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Build Your Independent ESL Career: Insights from Experienced Teacherpreneurs
About
Practical strategies and tools to simplify your work and grow your independent teaching career.
Thinking about teaching independently but not sure where to start? In this teacher-led session, discover how educators are building their own student base, managing their workload, and creating sustainable businesses. You’ll hear real-world insights about the challenges and successes of becoming a teacherpreneur, along with practical strategies and tools that can help you simplify your work and grow your business. If you’re ready to explore what’s possible beyond the traditional classroom, join us for ideas, inspiration, and practical next steps to help you take control of your teaching career.
BridgeVoices: Sharing authentic experiences from the Bridge community.
BridgeVoices is a new format within the Bridge Expert Series where our global teaching community comes together to share, learn, and grow. These sessions highlight real experiences from Bridge educators around the world.
Panelists
Gabriela Parra
Gabriela Parra is an independent English teacher and growing teacherpreneur based in Concepción, Chile. Motivated by the flexibility of virtual teaching and the desire to work from home, she began building her own brand, promoting her services through Instagram, local radio, and community outreach, while balancing a part-time job. Along the way, she’s developed a clear strategy focused on content planning, targeted advertising, and structured course offerings, while overcoming challenges like managing social media solo and collecting student testimonials. Her journey offers a relatable example of how to turn teaching skills into a thriving independent ESL business. Gabriela holds a degree in Commercial Engineering and an Advanced English Certificate from Cambridge University. She has over 9 years of teaching experience, speaks Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese, and currently teaches Business English at BridgeEnglish.
Adam Pattee
Adam Pattee is the go-to expert on all things TutorBird, known for making powerful tools feel approachable and easy to use. Whether he’s hosting product demos, running 1-on-1 sessions, or creating video content, Adam excels at helping tutors streamline their workflow and grow their business. He’s especially skilled with automation and Zapier, and loves finding smart, time-saving solutions for busy educators. When he’s not recording or building out systems, Adam’s usually connecting with tutors to understand how they use TutorBird and how he can help make their day smoother.
Matt Sussman
Matt Sussman is the CEO and Co-founder of FLOW Speak, an AI-powered platform that helps learners build English speaking confidence for career success. With over 25 years of experience in international education and cultural exchange, Matt began his career as an English teacher in Japan and most recently served as Executive Director of the Fulbright Scholarship Program in Japan from 2013 to 2021. Matt has been invited to speak at various conferences and events, addressing topics such as artificial intelligence in education, methodologies in English speaking improvement, and the intersection of study abroad and career development. Outside of work, he enjoys making banana waffles and surfing with his kids.s and drives engagement across the Bridge community's social media platforms.
Rachel Story
Rachel Story is an experienced English teacher, digital nomad, and the creator of the Teacherpreneur Academy. With 15 years of teaching experience and a Bachelor's degree in Music Industry Studies from Appalachian State University, Rachel began her career teaching English in China before transitioning to online teaching to pursue a location-independent lifestyle. As a teacherpreneur, she built her own independent teaching business and created resources to help other educators do the same. Through her travel blog, Grateful Gnomads, she has helped countless people gain the freedom to travel and live abroad by teaching English online. Today, Rachel combines her passion for teaching and travel to inspire others to build independent careers and explore the world on their own terms.
Other Webinars
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
A Spotlight on PTE Academic: The Fast, Reliable and Convenient Testing Solution
Get an introduction to Pearson’s computer-based English language test and learn how you can help your students prepare for test day with a range of comprehensive teaching resources.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Adapting to Online English Exams
How have learners, teachers and schools adapted to online English assessments? Representatives from higher ed, language centers, and K-12 schools will discuss how they adapted to a hybrid environment after two years of normalizing online testing and placement.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
All-In-Online Platforms: Streamline Your Independent Teaching Business or Bring Your Langauge School Online
Are you getting overwhelmed by all the apps and tools you need to run your independent online English teaching business? Wondering how you can bring your language school online so you can reach new students (and enhance the experience of current students)? Using an all-in-one platform can help. This session will cover the benefits of using an all-in-one platform and an overview presentation by representatives of leading platforms.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Alumni Stories: Secrets to Success as an Online English Teacher
Find out how Bridge-certified teachers are making a living teaching English online and how their training, the network they built, and their field of specialization helped them along the way.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
An Innovative Path from Teacher to Teacherpreneur: Creating EdTech and Educational Products
Do you have an idea for a product or service for English teachers, learners, or the broader ELT sector? Real teacherpreneurs share how they successfully transitioned from teaching English to designing and delivering EdTech tools and educational products.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Beats and Rhymes in Online ELT
Mixing hip-hop and other performing arts into your online classroom brings the human element front and center, making technology come alive for English language learners!
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Becoming a Digital Nomad: How to Use Digital Tools to Teach Abroad
Whether you’re interested in becoming (or already) an independent English teacher or teaching through a tutor marketplace, using digital tools and apps will make your life easier and more enjoyable. What types of digital tools do you need? What are the preferred tools of current digital nomad teachers? We’ll discuss everything from choosing tools for scheduling classes, accepting payments and preparing lessons to websites to download pre-made lesson plans.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Benchmark Proficiency Scales: An Introduction to CEFR and ACTFL Levels
A1, B2, IH and AL? What does it all mean anyway? Join us for an introduction to CEFR and ACTFL, the two most commonly used benchmark scales. We’ll help you “speak” CEFR and ACTFL, learn the difference between the two, and explore how you can apply that knowledge to the classroom and assessments!
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Best Practices for Online Course Delivery: Engaging and Supporting Learners
Go behind the scenes with Bridge course developers as they dive into the specific technologies and best practices in eLearning and instructional design that ensure students get the most out of their educational experience.
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Learning paths: 21st-Century Teaching, Business English, and Jobs, Career Advice, and Professional Development.
Breaking Down LMS and Learning Platforms for English Teachers
With so many opportunities to teach English independently online, many teachers are looking for eLearning platforms to host their classes and manage admin tasks like scheduling and invoices. Join our panel of experts as they discuss how learning platforms have evolved and the criteria to consider when choosing a platform. Gain the knowledge you need to find the right platform for you and your students!