Authenticity in our classrooms with Mark Andrews

“Authenticity” is the word of the year 2023. What does it mean to be an authentic teacher and what does an authentic classroom look like? In this 5-day intensive course for teachers of pupils aged 11+, you’ll find lots of suggestions for taking your English lessons into the 21st century. Using the ‘here and now’ principle, elevate your lessons to actually prepare your pupils for real life, ensuring they will always be one step ahead.

Enroll in course

Duration

1 week 25x60min

Schedule

7.4.-11.4. / 4.8.-8.8.2025

Form

group tuition in person

Number of students

max. 12 participants

Level

Overview of available dates

Selecting a specific course is done at point of purchase

Monday to Friday

9:30-16:15

07.04.2025 - 11.04.2025

04.08.2025 - 08.08.2025

Choose your course package

About course

This 5-day intensive face-to-face course offers participants a unique opportunity to explore what the concept of authenticity in education means as well as explore techniques to help teachers be more themselves in the classroom. Teacher authenticity affects their relationship with students, deepens their student-centeredness, and influences their choice of learning materials. Higher levels of authenticity will change the way classroom management and decision-making are done, deepen humanistic principles, and bring other goals into the classroom besides language learning and development; a good example is building understanding and respect for other cultures.

Authenticity means bringing the principle of 'here and now' into the classroom, or transferring some of the responsibility for the teaching process and classroom management to the students. Authenticity forces (in a good sense) students to go further, encouraging them to talk and express themselves, to think about what and why they are learning, and how they intend to develop. This leads to more effective learning strategies which are all the more valuable because students get to them by themselves.

On the course we'll prepare sample assignments, practical ideas, and practice exercises for several areas related to authenticity. This includes demonstrating how to work with authentic texts from media and information sources, how and when to have students engage critical thinking and skepticism, how to help students choose the right information sources, and how to work with images in ways that go beyond simply describing them - a method for learning and developing vocabulary.

At the end of the course you will receive the Certificate of Attendance and Europass Mobility document, or any other document your organisation/school requires to submit for applying Erasmus+ programme.

Who is the course for

For teachers of pupils aged 11+ who want to motivate and engage their pupils in a more authentic way. They are not afraid of change, are interested in what is happening in the world at the moment, and want to incorporate this 'here and now' into their English lessons appropriately. They are determined to teach their pupils to communicate better with people from other cultures and thus open a real door to the world for them.

What you will get from this course?

Knowledge of the principles of authentic teaching leadership
Understanding of the benefits of authentic teacher and student behavior for both the teaching process and personal development
Skill in how to continuously build a more democratic classroom environment
Understanding of how to reflect on one’s own teaching, for improvement through pupil perceptions
A set of practical activities and guidelines for greater and authentic pupil engagement
The ability to use the ‘here and now’ principle in the regular classroom
The ability to develop critical thinking in themselves and their students
Directions for working with authentic information from the media and online environments
Principles of teaching in a multicultural environment and building respect between cultures
Discussion and exchange of ideas in a small group of like-minded teachers in the heart of the Old Town

We are internationally accredited

V roku 2020 sme ako prvá jazyková škola na Slovensku získali medzinárodnú akreditáciu od EAQUALS a doteraz sme na Slovensku jediní. EAQUALS je garantom kvality jazykového vzdelávania pre školy v medzinárodnom prostredí.

What to Expect at The Bridge

Experience European quality at the Bridge. We prioritize the quality of teaching, backed by international EAQUALS and EMCC accreditations as well as a collaboration with TrackTest.eu. You find an individualized approach even in group courses here.

About us

We boast an international team of highly educated professionals certified to teach English as a foreign language. Our internal assessment system for tutors aligns with the exacting standards of the Cambridge English Teaching Framework.

Our teachers

At The Bridge, we not only teach you English but also guide you in learning it effectively. In addition to the course, you will have access to our well-equipped library, workshops, webinars, and numerous complimentary activities.

I want to consult

Lecturers/trainers

Mark Andrews

BIO

Mark Andrews worked as a teacher trainer at Eötvös Loránd University Budapest Hungary for 15 years in the Department of English Applied Linguistics, before that he taught in the German Democratic Republic, Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic.

He has been living and working in Central/Eastern Europe for 40 years now, 12 of which were as an ELT methodology teacher and advisor with the British Council. For six years he was involved in a language and culture project with Secondary School teachers in Hungary which resulted in a text book for teenagers "Zoom In".

He was co-ordinator of the IATEFL Hungary Culture and Literature Special Interest Group for 5 years and is a big supporter of teacher associations in the Central and Eastern European region. He worked for SOL (Sharing One Language) for 10 years both in Devon and in this region as a teacher trainer, teacher on student courses and course and materials developer.

He now works freelance and in the last year has been teaching week long courses for teenagers in Austrian schools for "English in Action". He enjoys coming to Slovakia a lot and co-ran four summer camps in Čadca, Stará Turá and Šamorin on a boat on the Danube

Price

For all our clients we provide services

Student typology
Student needs analysis
Self-study space and library
Refreshments during the course

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Authenticity in our classrooms with Mark Andrews

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Testimonials

Education is an integral part of our growth. We have transferred our education online, including English lessons, as English is crucial for us. We are an export business partner with an international team. We prefer group education, as it maintains a higher level of motivation, as each of us is naturally sociable with a greater or lesser degree of competitiveness.

Vladimír Nociar

Dexfinity, Deputy CEO, Head of Operations

I really like my teacher's way of conducting our lessons, his approach and flexibility in preparation is incredible. I appreciate his ability to adapt and to the conduct lessons according to my work agenda. I´ve finally started to enjoy my legal and business English course.

Lucia Hlinková

Member of the board of directors of the health insurance company Dôvera

"The Bridge language school was love at first sight! I worked with its founders in many projects before the unique human genius of this institution, its friendly and accommodating staff, professional and experienced teachers attracted me as a student. I am grateful as since then English has been my great passion! And I'm about to put the kids here for their day camp, too. We're real fans! :-))"

Lucia Hurajová

actress

We have been cooperating with the Bridge for several years. I appreciate their attitude towards us as clients and their innovative approach to our employees as students. The progress in their English is significant. They invest into their teachers, which reflects in our language improvement. I have a great personal experience with individual classes, which help me not just to improve my English skills, but also to empower me for important presentations and meetings held in English.

Ivana Molnárová

CEO

I appreciate my teacher's approach to her teaching and my learning. Everything was absolutely great.

Barbora Semková

It was my best choice of language school. The teacher recommended me extra things to study that I had not even heard of before.

Ján Lontoš

My classes have definitely improved my English. My communication with my colleagues from abroad and presentations have become a lot more efficient.

Michal Maruška

Ringier Slovakia

The Bridge language school means an extremely good teaching experience, for me for sure. Everyone is very flexible, ready to communicate anytime and on a friendly basis. They always try to accommodate my needs. The teachers are very professional and friendly. I have experience with several language schools, The Bridge has given me something extra.

Martin Bahurinský

Legal Services Department

English is important for working in our law firm, and that is why we provide our team members with the opportunity to gain language training so that they can continue to improve and develop.
We have been cooperating with The Bridge language school for several years. Their services, and the work of their lecturers, are at a high level. They always try to meet the demands of our "students" and provide them with quality language teaching.

Eva Sedničková

Allen & Overy

I can't imagine a better teacher than Mary, we really clicked. I really appreciate that you do your best to assign teachers to students also based on personality and character.

David Zemčák