Dreaming of being your own boss as a freelance English teacher – but clueless on how to make it happen? Successful independent teachers share strategies for attracting your ESL student clientele and building your brand and business in a crowded market.

Panelists:

Rory Falls is Founder and Director of The Language Mountain, an online company providing one-on-one English classes. He has been teaching English for three years and specializing in students from Brazil. His goal for students is not only to improve their language skills but also their confidence and long-term strategies. With knowledge of Portuguese and Spanish and a specialized certification in teaching Business English and IELTS preparation, he has managed to create a network in South America and inspired students to think about learning English in a different way.

Carla Martinez is an English teacher based in Brazil who has been teaching since 2001 and has taught exclusively privately since 2014. She has a Licentiate Degree in Language and Literature (English and Portuguese), a postgraduate diploma in Translation Studies, and Bridge’s IDELTOnline Certification. Most of her career has been dedicated to teaching adults and encouraging independence through speaking and communication. She also has experience with teacherpreneurship through content creation for social media (@thesimplegrammar) as well as her own online courses and a Mentoring program.

Andres Bermudez is a multilingual language teacher who studied Administration and Professional Development. He has more than two years of teaching experience, teaching English, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish; the latter particularly to Chinese students. Andres was formerly Assistant Director for CNOOC, a Chinese oil company, and an Administrative Consultant at Protiviti. Throughout the pandemic, he has been teaching online classes, mainly in Spanish for individuals and Mandarin Chinese to groups. He has certifications and diplomas in Chinese and English.

This panel is hosted by Maggie.

Maggie de Oliveira supports Bridge trainees throughout their learning journey as the Teacher and Institutional Relations Manager. As a former EFL teacher herself, she applies practices of observation and reflection to continuously improve the overall course experience for Bridge trainees while also striving to implement innovative eLearning best practices to guide trainees in achieving their professional development goals. Maggie collaborates with the Bridge tutors to encourage high-quality feedback and effective communication with our Bridge trainees from all around the world.