Antony Griffiths |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Very helpful, creative and encouraging teacher! Thankfully to his efforts I’ve grown my knowledge of English. Antony gives us lots of knowledge and it’s always a pleasure to attend his lessons
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Antony Griffiths |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Antony Griffiths and Stuart Teadley.
Having different but still effective approaches and perfectly working on a team, both lecturers are really outstanding.
Thank you from the deepest heart for helping me to see my potential, develop my confidence and grow my knowledge of English.
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Claire Wallace |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
For me, this is the best English teacher.
Claire helped me believe in myself!
Claire's lessons are always positive, interesting, dynamic and effective!
Claire charges me with positive energy and I want to learn more and more!
Thank you very much, Claire!
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Claire Wallace |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
She is the best teacher. She is really friendly and helpful. I like hers method of teaching. I feel more confident with her support. Thank you, Claire.
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Claire Wallace |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
A wonderful teacher who inspires. Thank you!
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Dale Murphy |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Dear Dale,
I want to say thank you because you have helped me so much during my time at college. You always explained things clearly and made the lessons easier to understand.
You were kind, patient, and always ready to support me when I had questions or problems. Because of you, I feel more confident and better prepared for the future.
Thank you for believing in me and for being a great teacher.
With thanks and respect,
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Harry Gooch |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Dear Harry,
I want to say thank you because you made a big difference in my learning. You always took the time to help and support me, even when things were difficult.
Thank you for your kindness, your patience, and for always encouraging me to do my best. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me.
With warm thanks,
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Harry Gooch |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
This is the kind of person who cares about each student and strives for progress in learning English. And I really feel like I have improved my English a lot.
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Isela Shipton |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Thank you, Isela Shipton, for your brilliant work, incredible dedication, and strong effort in teaching people in our group English.
I even couldn't imagine, how difficult to keep a person's attention every time and every day, provided that everyone in our group had their own lives, problems, etc.
You incredible person.
Your explanation of grammar is wonderful, and the tests and tasks are very precisely. Probably it's the hardest kind of work for me, and I'm glad to know you and I can study English in your group. Edinburgh College is much stronger with you. Thank you so much. I appreciate you and your work.
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Jane Botros |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
You were very patient with us and your explanations were very clear, I have aprooved my English and I wish to continue with you at next level.
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Jane Botros |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Thank you, Jane, for your patience, support, and inspiring lessons.
I’m grateful for your guidance and the confidence you’ve helped me build.
Thanks, Jane, for making learning English enjoyable and meaningful.
Your dedication and kindness mean a lot — thank you, Jane!
Thank you for believing in me and helping me grow, Jane.
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Kate Sturrock |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
You are the best teacher I’ve ever seen! Thank you for your support, motivation and inspiration to learn !
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Lucy Ferguson |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
She is kind and wise person. You are nice, patient and fair for everyone the same, energetic cheerful, engaged in students problems and always kin to help. Sometimes strict, but it turn into advantage at the end. Very good style of teaching. Thanks you I finished National 5 with good skills that help in future study and work
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Mark Hamilton |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
It is with great love and pride that I nominate Mark Hamilton, who was not just my ESOL teacher during the academic year 2024 to 2025 but a ray of light throughout my year.
Before I continue, I want to say that I truly appreciate and love all of my teachers. I am deeply thankful to every one of them for their efforts, kindness, and support throughout the year. Choosing Mark was not easy, because every teacher gave me something valuable. But I chose Mark because, in addition to being an excellent ESOL teacher, I believe he has the qualities of a brilliant lecturer someone whose presence could inspire across the college, far beyond the classroom.
Mark is not only a knowledgeable and intelligent teacher. He is deeply human in the way he treats his students, generous in his giving, and sincere in his desire to make a real difference in our lives. In every class, I felt I was sitting in front of someone rare, someone who teaches with both his mind and his heart. He planted in us both passion and knowledge, not with pressure, but with joy and wonder.
His teaching methods are exceptionally clever. He introduced us to ideas that made the language flow into us like water. For example, he showed us how to use the read aloud function in Microsoft Word while writing and correcting ourselves, or to visualise words before writing them. These are techniques I never imagined would make me fall in love with language learning the way I did.
What made me love his classes even more was that he did not just teach grammar or vocabulary. He opened doors to a wider world. He would casually mention the names of authors, philosophers, or even inspiring athletes, gently guiding us to explore beyond the classroom. I would quietly write down their names, and later find myself diving into their incredible worlds of art and thought. All of this was sparked by a simple comment from a teacher who knew how to open windows inside us.
Mark does not just teach. He awakens curiosity and revives the mind. He believes that the best way to learn a language is by activating thought, and he brought this belief into every lesson. One day, I mentioned in class that reading is one of the best ways to learn a language. He warmly supported the idea and added beautiful quotes from famous thinkers. That moment stayed with me.
Beyond all this, Mark is a humble teacher who knows how to give strength through silence, and how to gently step in when someone needs support. During a stressful time with exams approaching and tensions within the group, he shared breathing techniques that were simple but powerful. They helped me personally release a deep heaviness I had been carrying.
That experience led me to write him a message of gratitude. I told him that what he shared was not just a breathing exercise. It was a moment of life. I felt the oxygen reaching every part of my body, as if life was returning after long exhaustion.
Mark, you were not just a teacher. You were a quiet friend, a calm healer, and an unforgettable inspiration.
Thank you for being there. Thank you for loving teaching enough to make us love learning.
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Ruth Hardie |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I would like to say huge thanks to my best English teacher. Thank you for all your patience, help and support with our lessons, and other areas of life!
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Ruth Hardie |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Ruth is amazing very professional teacher! She is always patient, clear, and encouraging. I’ve learned so much and really enjoyed the lessons!
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Stuart Teadley |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I would like to say a big thank you to our amazing teacher, Stuart.
Stuart has been incredibly supportive throughout our time on the ESOL National 5 course.
He always explains everything clearly and patiently, and makes learning English feel much easier and more enjoyable.
In our class, we come from many different parts of the world — Latin America, Africa, Ukraine, Poland, and Hong Kong. Even though we have different backgrounds and cultures, Stuart always makes everyone feel welcome and included. That means so much to us.
We also love Stuart's great sense of humour. His jokes and funny stories help us feel relaxed and make the lessons fun, even when we are preparing for exams.
Thanks to his support and positive attitude, we feel more confident and ready for our National 5 exam in May. Stuart has helped us believe in ourselves, and we are truly grateful for that.
On behalf of the whole class, thank you, Stuart, for being such a kind, patient, and inspiring teacher. We really appreciate everything he does.
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Stuart Teadley |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Antony Griffiths and Stuart Teadley.
Having different but still effective approaches and perfectly working on a team, both lecturers are really outstanding.
Thank you from the deepest heart for helping me to see my potential, develop my confidence and grow my knowledge of English.
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Susan Paton |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I want to say thank you because your classes are always interesting, and your support means a lot.
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Susan Wren |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
You helped me a lot to improve my English and you were there always when we need the help and I will not forget your kindness and politeness. I was lucky to be one of your students.
Thank you very much
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Susan Wren |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
Susan helped me with advice when I was having a hard time and I want to thank her both as a professional teacher and as a wonderful person.
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Susan Wren |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
She is a professional. She knows how to combine human and professional qualities. Thank you very much!t
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Susan Wren |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
I want to say thank you because Susan is absolutely professional lecture. She helps and support us with every step, she care about students and their progress. Thank you Susan very much.
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Suzanna Hurst |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
This academic year, our class felt like a miniature version of the world, a space where students from various cultures, languages, and deeply personal experiences came together. Many carried with them the weight of war, displacement, or long interruptions in education. The atmosphere was a mixture of hope and challenge, a balance between the desire to learn and the fear of failure, between heavy silences and visible effort.
Within this environment, Ms. Suzanna Hurst played a clear role in leading the class academically and bore, in her own way, a daily pressure that was anything but easy. Managing such a diverse group, with the emotional tensions it carried, was no simple task. Yet, she managed to maintain the flow of teaching and even dedicated time outside of lessons to provide academic support, something that made a practical difference for many students.
The emotional burden in the classroom was not hidden. It was present in faces, in behaviors, and in long silences. And Suzanna was one of the people who faced that reality day after day. It may not have always been visible, but continuing to show up and give effort in such a tense environment is something that deserves to be acknowledged.
This nomination is not based on personal relationships, but on a broader view of the year as a whole, the context in which she taught, and the effort she invested to ensure the class stayed steady, even as some students quietly struggled.
For these reasons, I nominate Ms. Suzanna Hurst for the Big Student Thank You 2025, in recognition of her academic role during an extraordinary year, and in appreciation of the time and energy she gave in circumstances that were far from easy for any educator.
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Zahida Aziz |
ESOL and English Language Teacher Training |
She is a great teacher. I am so lucky to be her student this year. All my progress is thanks to her and Jo millar. It was really good semester for me.
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