The teacher is an example for the student in everything. Nobody doubts it. That is why we would like you to tell us about yourself. How did you become a teacher? What inspires you in your everyday work?

My name is Anastasia Zhitko. I am 35. I have had a dream to become a teacher since I was 4. English was my favorite subject at school. So, I have finished studying at Linguistic University. French is my second language. Unfortunately, when I was a schoolgirl, I had no possibility to study a second foreign language. But as a student I made up for everything. I was happy to learn the language of Zola and Dumas.

As my fellow graduates, I have started my career as a school teacher. For more than 7 years I have been teaching English to students at university. Every day I meet dozens of motivated young people. Future engineers want to know English. They need it for further development in the profession. It's charging. And every evening I try to devote myself to learning something new in my profession.

It seems to me that it is so difficult to improve your teaching skills every day. The language is changing rapidly. New terms are emerging. And all these processes need to be constantly monitored. Am I right?

Please, do not think that everything is so complicated. It's quite easy to gamify learning these days. For example, we often play Wordle with senior students. Sometimes I myself fail to guess the word, which this time is hidden from the eyes of users by the authors of the game. And it's cool. Together with students, we study dictionaries, look for clues in Google and arrange brainstorming sessions.

Any language games have worked great with the groups that I deal with as a tutor. I must admit that shortly before becoming a teacher at university, I gathered my first group of students. It all started by accident. Three children of my classmates wanted to improve their English before traveling to Europe. We practiced twice a week. In the end, everyone was satisfied. The students began to feel more confident talking with foreigners. I realized that their success inspires me.

How many English classes a day do you give? Maybe there are some tips that can be useful for the teachers and tutors who have just started their careers? I think they will be grateful to you for any ideas.

Usually at the university I have 3-4 classes a day. In the evening, a group of students gathers, for whom I teach as a tutor. Usually it consists of 2-3 people. I don't like working with large groups. This does not allow enough time for each student. The individual approach is extremely important to me. Some of my students are obviously extroverts. Usually such people like to perform in public. Someone is an introvert. He or she always needs special attention at first.

Be sure I have a secret tool which helps me while working with various groups of students. I can advise every tutor to try eLang Extension and watch the progress of the learners. Let them enjoy the full understanding of the texts being pronounced or written on Netflix, YouTube and Coursera due to double subtitles. Moreover, new words from the scripts can be saved in the individual Vocabulary. This feature is very popular with my students.

Please, tell us what are the other useful features of the extension? There might be some specific issues we should mention in the process of sharing experience? What else do your students like to use?

First of all, I would like to note that most of my students have been working with various applications, both mobile and desktop, for a long time. They like the fabulous design of eLang Extension. The students like to customize the subtitles to their taste, changing their color, size and background. If someone does not understand something, the subtitle can always be repeated.

The extension is free. I can say it is important for those who are just starting their career paths. All they have to do to enable quick translation is to add an eLang extension for Chrome or Opera. Plus, it might be Edge, too. Netflix has already become a powerful study tool. Their films and series are very popular among my students. They try to mock the actors and actresses and this gives them a great possibility to improve pronunciation.

While they use the extension is it possible to see synonyms and transcription? I know that the beginners are supposed to pay attention to how the word is pronounced. My English teacher always translates this message.

Yes, the students see synonyms and transcription as soon as they have downloaded the extension. And they like it. For many, this feature literally opens the door to the world of cinema. I want to say that not every student would have mastered many films on Netflix by studying on their own.

The extension is a smart way out. One can both train his or her language skills and broaden his or her horizons. I assure you; many modern students appreciate this opportunity.

Is the extension useful for those who want to learn Spanish or Dutch, for example? A friend of mine wants to work in Spain, so it is an actual theme for him. He tries to pick up all the ideas on how to learn the language.

Dual subtitles are presented in any language. And that is definitely an obvious advantage of the extension.

This is how I trained my French level 2 years ago. I watched “Call my agent” and laughed out loud. This is a wonderful French comedy series. If you want to cheer yourself up in half an hour in the evening, I recommend watching it.

Many students have always dreamed of working with a smart language learning companion. Are you sure that the eLang Extension is worth considering as a one?

I do not doubt that. And the keyword here is smart. Context learning allows students to adjust the words quickly into new speech models.

My niece loves Turkish series. She watches them with English subtitles. There are many options. And it pleases me. I am sure you will like all the options of the eLang Extension, too!