Marjorie Rosenberg's acrostic poem provides insights about her life and career. She has a Master's in Fine Arts and teaching certificate in music. She taught music in schools which taught her to adapt to different learners' needs. She is from New Jersey but has lived in Austria since 1981, where she teaches university students and does corporate training. She finds joy and forms close relationships with her students. She is interested in learning styles and how to encourage students. She has been an active member of IATEFL since 1995 and president since 2015. She enjoys her home in Graz, Austria, which offers cultural opportunities.

1. Marjorie Rosenberg's
Acrostic
Presented by Naomi Ganin Epstein

3. M is for MUSIC
Music, my first love, since high school.
Have a Master of Fine Arts as well as a
teaching certificate.
Teaching music in the school system taught
me a great deal about adapting to learners
needs' and being flexible.

4. A is for America &
Austria
From New Jersey
Attended University
taught school &
studied voice in
N.Y.
Have been teaching
in Austria since
1981.

5. R is for Relevance
My university students and corporate
clients need & want relevance to...
...their jobs
...the environments they live & work in
...their beliefs & personal value
systems

6. J is for JOY
It is what I still
feel when I go...
into a classroom
attend a conference
chat about ELT
JOY keeps me
going!

7. O is for Opera
Running a small opera company with a
friend taught me useful skills for being
a freelance teacher:
time & people management skills
to have confidence in front of an
audience.
how to negotiate

8. R is for Room for
All
Particularly interested in learner
preferences and learning styles.
As a language learner I discovered
that difficulties I experienced were
due to being forced into one
method that didn't work for me.

9. I is for IATEFL
Have been an active
member since 1995.
President of
IATEFL since 2015.
Proud of how
IATEFL benefits
EFL teachers from
around the globe.

11. E is for ENGLISH
If I hadn't loved to sing I would
have studied English.
As a voracious reader finally bought
an Ereader so I wouldn't need to to
bring 20 books on holiday with me...

12. R is for
Relationships
I find that I often
form very close
relationships with
students.
I recognize students
as individuals & as
people, not simply
empty vessels to be
filled with
knowledge.

13. O is for
Observation
Many of the ideas I have had
regarding learning preferences come
from observing my students &
seeing how they approach tasks in
completely different ways, even if
the outcome is the same.

14. S is for Students
I enjoy my time with them!
Together we work towards the outcome
they need.

15. E is for
encouragement
Learning a language is such an
emotional task, when we stumble to
say or write something, it is not the
same as being a beginner in another
field. We need to make sure that
our students understand that this is
a process and they won’t be judged
for their mistakes

16. N is for NLP
Became interested in Neuro-Linguistic
Programming in the late 1980’s.
Learned useful techniques such as the
goal-setting exercise, the creativity
strategy, how to establish and maintain
rapport and precise use of language to
clarify communication with others.

17. B is for Business
English
I have been teaching
corporate clients in the
field of banking &
finance for many years.
I have also published
several books on the
topic, two of which were
photocopiable business
English games.

18. E is for Entertainment
Important both in the
classroom and in my
private life.
I enjoy ‘entertaining’
students with relevant
anecdotes or stories
I go to the opera,
ballet performances
and concerts regularly.

19. R is for Rapport
Establishing a feeling of mutual trust and
understanding is vital in all the work I
do.

20. G is for Graz
My home since 1981
There are several
universities, an opera
house as well as concert
halls, restaurants, parks
and a medieval inner
city. It is a wonderful
place to live as getting
around is easy and
there is enough on offer
to suit every taste.

21. Posted on Naomi Epstein's Blog
/http://visualisingideas.edublogs.org
This was an interview for the ETAI
International Conference, 2016
http://etaiconferences.wix.com/
etai2016