Academic English

Heather comes from Ireland and has been teaching English in Cambridge for over 12 years.  She has also previously lived and worked in the United States, Japan, Spain, France and Germany.  She is passionate about music and she spends a lot of her free time singing and dancing.  She also loves cooking, reading, and spending time lots of time outdoors with her dog.  In the classroom, she is an energetic and enthusiastic teacher who enjoys finding new and creative ways to help her students make progress and gain confidence.

Hal graduated with a degree in Fine Art from Falmouth School of Art before moving to Spain, where he fell in love with teaching English, and ended up living for a few years.  He’s been back in Cambridge working as a teacher since 2005, and has a real passion for incorporating as much of the creative arts into his teaching as possible.  When he isn’t creating new material to keep his classes fresh and interesting, you can find him playing guitar, cooking, taking photographs and running, though not necessarily all at the same time.

Jon originates from Cambridge and has been working full time at CSVPA for the past two years. He has previously taught in Beijing, China for over 5 years at the British International School as well as 2 years spent living and studying in France. He has formerly been a professional dancer and has toured and competed all over the world. He also has a background in photography and loves being in the mountains, especially skiing in Japan. Jon is passionate about teaching young people and sharing learning experiences between teachers and students.

Yasha is a Russian-American from California. At university in Scotland he studied International Relations, Arabic and Japanese, and spent a year studying at a university in Japan. He has an MA in Applied Linguistics and has taught English in Turkey, France, Chile, Colombia, Cambodia, the USA, and, of course, here in the UK. He is an avid traveller (over 50 countries!) and loves learning languages.  He also loves playing musical instruments, including drums, guitar and saxophone. He especially enjoys discussions on Culture, History, and Current Affairs, as he believes a good conversation on an interesting topic is the best way to improve your language skills.

Eszter has been working as a language teacher in Hungary, Ireland and in the UK for more than 20 years.  Not only has she taught all age groups and levels but she has also worked in both formal and informal educational settings. She thoroughly enjoys teaching and interacting with people from different cultures, which is the part of her job she finds most rewarding.  As a teacher, she tries to create a relaxed and motivating classroom environment and spends a lot of time helping her students to become more autonomous. Outside the classroom, she enjoys running and gardening, and is also a very creative cook.

Coulla has a Greek Cypriot background, but has lived all her life in the UK.  She has been teaching for 16 years, firstly English language then moving on to specialise in specific learning differences.  Coulla believes that understanding we all learn differently, and helping students explore the best way for their style, is the key to successful learning.  Her interests are art & design, books, theatre and music, particularly opera.   She runs a reading book group, and at home Coulla’s latest project is designing and creating a beautiful garden.