advice to share with the program\u2019s trainees. In this interview, she shares how her language learning and English teaching journey steered her to the teacher training path as well as tips on how students can get the most out of the IDELTOnline\u2122<\/em> program<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What inspired you to get into the English language teaching field?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It all started when I began studying languages myself. I grew up in a monolingual household in a very white suburban town. I first started studying the Spanish language when I was in seventh grade, and I remember being completely taken by the process of learning a language, of having this ability to communicate with people I wouldn’t normally be able to communicate with. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the beginning, I was hungry for more. I loved studying the different dialects of the Spanish language and the different cultures of many Spanish-speaking countries. So, I threw myself into learning the language and communicating with people around me. I also worked as a server in many restaurants throughout my young life, and I loved being able to communicate with my Spanish-speaking co-workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The teaching part of it came a little bit later. I thought I wanted to teach the Spanish language \u2013 that was sort of my goal once I learned the language. I first worked as a literacy interventionist for second and third-grade, emergent bilingual kids in the city of Providence, Rhode Island. I would go into students\u2019 homes after school to help them with their literacy homework. Most of the families were Spanish-speaking, so I would sit with these kids and their relatives who were home every night. They were very eager to learn English, soaking in the language like sponges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although I knew that working with kids was not for me, I loved engaging their adult family members. That’s when I decided to use my Spanish skills for a different cause and work with adult learners of English in the community who needed English to improve their lives in various ways. It was the best of both worlds for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first jobs teaching English to adult learners were within community-based settings. For example, I worked with asylees or refugees in the city of Providence. Soon after, I moved into the academic realm and started teaching in intensive English programs. This has been the fight of my entire career: deciding between teaching in community-based programs, which have my heart, and working within a university setting, which I’ve always appreciated for the rigor and the different motivations learners have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read about Bridge Expert Series Webinar Moderator Sh\u00e9lynn Riel.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sh\u00e9lynn
Sh\u00e9lynn teaching research writing at a university in Bangladesh<\/em><\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What led you to your new position as an IDELTOnline<\/em>\u2122\ufe0f instructor?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Many different paths have converged and brought me to this new position. I’ve been working with English learners in a formal education setting for about 15 years, in addition to one-on-one tutoring. Then, in 2017, I shifted to spending most of my time training teachers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was awarded a Department of State fellowship through the English Language Fellows program and was situated in Mendoza, Argentina for ten months. I worked at the Binational Center in Mendoza, where the goal is to foster intercultural understanding and exchange between the U.S. and Argentina. My job there was to work with 50 in-service teachers; some of them were brand new to English teaching, some of them had been teaching for 30 years, and some of them were right on the cusp of retirement. It was an incredible experience to work with and learn from them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout my career, I’ve also facilitated digital exchanges with teachers from all over the world, working with as many as 40 teachers at once. I had to look at questions related to digital and global citizenship<\/a>, how to prepare students to be digitally literate, and how we, as teachers, can demonstrate digital literacy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have also been the moderator for Bridge\u2019s Expert Series<\/a> webinars for almost a year and a half now, as well as a writer for BridgeUniverse<\/a> for almost three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How has your experience in English teaching helped you as a teacher trainer?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I always say that if you\u2019re a teacher trainer, it’s important to continue to teach and to be involved in the classroom in some capacity because the two do inform each other. I\u2019ve worked in diverse environments in the U.S. and abroad. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve worked in community-based programs, with new arrivals, pre-literate people in their native languages, learners who are preparing to become pilots, lawyers who need English for very specific purposes, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emphasizing the need for continuous professional development<\/a> and practice<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As I’ve done a lot within many diverse environments, I also think it’s really important to continuously develop yourself as an educator. I have a podcast devoted to reflective pedagogy that encourages teachers to consistently take the time to reflect on their teaching practices<\/a>, an essential process that helps teachers grow in their profession. Not only has the experience solidified the knowledge I carry with me, but I think my growth mindset and focus on being a reflective practitioner support me as a teacher trainer. It\u2019s something I practice as a teacher trainer and pass along to trainees and teachers I’m working with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, I think if we look back at our foundational training as teachers, whether it’s an initial TEFL certification<\/a> or a master’s program, we’ve all had those professors who have seemed a little bit out of touch. Theory is important as it guides what we do in many ways, but the practice is the other half. You can’t have one without the other. So, you need to constantly be exposing yourself to the reality of classrooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn about leveling up your professional development with Bridge Expert Series webinars.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharing real-world experiences with trainees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Finally, trainees appreciate when their trainers have some environment and experience they can share with them. When students say, \u201cMy students are doing this\u201d or, \u201cHow can I most effectively teach?\u201d then, I can say, \u201cWell, I’m actually doing that this week,\u201d or, \u201cHere are the ways I’ve tried to expedite that process within my own classrooms.” So, having that immediate connection is useful as a teacher trainer. I also love to use my current classroom as a case study for my students within the certification training programs. I can pull examples and say, \u201cThis is what happened in my class today. Why do you think that is? Is there anything in the literature that explains what happened today?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sh\u00e9lynn
Sh\u00e9lynn facilitating a workshop on media literacy at the International TESOL Convention.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What are the common motivators for students who take the IDELTOnline<\/em>\u2122\ufe0f?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our diverse IDELTOnline<\/em>\u2122 trainees have diverse needs, which is something I love about teaching it! Although there are a lot of different motivators for students taking the IDELTOnline<\/em>\u2122<\/a>, I have found that everyone is laser-focused on gaining the skills and information they need from the course. Some of the trainees and their motivations I’ve seen include:<\/p>\n\n\n