Charmaine A.

I am an internationally experienced educator with over 25 years of teaching across South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the French international school (AEFE) system. Since 2015 I have taught within the multilingual community of Lycée Jules Verne, supporting English language learners, including EFL and ESL students, across a richly diverse, cross-cultural environment.

My practice draws on international curricula, including Cambridge IGCSE and A Level, the AEFE/French national curriculum approach, and practical experience teaching within the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP), with resources built to align with IB PYP and DP outcomes. I hold a Higher Diploma in Education (postgraduate) and an Honours degree in Fine Arts from the University of the Witwatersrand, am SACE registered, and hold UK Qualified Teacher Status. I am also trained in Phono-Graphix Reading Therapy, Autism Spectrum and Emotional Literacy, and Child Protection and Safeguarding.

Outside the classroom, I run The Curious Canvas, my own arts enrichment programme, and I enjoy working with students of all ages, from young children taking their first steps in English to adults building academic writing fluency.

I have over 25 years of teaching experience across South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the French international school system. Since 2015 I have been a Senior Teacher and Instructional Leader at Lycée Jules Verne, an AEFE school, where I work with English language learners across primary and secondary phases.

Earlier in my career, I taught Cambridge curriculum at British International Preparatory School, led Art departments at Vuleka St Michael's and Allen Glen High School, and taught in UK primary schools for several years. Since 2018 I have also tutored online through Red Robin Agency and private clients, working with IGCSE and A Level English students, EFL/ESL learners, and Chinese students aged 5 to 15 preparing for Cambridge exams. More recently I have tutored MYP English students through Axiom Academic, guiding them through inquiry-based units and preparing them for IB-aligned assessment criteria. In 2023 I founded The Curious Canvas, my own arts enrichment programme.

I do not teach to a syllabus. I teach to the student in front of me. My approach is inquiry-based and discovery-driven: rather than simply delivering content, I create sessions where students investigate, question, and make connections for themselves. This is a natural fit with the MYP and IB approach to learning, where units are built around key concepts and statements of inquiry rather than fixed content lists, and I plan lessons the same way even when working outside an IB context.

For EFL/ESL learners, I focus on building confidence in real communication alongside accuracy, using structured phonics and literacy intervention techniques where needed. For IGCSE and A Level English students, I work closely with exam frameworks while developing genuine analytical and writing skills that go beyond exam technique. Wherever a student is working toward a specific assessment, whether Cambridge exam papers, MYP criteria, or IB DP assessment objectives, I make sure they understand exactly what the mark scheme is rewarding, then build the thinking skills that let them meet it under real exam conditions.

Lessons are planned with precision but adapted in the moment to how the student is responding, because the best-planned lesson means nothing if the student in front of you doesn't feel known and supported. I draw on differentiated instruction and SEL strategies to make sure every learner, regardless of background or starting point, feels capable of progress.