Bobby Dunnett

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Bobby has been an EFL teacher since 2001, teaching in Prague, Oviedo, Madrid and Norwich before returning to his home town of London in 2006. Since then he has become a CELTA and DELTA trainer as well as continuing to teach a range of EFL classes.

Outside of work, his two young children take up most of his time. In the few moments he is able to devote to himself, he reads difficult novels, listens to unpopular music, goes to pubs and restaurants (usually family friendly ones, at lunchtime) and watches, reads about, talks about and thinks about Crystal Palace football club.

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How did you get into teaching English?

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Like a lot of English teachers, I originally saw it as just a way to enable me to travel and earn money at the same time. Some friends of mine at university told me about a Trinity cert course in Brighton they were going to do after graduating, so I followed them there and did the same. It was a part time course that lasted nine months, and I’ve never met anyone who has done such a long course since.

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Where have you traveled (both for teaching and for fun)?

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I’ve taught in Prague in the Czech Republic and Oviedo and Madrid in Spain. One of the reasons I chose Prague was for its location in the centre of Europe, and while there I went on trips to Germany, Hungary, Poland, Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. I’ve been to most western European countries, as well as Latvia, Estonia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Japan and the USA.

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When did you realize English teaching had become a career for you (not just a means of travel)?

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I was lucky enough to be thoroughly inspired by my tutor on my Trinity cert course, so before I even got my first job I was starting to think it might be a career. When I returned to the UK after four years of teaching abroad, I didn’t consider looking for any other kind work.

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How has travel changed you as a person?

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Of course it’s opened my mind to different ways of life and points of view, as well as giving me plenty of great memories.

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What led you to become a CELTA teacher trainer?

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The memory of the teacher trainer who inspired me was a big part of it, and the fact that Teaching House at Oxford House College provided such a well established route into teacher training and a clear career path made it an obvious choice.

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What advice would you give people looking to travel abroad for the first time?

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Do it!

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