Byron Bell | Chicago In-Person TEFL Course Practicum Instructor

I was completing my TEFL certification many years ago and was asked to do volunteer work in Chile for the English Opens Doors Program. This was sponsored by the United Nations Development Program and the Chilean Ministry of Education. This was the catalyst for my relocation and many years spent abroad. In addition to traveling, I like: bicycling, horseback riding, ziplining, rappelling, doing yoga, meditation, capoeira, dancing, and listening to live music.

I am originally from Chicago, Illinois. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication and a Master of Arts in Applied Professional Studies with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from DePaul University. I am currently near the end of my Ph.D. in Curriculum Studies with an emphasis on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

I have visited: Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, the Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, France, Haiti, Jamaica, Japan, Nicaragua, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico, the Netherlands, Thailand, St. Lucia, South Korea, and Venezuela.

I have lived (and taught) in Chile for three years and Costa Rica for six years.

One of my favorite travel experiences was staying in the Mayan Jungle for three days in Tikal, Guatemala. One day I went on a sunrise tour that started a little after 3:30 in the morning. The jungle hotel had timed blackouts due to energy conservation so it was pitch black throughout the area. A tour guide and a group of roughly twenty vacationers and I trekked through the jungle towards one of the biggest pyramids in the national park. We safely climbed to the top to listen to the wildlife and watch the sunrise. It was an amazing experience.

This is a toss-up between Mexican and Thai.