Hi there! My name’s David Leal and I have been an English teacher for more than 20 years. I have been the Head of the English Department for some years now and the Dual Diploma Program Director since it was implemented in Colegio Los Ángeles. I love teaching, learning and advancing in life and consider any teaching career has to keep on moving to benefit the most important jewel we have in our hands: our students.
We have been running this program for more than 5 years and the results have been outstanding so far. Not only has it engaged students, but has also committed them to their own independent learning. The program has proven to be extremely effective at a lot of levels. I’d like to highlight the degree of autonomy students reach; their overall improvement at English both in and out of the class; their knowledge about different online platforms and about the creation of digital products. Besides, and most importantly, I have always witnessed how they really like the program and the different subjects and how they have grown as fully independent students and as more mature persons in their voyage towards adulthood. In brief, this program has shown to be very positive for all the students who have been enrolled in it.
The Dual Diploma program has also conveyed a more tangible commitment on the part of our institution to boost the importance of the English language and is now intertwined in our bicultural program. This is a fact that has been noted by our families for a long time as well and they also feel the program is a great opportunity for their kids. On a more personal note, this program has helped me to enhance my daily teaching practice and has provided me with the opportunity to be in touch with an international community of both teachers and students. In addition, it has brought back memories of my time in the US both working and studying a M.A. in English, living one of my most treasured experiences in my life. And this is what the Dual Diploma also implies (in the distance): transcending cultural and geographical boundaries and learning from different points of view in a communion which always leads to academic, personal and professional success.