My name is Sylvie Lloyd, and I am a recent graduate of Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, British Columbia. In 2020 I completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology and a post-baccalaureate Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) certificate. Having just completed these credentials, I am beginning my search for work as an ESL teacher. I want to teach ESL to combine my love of teaching with my love of connecting with people from all over the world.

I awakened my affinity for teaching when I began coaching speed skating with the Kamloops Long Blades Speed Skating Club six years ago. An injury sidelined me from my role as a competitive athlete and I turned to coaching to stay involved in the sport until I recovered. Having previously completed National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) training, I began coaching a Learn to Skate program. I fell in love with coaching as I realized how rewarding it is to help someone improve themselves while forming personal connections at the same time. Coaching beginner skaters, I learned to break the mechanics of a skill to its basics, whichI think will transfer well to teaching ESL.

I later started coaching older and more experienced skaters and completed higher certification. Through my more advanced training and experience, I have learned to plan practices and create season periodization plans, as well as more advanced teaching and ethics skills. From my coaching training, I feel I am entering the TESL program with a strong background in the skills needed to plan lessons, curricula, and overall learning outcomes and execute them in the classroom.

I learned of the beauty of forming intercultural relationships when I made the decision to live abroad in the Netherlands in 2018. I stayed for over a year, and through my connections in speed skating I made friends from all over the world. In connecting with people from unfamiliar cultures I discovered an underlying sense of humanity that transcends language and culture. Sometimes it feels as if intercultural connections are more real than intra-cultural connections, as we have to connect based on our authentic spirit that binds us rather than the learned culture that divides us.

As an ESL teacher I hope to help my students gain the language skills they need to survive in an English-speaking setting while creating a space for them to form a community built on genuine human connection.