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Can presence be taught?

In the third post in this series, I explore why rapport, presence and engagement should not be treated as mysterious personality traits — but as developable professional skills.

If we can assess these qualities in teacher education, we should also be able to help teachers practise them.

This article looks at what a performative framework for ELT might offer: a way of thinking about teaching as embodied, interpretive, identity-shaping and rehearseable.

Presence is not magic.
Rapport is not chemistry.
Engagement is not only task design.

They are part of the craft of teaching — and craft can be developed.

Read the article here: [insert article link]

And if these questions interest you, join the free Performative ELT Community, where we explore the embodied, relational and performative dimensions of teaching in more depth:

https://performativeelt.com/free-community-6779



http://teachingartistry.com/2026/05/12/can-presence-be-taught/

Can Presence Be Taught? Towards a Performative Framework for ELT Teaching Artistry. If we can assess rapport, presence and engagement, we should also be able to help teachers develop them. This may sound obvious. But in t…

What Are Performative Skills — and Why Do Teachers Need Them?

Performative skills are essential in teaching, enabling educators to influence how learning is experienced in real time. These skills encompass voice, gesture, timing, and response, significantly affecting students' feelings of safety and engagement. Teachers need meta-performative awareness to understand the implications of their actions, fostering a supportive learning environment....

What Are Performative Skills — and Why Do Teachers Need Them? Performative skills are essential in teaching, enabling educators to influence how learning is experienced in real time. These skills encompass voice, gesture, timing, and response, significantly a…

What if “presence” isn’t something teachers are simply born with?

In this article, I explore one of the most persistent gaps in teacher education: we often assess things like rapport, engagement and classroom atmosphere, but we don’t always have precise language for how teachers actually create them.

A lesson can be beautifully planned and still fall flat.

So what is happening in those moments?

This first post in a short series looks at why we need to move beyond vague feedback like “build rapport” or “be more confident” — and start treating presence as a developable professional skill.

Read the article here: [insert link]

Presence Is Not Personality: The Missing Language in Teacher Education When we mystify presence, we make teacher development less accessible A lesson can be well planned, well staged and well resourced — and still fall apart. Every teacher educator will recognise the …

What if the most important thing a teacher communicates is not the lesson aim… but what their behaviour makes learners feel about themselves?

This is a blind spot in teacher education: we talk a lot about methods and technique, but far less about the specific behaviours that make learners feel safe, recognised, silenced, encouraged, or shut down.

If you’ve ever wondered why some teachers stay with us for life, read on.

We Don’t Yet Have the Language to Talk About What Teachers Do to Learners Meta – Performative Awareness in Teacher Education Teacher education talks endlessly about methods, planning, aims, staging, outcomes, materials, and technique. But some of the most powerful …

What is the missing dimension in ELT teacher education?

We train teachers to plan lessons, analyse language, manage tasks, and use effective techniques. But do we spend enough time helping teachers understand how their presence, tone, timing, feedback, attention, and relational choices are actually felt by learners?

In my latest article, I explore why teaching is not only about what teachers do, but what learners carry forward in memory, emotion, and identity.

The Missing Dimension in ELT Teacher Education Why teaching is not only about what teachers do, but what learners carry forward As a teacher educator, I have spent many waking hours circling back to the same question: What difference does a tea…

Why Teacher Education Needs a Performative Framework

How can we train teachers to respond to learners in real time? In teacher education, some of the most important aspects of teaching are often the least clearly understood. As a teacher educator, a large part of my work involves observing lessons and giving feedback to less experienced teachers against a set of criteria. Much of that feedback quite rightly focuses on procedural aspects of practice: planning, staging, materials, aims, instructions, classroom management, and methodology....

Why Teacher Education Needs a Performative Framework How can we train teachers to respond to learners in real time? In teacher education, some of the most important aspects of teaching are often the least clearly understood. As a teacher educator, a …

From Performative Skills to Meta-Performative Awareness

A New Way of Thinking About Teacher Development In teacher education, we often focus on what teachers know and what teachers do. We help teachers develop knowledge of language, pedagogy, planning, assessment, and classroom management. We also help them build practical skills: how to set up tasks, explain clearly, give feedback, monitor learning, and manage interaction. All of this matters. But it may not be enough....

From Performative Skills to Meta-Performative Awareness A New Way of Thinking About Teacher Development In teacher education, we often focus on what teachers know and what teachers do. We help teachers develop knowledge of language, pedagogy, planning, …

CELTA is intense. So is transformation.

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Remember why you started teaching. Hold onto that.

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