Teacher, IELTS Tutor and Proofreader with MA in Applied Linguistics and 32 years’ experience
Teaches
English
Native
Speaks
French
Japanese
Spanish
Teacher, IELTS Tutor and Proofreader with MA in Applied Linguistics and 32 years’ experience
About Me
Me as a Teacher
My lessons & teaching style
Resume & Certificates
From United KingdomLiving in Other, France (23:07 UTC+01:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Oct 13, 2015
InterestsWritingFilms & TV SeriesSports & FitnessReadingTravel
Hi, I’m Simon—a British English teacher with a passion for languages, travel, and adventure. With 32 years of teaching experience and an MA in Applied Linguistics, I specialize in helping students excel in IELTS and academic English, preparing them for success at university. My expertise comes from 15 years of teaching at Japanese universities and pre-sessional courses at the University of Glasgow, where I honed my skills in guiding students through the complexities of academic language. My love for languages isn’t just professional—it’s personal. Having lived in Japan for 20 years and now residing in France, I’ve immersed myself in learning Japanese and French.
Me as a Teacher
I have been teaching English for 32 years and I have a Certificate in TEFLA (CELTA), an Advanced Certificate in TESOL and an MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL. I was the editor of a Teacher Education journal in Japan for eight years and I taught at universities there for 15 years.
I taught pre-sessional courses at the University of Glasgow from 2015 to 2020, completing 13 in all, so I have a lot of experience in preparing students for the cultural and academic expectations in an English-speaking university setting. The goal of the pre-sessional courses was for the students to attain an IELTS-equivalent score of 6.5 or 7.
Also, I have been teaching scuba diving and first aid since 2002.
My lessons & teaching style
It is difficult to describe a specific style as each student is different and one of the greatest strengths of the Italki platform is the one-to-one nature of the classes. Consequently, I adapt my style to suit the situation and the student, and I like to use humour and fun when at all possible.
My teaching material
PDF file
Text Documents
Audio files
Video files
Flashcards
Articles and news
Quizzes
Test templates and examples
Graphs and charts
Homework Assignments
Certificates
Learning Technologies in EAP for Teachers - University of Sheffield - 2019Professional development certificate from the University of Sheffield focused on educational technology in EAP teaching.
Certificate verified
Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics and TESOL - University of Leicester - 2002
Certificate verified
Teaching experience
2015 - Current
TeacherItalkiI have over 10 years of experience teaching English on italki, working with students of all levels and backgrounds. I focus on personalised lessons to improve fluency, academic skills, and confidence.
Education
1999 - 2002
Master's - Applied Linguistics and TESOLUniversity of LeicesterMA
Work Experience
2001 - 2015
TeacherKinjo Gakuin University - Nagoya, Japan
2005 - 2015
TeacherNagoya University of Foreign Studies - Nagoya, Japan
2015 - 2020
TeacherUniversity of Glasgow - Glasgow, United KingdomVia Veritas Vita
4.9
Rating
768
Students
3,882
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
4.9
Rating
768
Students
3882
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
English Lessons
Trial Lesson
492 lessons completed
USD 5.00+
English for Studying at an English-speaking University
B1 - C2Language Essentials404 lessons completed
USD 13.00+
Package with 10% off
English Conversation with help on pronunciation and grammar
A2 - C2Conversation1,662 lessons completed
USD 13.00+
Package with 10% off
Proofreading/Essay Correction
A2 - C2Language Essentials192 lessons completed
USD 14.00+
Availability
Based on your timezone (UTC+00:00)
651 Reviews
山田遥斗
41 English lessons
Teacher’s pick
If you're struggling with exam preparation, such as IELTS, I highly recommend Simon. I started using this app to improve my IELTS score for my master’s program application. I chose him because of his extensive experience as an English teacher and working experience in Japan. He is very kind and always encouraging, which makes every lesson enjoyable. Over the past five months, my English skills have improved significantly, especially in writing and speaking.
He assigned me writing homework and reviewed it in detail during our lessons, which helped me learn more natural English expressions and how to write academic essays. He explains common mistakes that Japanese learners make from a Japanese perspective as well. We also practiced the speaking section as if it were a real test, which boosted my confidence and helped me encounter familiar topics during the exam. Furthermore, he also helped me with deciding which graduate university to apply to.
Sep 7, 2024
Joayeon
13 English lessons
Teacher’s pick
For an immigration purpose, I had to get IELTS 7.0 (each band), and looked for the qualified English teacher who has many years of experience in teaching. Now that I got my desired scores (actually higher than that - L 9, R 8.5 S&W 7), I feel so grateful that I met Simon!
He helped me a lot during my IELTS journey especially for my writing score to increase from 6.5 to 7. For the last three months, he motivated me to write more essays and gave me excellent feedbacks and estimated my possible score for every writing piece that I produced. The classes always went smooth, in an interactive and fun way, so I never got bored. I really admired his long teaching experience and ability to attend in details!
Apart from that, he has collected very useful and hands-on information about IELTS and how the scoring system work, and he never minded sharing this valuable information with me.
If you need IELTS score and find a qualified teacher, I do recommend Simon as your English teacher!!!
Sep 7, 2017
Michael Tsia
11 English lessons
I have taken editing lessons with Simon for terms. I got a merit for my modules 1 and 2. Hopefully, I will get a distinction this term!
Jul 29, 2025
Tanya
16 English lessons
Teacher’s pick
In our lessons, we have combined both interview preparation and general conversations.
Simon is an excellent teacher and an amazing person. He is confident, intelligent, knowledgeable and capable to listen to me as a student. He has reacted to my needs, be they help, guidance or further explanation, adopting a supportive and an encouraging approach. He always gives honest feedback and challenges with (unexpected) questions that make me think. Being a linguist, he understands what intercultural communication is. Last but not least, he has a good sense of humor, which adds to the whole experience. Although I still can't articulate my thoughts in English as fluently as I would like to, I feel I've been making some progress. Thank you for that, Simon! And let me highly recommend you!
Jan 18, 2019
Lidiya Grishayeva
44 English lessons
I have been taking lessons with Simon for half a year now, and I truly enjoy the learning process. I can clearly see my progress, which motivates me a lot. We discuss a wide variety of topics and learn new vocabulary in every lesson, along with detailed pronunciation correction.
After each class, I receive homework assignments that we carefully review and discuss during the next lesson, which helps reinforce the material and structure my learning.
Simon is very polite and supportive. He communicates at a comfortable pace and always makes sure everything is clear. If something is difficult to understand, he explains it patiently and provides clear examples until it fully makes sense.
I especially appreciate that he often explains the origin and background of certain words. Understanding their etymology makes new vocabulary much easier to remember and gives deeper insight into the language.