The IATEFL Themes conference celebrates some of the most significant and popular sessions from the IATEFL International Conference earlier in the year, and brings them to a whole new audience online.
Whether you were unable to join us in Edinburgh in April, or perhaps you were attending another of the more than 600 sessions, this is your chance to enjoy a selection of great presentations!
A two-day online conference open to all
Saturday 1 November 2025 A selection of sessions from the International Conference on a range of topics related to English language teaching
Sunday 2 November 2025 Sessions selected by our Special Interest Groups addressing topics and issues related to their area of professional focus.
IATEFL members can join for free
Registration for this event, which is open to all, is £15 for this two-day event. IATEFL members can join for free, so if you’re not a member this is a great opportunity to join the association before you register! Attendees will receive a certificate of attendance to add to their professional development portfolio, as well as access to the event recordings.
Watch a recording of the IATEFL Livestream from Thursday 25th September 2025.
IATEFL Livestreams have all the latest news, events, publications and updates, as well as interviews with interesting people involved in the world of English language teaching.
On Wednesday 13 August, the Head Office team put down their keyboards and mice and undertook a day of community volunteering, as they do each year.
This year they were volunteering at at Howletts Wildlife Park, cleaning, gardening, clearing and anything else we’re asked to do! Howletts has a long history of protecting some of the world’s most endangered species, returning them to safe areas in their natural habitat. You can find out more here: https://lnkd.in/eQYd37bz
In previous years the Head Office team have undertaken beach cleans, helping out in a garden project dedicated to supporting adults with learning disabilities, and also helping out in a conservation park.
With IATEFL being a registered charity, the Head Office staff always enjoy supporting other worthwhile charities in the local area.
We have received some questions and comments both on social media posts and privately about our stance on global political affairs, and we felt now was the time to make a clarification statement.
Whilst IATEFL is an international association, it is also a UK charity regulated by charity laws in the UK, and also governed by its own Memorandum and Articles of Association. Governance comes from a group of eight trustees, all of whom are unpaid volunteers, and whose responsibility it is to ensure that the charity complies with the relevant regulations in the UK.
Political neutrality has always been a key part of the way IATEFL works. Only by maintaining this can we welcome members from any country in the world and from any political regime to our webinars, conferences and into our SIGs. We understand that our neutrality can attract criticism for not taking public positions on global affairs. However, this stance enables us to engage with teachers across the world, to build communities of practice, and to create inclusive spaces for professional development, regardless of where a teacher is from or where they live. We believe that teachers and volunteer-led non-profit teaching associations are not responsible for the beliefs and actions of the country in which they are located, and IATEFL’s ethos is to be as inclusive as possible.
In addition, UK charity law prevents us from making any political statements unrelated to our very specific scope as a charity. Trustees find this highly frustrating sometimes, as much as anyone else would, especially in these times of conflict – but its enforcement is part of the responsibility of the role. We have made a wide-ranging statement condemning violence towards civilians in any kind of conflict anywhere in the world, and this can be found on our website here.
In terms of our associates, these are independent not-for-profit teacher associations, with no direct connections to their national governments. We do not believe that these associations can be held in any way liable for the policies of those governments. We also feel that in the extreme circumstances that countries can find themselves, the continued support of IATEFL is important for those teachers who find themselves opposing the regime where they live and work.
Regarding our banking arrangements, the IATEFL Head Office is exploring options for new banking partners with ethical investment policies being amongst our selection criteria. However, many banks do not accept charities as clients, and of those that do, many require at least 50% of trustees to be UK-based. Our global financial transactions—combined with the fact that very often our trustees are not UK-based — complicates matters for us but we do not believe requiring all trustees to be UK-based would align with our commitment to internationalism.
In recent months, we have very occasionally been accused online of cowardice or complicity. As a board, we have found these comments, though rare, very offensive and deeply hurtful. There are sometimes external or legal factors beyond our control that limit what we can do—even when we may personally disagree with those constraints. Trustees are volunteers, simply giving their time to help run a professional association within the constraints of the legal framework in which we operate.
As always, we remain open to dialogue with our members. We hope that IATEFL members understand that in order for the association to link, develop and support as many teachers around the world as possible, in keeping with our mission statement, political neutrality ensures that we reach and connect with teachers wherever possible.
We are pleased to launch the new Green IATEFL website, which we hope will provide members and everyone else with ideas and information on how they might contribute to making the English language teaching profession. On the website you will find toolkits with ideas for different sectors of our profession, and there is also a section of the site with links to resources and webinar recordings which IATEFL has undertaken on topics around sustainability.
This website is a collaborative project, working with ELT professionals, organisation, companies and institutions, and is open to all. Visitors are encouraged to use any ideas and resources they feel might be appropriate to them and their organisation, and also share their own ideas, feedback and knowledge with us. As an association, IATEFL certainly does not have all the answers, and continues to learn and reduce its own impact, but it’s only together, as a profession, that we can make a real impact.
If you haven’t taken part in an IATEFL International Conference before, then this video should give you an idea of what it’s like. You can also visit our conference website for more information on the event and how to book your place: www.iateflconference.org
In the past few weeks Chris Graham, IATEFL President, Aleksandra Popovski Golubovikj, IATEFL Vice President, and Jon Burton, IATEFL Chief Executive, have been attending events run by IATEFL Associate teaching associations and partners in Asia.
AzETA International Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan
Christopher Graham, IATEFL President, and Aleksandra Popovski Golubovikj, IATEFL Past President and Vice President, kindly sponsored by the British Council, were warmly welcomed by AzETA at their 15th International Conference in Baku. The event was a special one, celebrating 20 years of meaningful collaboration between the two associations. More than 150 English teachers from across the country came together to share ideas, reconnect with colleagues, and reflect on two decades of professional partnership.
As part of the celebrations, AzETA also brought a smaller version of the conference to Ganja, the second-largest city in Azerbaijan. Aleksandra Popovski Golubovikj joined this historic occasion, which marked the first ELT event of international nature held in this beautiful city. It offered local educators a unique opportunity to connect with the wider ELT community.
Global English Education China Assembly in Beijing, China
Report from Christopher Graham, IATEFL President:
“At the end of July this year, our Chief Executive Jon Burton and I attended the the Global English Education China Assembly in Beijing during which IATEFL signed a memorandum of understanding with the organisers, 21st Century English Education Media. This allows us to explore options for cooperation around support for EFL teachers in China, IATEFL membership opportunities and CPD delivery. The conference itself showed the huge significance of English language teaching in China, and specifically the technological innovations that are happening around language teaching and learning.
While the conference had a number of international speakers and delegates, the vast majority were from China and it was fascinating for me to learn more about the Chinese ELT context with teachers from primary up to tertiary, and to understand more about their challenges and the opportunities they have. The conference was very wide-ranging both across the plenary talks and the parallel sessions, and it was complemented by a series of panels one of which Jon and I were glad to sit on. In addition, I delivered some short opening remarks and a plenary around sustainability and ELT, and Jon delivered some closing remarks.
The great thing about ELT conferences is the always great level of enthusiasm and excitement amongst teachers not just about what they hear in the sessions, but around their opportunities to exchange ideas, learn from each other and provide mutual support. This conference was no exception to this. I hope to see some Chinese colleagues at our international conference in Brighton next year, and both Jon and I encouraged Chinese teachers to become members of IATEFL, and also once they do to consider volunteering either on one of our committees or through a SIG. We’d like to thank the organisers for inviting us, the British Council China for providing support, and above all to the teachers for their enthusiasm and energy.”
Watch a recording of the IATEFL Livestream from Thursday 27th June 2025.
IATEFL Livestreams have all the latest news, events, publications and updates, as well as interviews with interesting people involved in the world of English language teaching. This edition was a special Pride-themed edition of IATEFL Live!
“We’re spotlighting LGBTQIA+ voices, inclusive leadership, and the power of representation in English language teaching. Expect inspiring guests, bold conversations, and practical tips for creating truly welcoming classrooms and workplaces. Let’s celebrate diversity, challenge bias, and embrace the beautiful spectrum of identities in ELT.”
The poster presentations at the IATEFL Conference are a great way for ELT professionals to present their research and ideas. Each poster is on display for the duration of the event and presenters are available during break times to answer questions from delegates. Plus, we are able to upload the posters to our website after the event, so anyone unable to get to the conference can have a chance to browse them.
And if you are interested in presenting a poster at the 59th IATEFL International Conference in Brighton in 2026, proposal submissions for IATEFL members will open in July 2025.
