tahn

Hello,

My name is Melia Van Hecke and I’m a recent graduate of Washington University in St. Louis where I majored in English literature with a concentration in creative writing and minors in drama and psychology. I have been planning on teaching English abroad for a few years now, and I’m so excited to now have my degree and am ready to get going. I’m certified through Global Language Training’s 120 hour Advanced TEFL course and have all of my E2 documents in hand.

I’m a passionate reader and writer and a bit of a grammar nerd, and I’d be so thrilled to share this love of everything English with students. On that note, I love working with children and have always wanted to teach. I’ve worked with children as a babysitter, a face painter, a Christmas elf, and have generally always loved hanging out with kids. I’m open to teaching all ages as I think each age group has a unique wonderfulness alongside typical difficulties. Though I know teaching English in kindergarten can be difficult and many people don’t want to do it, I actually love that age! I'm looking for a teaching position in Busan, a late November/early December start date, I'm open to morning or afternoon start times, and I have a starting salary of 2.5 million won.

Best,
Melia Van Hecke

I currently work at a private nursery as a nursery assistant and have taken online training courses in basic first aid, safeguarding level 2, Adverse Childhood Experiences, food allergy awareness, appropriate touching, ADHD and Autism in girls and recording observations. I believe that this nursery experience has allowed me to understand how children develop, and classroom management and get familiar with observing children's behaviours to understand their progression. I also have taken a 120-hour TEFL course that taught me about a variety of ways in which students are taught and allowed me to learn about and submit lesson plans. I also have a Film and English bachelor's degree with honours with a 2:1 grade. A lot of my work in university was surrounding the understanding of children in relation to children's literature and film so it allowed me to gain an interest in children's education. My personality has been described as empathetic, observant, and trustworthy and I can understand people's behaviours well. I believe I am organised and creative so creating lesson plans is rather enjoyable for me. I am an honest and clear yet empathetic communicator, and a good listener and believe in helping people as much as I can.

I am a graduate of law, who has just completed my studies at the North-West
University, in South Africa. As part of my studies, I took part in an educational outreach module, where
I was required to seek out underdeveloped schools, in order to provide education to
students. This took place at multiple schools, and during the course of the programme,
I gave over 12 lessons to students ranging from 7, to 15 years old. This was not only
eye-opening to see the impact one can have on the lives of children, but it also allowed
me to discover my passion in teaching children and helping them grow, not only on a
personal level, but more importantly on an educational one. Further through my
studies, I completed modules such as Linguistics, Literary Genres, and other language
skill modules.

I would describe myself as someone who is hard working, and who takes pride in any
of the work I put forward. I also strive to bring out the best of anyone who I cross
paths with, be it adults or students. After completion of my studies, I firmly believe
that every child is entitled to an education that is enriching, laying a base for any
individual to build a strong and successful future off of. My aim is to inspire and
motivate students to obtain the greatest success possible, and this will be done by
fostering an attitude of confidence while simultaneously providing support to all
students.

Having taught students, as well as having experience in taking care of children, I firmly
trust that I am well equipped to provide the education that any child would need for
their prosperous development.

Throughout my career as a teacher, I have consistently exceeded expectations in tasks assigned to me. In my current role at Lilypad Farm School, I was able to create a fun and interactive curriculum for kids over summer as well as in our after school program. The summer program curriculum increased interest in Lilypad allowing the school to expand with 3 additional classes.

I am known for being able to create a positive and engaging learning environment for students. I have built strong relationships with students, parents and colleagues. I also have experience in providing individual and small group instruction, teaching science, English, math, and literature.

In my previous job at RISE Private Institute in Bundang-gu, I educated students from kindergarten and elementary level In numerous courses such as phonics, writing, speech, and debates. I prepared for classes as well as created course materials such as writing prompts and reading supplements.

I have 2 years of experience as a TEFL educator, with a clean criminal record, and an American
passport valid for 10 years, so I'm ready and willing to move to South Korea as soon as possible.
I'm a kind, patient, and results-driven person that enjoys educating children. I have taught
Kindergarten, Secondary, and High School students. Very excited about the prospect of working
in the wonderful city of Seoul!