Key people

Jennifer Mackenzie, Co-founder and Managing Director

IoD Scotland Director of the year (Medium-sized Business 2016) and HBW Business Woman of the Year 2017

Jennifer Mackenzie started her teaching career in Greece after completing a Politics degree at the University of Paisley. After working in the civil service on her return to the UK, she co-founded TEFL Scotland with her experience in administration and management helping ensure the company’s success in running and selling courses across the UK.

Ms Mackenzie has spearheaded the company’s recent launch in the United States and also oversees the development and operations of the company in the UK and Ireland. This has helped grow the company’s customer base to over 8,000 students per year and increase our range of classroom venues to 35 around the world.

She has written regularly for The Scotsman and a quarterly column in The Herald’s business supplement. Jennifer is known for her interest in developing tech skills in the future workforce and how to encourage more young women into digital, and is frequently invited to participate in working groups with governmental and educational agencies. She has recently taken on her first volunteer board position with Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) Inverness and Highlands.

Joe Hallwood, Co-founder and Director

Joe Hallwood started his teaching career in Greece, after completing a Philosophy degree and working in a tax office in Hull. Looking for a more inspiring line of work, Mr Hallwood turned to teaching to find fulfilment, and found a lifelong career.

After meeting future wife Jennifer while teaching, the pair spent time teaching Business English in France before returning to the UK to work for a large travel volunteer operator.

It was then that Mr Hallwood co-founded TEFL Scotland, which would go on to become The TEFL Org, with his experience in e-commerce, course development and teacher training playing a role in launching the company’s web presence.

Mr Hallwood is responsible for international development and is directing the company’s involvement in China. This includes participating as a judge in China Daily’s national English-speaking competition, which draws over 500,000 entrants per year, as well as producing courses for both English ability and English teaching.

Alan Moir, Sales & Marketing Manager

Alan Moir graduated from the University of Stirling with a degree in Marketing and Spanish, and then subsequently completed a TEFL course with a view to teaching in Spain.

After spending two years teaching there in Galicia, he returned to the UK to work for The TEFL Org and help others achieve their teaching dreams.

Mr Moir has worked with the company for five years, overseeing the growth of the company’s marketing efforts and its dominant position online as the UK’s leading TEFL course provider.

Thomas Kerr, Online Courses Manager

Thomas Kerr worked in several fields including banking and finance before settling on teaching as his career path. He undertook a TEFL course in London before settling in Spain and undertaking a Trinity Diploma in TEFL and Master’s degrees in Education Leadership and in Linguistics. He has over 30 years of experience in the TEFL industry working with prestigious schools and organisations such as the British Council and Cambridge English.

Joining TEFL Scotland shortly after its launch in 2008, Mr Kerr helped in the development of the company’s courses and ensuring their delivery in both classroom and online environments.

Mr Kerr is the Online Courses Manager at The TEFL Org and oversees the assessment and support of thousands of students while they complete their online TEFL courses.

Mr Kerr has been heavily involved in the re-development of The TEFL Org’s course line-up and bringing the latest developments in English language teaching into the state-of-the-art learning platform.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Want to find out a bit more about what The TEFL Org does to help others in the local community and around the world? Visit our CSR page for updates about our charity involvement and donations.

Meet the team

Meet the wonderful people that make up the The TEFL Org team.

TEFL courses train people to become English teachers. With a qualification from an accredited TEFL organisation such as The TEFL Org, students can go on to teach English in countries around the world, with popular destinations including in East Asia, Middle East and South America.

Classroom courses

These courses take place either over two days on a weekend or three days on weekdays in locations across the UK, Ireland and Spain. Courses are delivered by experienced tutors with experience of teaching English abroad, and are designed to be fun, informal and interactive so that students become comfortable with the methodologies of TEFL.

Online courses

The TEFL Org’s online courses have been designed by industry experts with decades of English teaching and training experience. These courses go into great detail and give students an in-depth and interactive.

The TEFL Org’s courses have all been recently re-developed from scratch to provide a modern, state-of-the-art online learning experience with over 40 hours of video content and bespoke learning software.

Course options

The TEFL Org offer a wide range of courses for students to achieve the teaching qualification that suits their budget, schedule and teaching aspirations.

Students can opt for a classroom course, online course or a combined course which includes both classroom and online learning. The TEFL Org also offer advanced TEFL courses in specialised areas of English teaching so that students can further their knowledge and enhance their teaching CVs.

After-course support

The TEFL Org have connections with some of the most well-known employers in English language teaching, such as English First in China, Korean Horizons in South Korea, Meddeas in Spain and the English Language Company in Vietnam.

The TEFL Org offer lifetime access to their exclusive TEFL Jobs Centre for students to find teaching roles after they have completed their course. They also offer CV-checking and other guidance on finding work in the TEFL industry.