Co-Founder - Managing Director
My inspiration to become an English teacher came from my father. No, dad isn't an English teacher or a lover of literature, and he isn't much of a speller either. Pops mis-spelled my name when he filled out my birth certificate and the constant teasing I received led me to my calling in life - spelling. At least I am luckier than my brother Danny, in a big Freudian slip dad filled out the name on his birth certificate as 'Danial.' I'm just happy dad didn't want to name me Humperdink.
I grew up in a small town named Summit, population 13. The big excitement on Saturday nights was watching the rock crusher operate in the quarry next to my house, that is if we could get there in time after fighting through the traffic returning from the curling bonspiel.
People have often asked what caused me to start travelling (one "l" for Americans) around the world, the answer is simple - change.
The monotony of regularity chased me from the leisures and the known elements of Canada to the far reaches of the Gobi Desert, to the small streams with meter long fish in Mongolia, or to the depths of the Fijian rain forest armed with a bamboo spear, a machete and an incessant desire to do nothing more than live and appreciate.
Visiting with the elephant drivers in Myanmar who were pushing teak logs through mammoth forests, or attempting to converse with Laotian villagers who, upon our arrival, chased their only anorexic chicken around for 20 minutes to sacrifice for a "feast" (thankfully we were able to stop them),or the night in the ruins of Angkor Wat listening to the chant of a parade of monks that came at sunrise to meditate in the bowels of a temple that peaks its way through the twisted vines of the jungle are the experiences that cause me to travel. But traveling is not enough. What does one learn in 2 weeks, or 3, or even in a month? To understand and appreciate what is around and what causes the phenomena that are the basis of a culture can only be understood if one makes an effort to immerse him or herself in the culture ... and that takes time. What better way to do it than to live there and be an English teacher?
When I first entered this profession it was solely with the idea that I was going to travel and pay off my loans. Life would start when I got this out of my system and had enough money to come back and get established with the house and the picket fence.
Accomplishing both initial goals, I found that I could never get used to the fence idea and I realized that I found the profession that was my calling. My first 5 years away saw the birth of a teacher. Teaching requires a number of skills but the fortunate circumstance of teaching English as a second language allows you the opportunity to develop them without specifically studying them.
From teaching a police officer who had seen more pain and suffering in the killing fields of Cambodia than I could ever completely comprehend, or pounding kava, teaching English and throwing a frisbee to the ever-smiling children of a Fijian highland village, to the organized classes and chaotic natures of institutes, corporate classes, and university lectures in Korea and Japan, teaching has always been fulfilling.
Never is one student the same as the other, though some have similar problems and skills. The classes are always changing and so too is the opportunity to take on different classes and find different materials with which to use to reach the students. I feel an immense satisfaction when I know my lesson got them all, held them and caused them to leave my class, the camp fire or the bamboo bure (hut) with a smile on their face and a new thought in their head.
I now travel with my wife and three kids. The world is our classroom. I am a teacher and a student. Teaching is about sharing information and allowing students to find their own path. Through Footprints, I want to share my experience with you, the world is our classroom and the paths are laid, where it takes you is up to you.
Jeff Strachan
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“I had been teaching ESL in Europe and Asia for four years when I contacted Footprints. Before I found Footprints, I was independently searching for a position in Seoul and I was extremely hesitant to pursue any of the contracts that I was offered. The schools and other recruiting firms that I came into contact with were offering contracts with suspicious clauses and inadequate housing. I knew that Ben and Jeff ran a professional service as soon as I spoke to them on the phone. I have since completed my one year contract in Seoul and can honestly say that everything went well from beginning to end. Although Korea is not always the easiest place to live, Footprints makes the transition so much smoother. Footprints is upfront, honest and dependable. I would highly recommend their service for anyone considering teaching abroad and would not hesitate to re-sign with Footprints in the future.”
