Teacher Talking Time: The Learn YOUR English Podcast

About Teacher Talking Time: The Learn YOUR English Podcast

Teacher Talking Time is a podcast for language teachers who want more: more clarity, more autonomy, and more lasting impact, both inside and outside the classroom. Hosted by Leo and Andrew, each episode features thoughtful, in-depth conversations with the educators, researchers, and teacherpreneurs shaping the future of language education. Guests have included Scott Thornbury, Bill VanPatten, David Little, Jennifer Jenkins, John Levis, Angelica Galante, Sarah Mercer, Enrica Piccardo, Claudia Fernández, Shawn Loewen, Paul Nation, Sheila Thorn, and many more. From the latest in second language acquisition research to honest stories of teachers building lives and businesses on their own terms, every conversation invites you to think deeper, teach more intentionally, and take charge of your professional path. We release two episodes each month - with full video versions on YouTube - to help you reflect, stay inspired, and grow as a teacher and changemaker. Subscribe, listen, and join a global community of educators leading with intention.

Publisher

teachertalkingtime

Category

education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

29 Jan 2019

Latest episode

31 Aug 2026

Latest episodes

122 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   31 Aug 2026

   When Safe Isn't Enough: Navigating Risk, Anxiety, and Career Pivots - Andrew Woodbury

   "Risk is what's left over after you've thought of everything. You can plan out the perfect business idea, and after that, there is still an element of risk that exists. There is no riskless starting of anything; you won't find out what it is until you start." In this special episode of our entrepreneur series, the tables are turned as Leo interviews his co-host and business partner, Andrew Woodbury. Andrew reflects on his journey from an anxious humanities graduate to managing TEFL programs abroad, leaving the post-secondary system, and learning to navigate the reality of business risk. Andrew is an educator, business owner, and co-founder of Learn Your English and ImPact Canada. An advocate for experiential career shifts, he breaks down the myth of "riskless" starting, managing double-ended anxiety, and how he is using ImPact Canada to provide newcomer entrepreneurs with capital, safety nets, and side-door access to build thriving businesses. In this episode, we discuss: How an introverted history graduate accidentally fell in love with teaching after taking a leap to Costa Rica. Why tricking yourself into a temporary 6-month commitment can be the exact push needed to cross international borders. Navigating the sharp contrast between an introverted personal identity and an energetic "Mick Jagger" teaching persona. Floating in Oaxaca, Mexico, and realizing that 2 weeks of annual vacation in a traditional 9-to-5 wasn't going to cut it anymore. Choosing to leave a university program before the ship sank, and weathering the panic of COVID-19 without a safety net. Dealing with the unique fear of stepping into the unknown vs. the stagnant anxiety of staying in a job you've outgrown. Why newcomer qualifications are routinely ignored in Canada and how to replace patronizing resume workshops with real financial access. Creating a community venture fund to give newcomer entrepreneurs the side-door access and safety net usually reserved for legacy citizens. Accepting that risk is what remains after all planning is done—and why taking action is the only cure for overthinking *Prefer video? Watch the episode on YouTube. FOR MORE FROM ANDREW WOODBURY: 1. Connect on LinkedIn 2. ImPact Canada 3. Ingle: The English Practice App 4. Learn YOUR English website (coming soon) OUR PARTNER: E-Solutions for ELT E-solutions for ELT helps teachers build an online system that works for them by building practical websites, course platforms, landing pages and automations designed around the real needs of their ELT businesses. You tailor your teaching to your students. Your tech should be tailored to you. Explore E-solutions for ELT here. SUPPORT US: 🫶 Integrate your brand with our podcast in an effort to improve language education. ⭐ Leave a review where you listen. WORK WITH US: 1. CPD & Teaching Resources 2. Book a free 1:1 chat with us to strategize your teaching business. THE THRIVING TEACHERPRENEUR Get inspired to start and grow your own education business. Weekly insights, stories, and reflections on education entrepreneurship. Subscribe on Substack here.

2. 

   1 Aug 2026

   Why Learning is an Action, Not a Finished Product - Leo Gomez

   "That which seems like a false step is just the next step. What if it wasn't the wrong step? What if it was simply necessary? The path is not something you already know. The path is something that starts to appear because you just keep walking." In this special episode of our entrepreneur series, the tables are turned as Andrew interviews his co-host and business partner, Leo Gomez. Leo reflects on his upbringing in Brazil, the psychological impact of moving across cultures, and how an inherent bias toward action shaped his journey as an educator and founder. Leo Gomez is an experienced language educator, teacher trainer, and co-founder of Learn Your English. A passionate advocate for task-based language teaching (TBLT) and experiential learning, he also breaks down how he built and launched TBL4T by validating demand before creating a single lesson, demonstrating how every "false step" is simply part of the path. In this episode, we discuss: How growing up in Brazil’s necessity-driven, micro-entrepreneurial ecosystem forged a lifelong bias toward action. The psychological tension between a native, spontaneous Portuguese identity and a structured, academic English persona. Why traditional schooling fails experiential learners by presenting knowledge as a finished product to memorize rather than a tool to use. Sidestepping academic dogma to build a practical TBLT framework for real-world teachers facing rigid constraints. How validating an audience first prevents costly product mistakes. Using student feedback and "loop input" to evolve an 8-week pilot into a high-level, 10-to-14-week transformative program. Reframing client rejections, failed launches, and operational mistakes not as errors, but as mandatory steps on the entrepreneurial path. Why waiting to feel "ready" is an illusion, and why taking scary leaps is the only way to uncover what your market actually wants. *Prefer video? Watch the episode on YouTube. FOR MORE FROM LEO GOMEZ: 1. Connect on LinkedIn 2. Teaching Agility 3. Learn YOUR English website (coming soon) OUR PARTNER: E-Solutions for ELT E-solutions for ELT helps teachers build an online system that works for them by building practical websites, course platforms, landing pages and automations designed around the real needs of their ELT businesses. You tailor your teaching to your students. Your tech should be tailored to you. Explore E-solutions for ELT here. SUPPORT US: 🫶 Integrate your brand with our podcast in an effort to improve language education. ⭐ Leave a review where you listen. WORK WITH US: 1. CPD & Teaching Resources 2. Book a free 1:1 chat with us to strategize your teaching business. 3. Monetize your teaching skills THE THRIVING TEACHERPRENEUR Get inspired to start and grow your own education business. Weekly insights, stories, and reflections on education entrepreneurship. Subscribe on Substack here.

3. 

   1 Jul 2026

   The Secret to Duplicating Yourself and Moving from Freelancer to Founder - Zoe Smith

   "When you are constantly thinking in scarcity because you're broke... you don't put enough value on yourself, on your time. You will undercharge, you will always look for ways to stretch yourself too thin. And you can also say yes to the wrong customers, too." We sit down with entrepreneur and BE School founder Zoe Smith. Zoe Smith is the founder of BE School, a specialized Business English institution that scales corporate communication via an international team of over 50 educators. A veteran language coach who designs high-touch corporate environments and personally guides Fortune 500 executives, she recently launched The BE Hub: an interactive sister platform providing editable, real-world target curricula directly to language teachers worldwide In this episode, we discuss: How helping build a 50-location Canadian childcare ecosystem proved that corporate clients will gladly pay premium fees for high-value operations. Why failing to separate your personal pockets from business capital keeps you acting like an employee. How having a newborn and a new business fueled a "failure is not an option" mentality How eliminating regular month-to-month invoicing in favour of non-refundable upfront class packages entirely deletes the administrative stress of chasing money. What managing C-suite executives reveals about regulating your own internal nervous system against minor operational fires. The necessity of duplicating yourself for your business to really take off The braveness required to shut down classes with CEOs when invoices weren't getting paid. Launching a sister company - BE Hub - without sinking tens of thousands of dollars into technical development overhead. *Prefer video? Watch the episode on YouTube. FOR MORE FROM ZOE SMITH: 1. Connect on LinkedIn 2. Visit the BE School 3. Visit the BE Hub OUR PARTNER: E-Solutions for ELT E-solutions for ELT helps teachers build an online system that works for them by building practical websites, course platforms, landing pages and automations designed around the real needs of their ELT businesses. You tailor your teaching to your students. Your tech should be tailored to you. Explore E-solutions for ELT here. SUPPORT US: 🫶 Integrate your brand with our podcast in an effort to improve language education. ⭐ Leave a review where you listen. WORK WITH US: 1. CPD & Teaching Resources 2. Book a free 1:1 chat with us to strategize your teaching business. 3. Monetize your teaching skills THE THRIVING TEACHERPRENEUR Get inspired to start and grow your own education business. Weekly insights, stories, and reflections on education entrepreneurship. Subscribe on Substack here.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

70,697

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

35 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 43 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

31

Social presence

0

YouTube

85

Engagement

51

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