NORTHBROOK, IL – JANUARY 28, 2020
IOR Global Services Presents a Bi-Monthly Series:
Featuring Members of our SuperIOR
Language Training Community
IOR’s Language Department is pleased to share a series featuring the language trainers at the heart of the IOR Language Training experience. Stay tuned to your inbox every other month for a spotlight on our SuperIOR Language Training Community!
This Week’s Featured Trainer:
Stuart Wax
Boston, United States
Mr. Stuart Wax, a Boston area based IOR Language Trainer, has been teaching business professionals and international students since 1989. Most recently, he was an English Language Trainer in the Aviation Department of a company in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. During his career he also lived in Japan for 20 years as an English Language Teacher. Stuart has extensive experience traveling throughout Asia and the world, which has given him a unique perspective on cultures and customs.
How did you learn any language(s) other than your native language?
I learned Japanese while living in Japan. I didn’t have a telephone nor TV. I spent many years thinking that language was only for those who were good at it. I thought I never could. To be able to communicate well in Japanese is one of my biggest accomplishments. It opened doors for me, personal and professional… I didn’t let outside distractions get in the way of trying to be good.
What is one thing you wish your student’s employers knew about language training?
I would hope that employers could see how much time and effort the students put into learning a language that helps facilitate their job. I wish they could see them improving and reaching goals. How language not only helps in their language skills, but life skills as well. I often tell students that their language learning is tied to their happiness overseas.
Why do you work with expats or recently relocated families/students?
Corporate students may have specific needs. They may want to know more about presentations, business idioms or phrases, or how to navigate business meetings and customs. Corporate clients are often at a higher level in their English ability and therefore, need to be more challenged. But they are no less eager to learn than “traditional” students.
I feel like I make a difference with my students when:
I suppose this is true when students find answers in their lives. When their immeasurable progress leads to some internal/emotional goal. When they become satisfied, I become an instrument of that satisfaction in some way.
