Lynne Hoenes, our Head of Marketing, talks about meeting our partners abroad.

A part of my role as Head of Marketing is to attend workshops and exhibitions designed to meet new educational tour operators.  These events are a wonderful opportunity to meet new partners from around the world – all in one room!

I pre-make appointments and at the event, each educational tour operator comes to my table for a 20 – 30 minute meeting.  In that time, I need to make Hilderstone stand out as being a language school they would like to send students to.  Of course, there is a lot of follow-up afterwards and getting to know each other on a professional basis.

Our partner educational tour operators are paramount to our student recruitment activity and have a very important role in helping students to enrol in the best possible school to meet their personal needs and goals.

Lisa-Marie from Germany

Who ever believes that Broadstairs is a contemplative sleepy seaside town is far from correct. Especially in the summer months, students from all over the world bustle up and down the streets of Charles Dickens’ beloved holiday destination – in the morning half-asleep on the way to college, during the break at lunchtime in a hurry to the food-to-go shelves in the supermarket or to the picturesque beach, and after a substantial dinner with their host-families they go straight to “The Dolphin” or another quaint English pub. One of the most well-regarded language schools is Hilderstone College – centrally located, just follow your nose from the beach – which is, in my eyes, mainly based on its outstanding teachers. Probably the most charming part is the inner garden, but even more important is the spiritual content of this school. I experienced Hilderstone as an intellectual place where stunning ideas arise, teachers appear to have a never-ending passion for their job, students behave open-mindedly and share each other’s ingenious ideas while having enriching conversations. Teaching thrives on variety, constant encouragement and motivation by the teacher, continuous gain in knowledge, self-confidence and language skills. In addition, recreational activities are also offered in the afternoon such as challenging sports afternoons, amusing folk dance lessons, trips to vibrant and historic cities and places like London and Dover. To top it off, accommodation is provided by caring, responsible and welcoming  host families who make you comfortable during your enjoyable and instructive journey.

 

September 2018

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Tessa Woodward

We are delighted to announce the news of a special award presented to Tessa Woodward, who many of our readers will remember as a key member of the teacher training team at Hilderstone for many years.  Tessa retired from Hilderstone in 2016 but has remained active in the profession, editing the Teacher Trainer and maintaining her connections with professionals from all over the world.

 

Tessa attended a ceremony in London on 18th June and was presented with the British Council’s Lifetime Achievement Award for 2018.  This is recognition of Tessa’s huge contribution to the profession through her teaching, training of teachers and teacher trainers, writing and publishing activities.  At Hilderstone we are especially grateful to her for the years of service that she gave to the College and the work she did with hundreds of course participants.  Many will also remember the support she gave to dozens of work colleagues in her capacity as the College’s professional development co-coordinator.  All at Hilderstone congratulate her on her fantastic achievement.

 

For a video of the ceremony, further tributes to Tessa and her acceptance speech, please click here.

 

Ian Johnson

Principal