The Teacher Trainer That I Never Want to Be
Why Empathy in Teacher Training is Not an Option, It's the Foundation.
Back in the mid-2000s, when I was still finding my footing as a novice teacher, I worked for a school that occasionally sent us to its headquarters for training.
For someone just starting out, those trips felt like entering the big leagues. We’d be in a room led by seasoned trainers—most of them DELTA-qualified, some with decades of experience under their belts.
It was exciting. It was nerve-wracking. And it was formative in ways I didn’t expect.
Some of those trainers were extraordinary. Not just because they knew their stuff (though they absolutely did), but because they knew how to connect. They listened. They created space. Even when our contributions were kind of clumsy or half-formed, they’d respond with grace—rephrasing with care, steering gently, and making the room feel like a place where curiosity wasn’t punished.
I left those sessions feeling more capable, and even, dare I say it, excited to teach again. There was a kind of pedagogical alchemy, so to speak, at play: their expertise was real, but it was their empathy that made it land.
And then… there were the others.
Trainers whose sessions felt more like performances than pedagogy. Whose tone, posture, and corrections carried an unmistakable message:
“I know more than you, and I need you to know that.”
Instead of creating a space that lifted others up, their presence seemed to shrink it. I remember offering a timid idea once, only to be met with a smirk and a curt dismissal. I left those trainings not inspired, but diminished. Not more confident, but quietly convinced that maybe I didn’t belong in this profession at all.
And I remember thinking, clear as day:
If I ever become a teacher trainer, I will never be that kind of trainer.
Training with Empathy Isn’t Optional; It’s Foundational
Years later, when I started working with teachers myself, that memory stayed with me, shaping how I approached every interaction. A quiet, persistent reminder to check my tone. To pause before correcting. To remember what it feels like to be on the other side of the room—full of questions, full of doubts, just trying to do your best in a system that often asks too much.
Because here’s the thing: teachers don’t need more pressure.
They don’t need more scrutiny.
They’re already navigating too many classes, too many students, too many shifting demands.
What they need from a trainer isn’t another performance. They need support. Encouragement. The sense that someone sees them and believes in their potential.
Yes—knowledge matters.
Expertise matters.
But without empathy, even the best content fails to inspire growth.
And empathy, in this context, doesn’t mean coddling. It doesn’t mean lowering the bar. In fact, the most empathetic trainers I’ve known were the ones who pushed me the hardest—not by intimidating me, but by creating the trust that made challenge possible.
Be the Trainer You Needed
So this is my ongoing reminder to myself—and maybe to you, if you’re a trainer, a mentor, or anyone in a position to shape someone else’s learning:
Be the kind of trainer you needed when you were starting out.
And if you’re already that kind of trainer? Please, keep going. We need more of you. The profession needs more of you. Because in the end, the real legacy of a trainer isn’t how much they knew; it’s how they made others feel about what they could become.
If you're looking to deepen your teaching practice in ways that go beyond the buzzwords, next semester I'll be running the following courses. Each one is designed with clarity, intentionality, and real teacher development in mind.
Mondays
Language Development for Teachers · 9–10am (Sergio Pantoja)
From Headlines to the Classroom (New Course!)
Group 1: 10–11am[Sold Out] | Group 2: 8–9pm (Sergio Pantoja)Language Experts · 7–8pm (Sergio Pantoja)
Tuesdays
Path to Proficiency · 9–11am (Ana Carolina)
Advanced Grammar for Teachers · 2–3pm (Sergio Pantoja)
C1 Advanced Prep Course · 7–9pm (Sergio & Ana)
TKT · 7–9pm (Sergio & Ana)
Wednesdays
Brush Up on Your Teaching Skills· 9–10am (Sergio Pantoja)[Sold Out]Advanced Conversation for Teachers (New Edition!) · 10–11am (Sergio Pantoja)
The Lexical Approach · 7–8pm (Sergio Pantoja) [1 spot left]
Teaching Pronunciation Effectively · 8–9pm (Sergio Pantoja) [2 spots left]
Thursdays
C2 Proficiency Prep Course (Module 1) · 7–9pm (Sergio Pantoja)
Fridays
C2 Proficiency Prep Course (Module 2) (Sergio Pantoja)
Group 1: 9–11am | Group 2: 2–4pm
Keep learning, keep growing—and thanks for letting me be part of your journey!