ELTtoo

About us

#ELTtoo: working to build safer work environments for everyone.
#ELTtoo is a movement of educators who want the voices of people that have been harassed, bullied and intimidated to be heard, no matter who they are or where they are.
Our mission is to work with people to raise awareness of these issues and provide support, guidance and appropriate training so that all our work environments are harassment- and bullying-free.

#ELTtoo is a call for real change in ELT for all genders worldwide.

What are we doing?

  • Raising awareness of the serious issue of abuse, harassment and bullying
  • Sharing personal stories
  • Sharing information about sexual misconduct, harassment and bullying: what it is, and actions you can take if you are a victim of abuse
  • Actively supporting the idea of a safe, fair and comfortable workplace for all
  • Working together with professional bodies and organisations to share and provide clear guidelines and support for ELT professionals

What are we being careful to NOT do?

  • If any individuals feel bad about any of their past actions and as a result of this campaign decide to re-evaluate their own code of ethics and change their future actions, that is great news. HOWEVER, we are not here to name and shame.  We want to look forward not back, to help build a better future for educators.

No more silence. No more ignoring. No more tolerance of harassment, abuse or discrimination.

An open letter to all ELT professionals

Dear fellow ELTers

We are writing on the behalf of teachers, academic managers, teacher trainers, materials writers, researchers and other professionals who work in ELT. The recent #metoo campaign brought to light just how prevalent sexual harassment and bullying is in our profession. Many people came forward to tell what had happened and is still happening to them on a daily basis in their places of work and at public events. Your stories have been heard and we thank you for sharing them so openly and bravely. 

The serious problem with harassment and bullying in our profession needs to be addressed openly and honestly. 

People need to feel confident that if they are subjected to any kind of abuse, they will be listened to and appropriate action will be taken by employers, fellow professionals and teaching associations. 

There must be clear policies and procedures in place that allow them to report incidents so they can be followed up and dealt with. 

We want people to be held accountable for their behaviours and by doing so, make our profession a safe and equitable place for everyone.

Unfortunately, we have allowed harassment to go on too long, making excuses for the perpetrators or thinking that if we ignore it, it may just improve or go away. Harassment happens because perpetrators never face consequences, often because we think that, because nothing has ever happened in the past, nothing will happen if we say something when things have been reported. We may feel too afraid and intimidated by a perpetrator with a status in the industry able to influence our employment prospects. 

We want this to change. We want to tell your stories through our voice so that we can make ELT a safer place for all.

Yours Sincerely,

Varinder Unlu, and the ever increasing supporters of this movement from all genders.

For more information

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To share your personal story

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To write to us

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More Information

This website is slowly growing. Eventually there will be more information here about both the ELTtoo initiative, and other related issues. FACTS AND FIGURES: 75%  of workplace harassment victims experienced retaliation when they spoke up. A report conducted jointly by the TUC and Everyday Sexism found that 52% of women had experienced some form of… Continue reading More Information

Contact

Please feel free to contact us if you would like to support ELTtoo or share advice/information. Your message and name will not be published. Below is a place to send a private message from you to ELTtoo. If you would like to share your personal story, please follow this link for more information

ELTtoo

About us #ELTtoo: working to build safer work environments for everyone. #ELTtoo is a movement of educators who want the voices of people that have been harassed, bullied and intimidated to be heard, no matter who they are or where they are. Our mission is to work with people to raise awareness of these issues… Continue reading ELTtoo

An older, married, very self-confident male teacher once told me (a female YL Trainer) that he wanted to be a trainer one day and thought young females would make the best trainees because they’d do whatever he says….like sit on his face. When I pointed out how inappropriate his comment was he told me to “relax” and that maybe I’d have a better sense of humour if I masturbated more.

Relax

I wish I could believe it was no more than a “joke” (although also inappropriate), but after witnessing him try to put his hands down the underwear of an incredibly drunk young teacher, I wasn’t convinced. And this wasn’t an isolated incident of him creeping me out and making me feel incredibly uncomfortable. I have a very relaxed sense of humour normally and up for almost any banter- but he made my skin crawl.  He’s now a CELTA trainer at another school. When I heard this I felt it was time I came forward about the many things I’d heard and witnessed. I thought for a long time and eventually approached the Director of his school and aired my concerns as objectively as I could. She laughed as she shrugged and said “no complaints so far”. So I let it go.

CELTA tutor making inappropriate comments

Once, I was sitting in the front row of a conference next to a friend when I received a message on Facebook messenger from a stranger asking who the guy I was sitting next to was. If he was my boyfriend. And that I could do better. Whaaaat? Really!! It was so creepy. I deleted the message and blocked the person, but continued to feel uncomfortable the whole conference.

A stalker in the audience