Resume

Clare Davidson completed her PhD in medieval literature at the University of Western Australia. She is a research fellow at UWA and associate investigator for the ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions. Her research examines the physiology of arousal in fourteenth-century England. Clare has published with The Los Angeles Review of Books and The Chaucer Review and is currently working on her first book, Vernacular Arousal: The Middle English Body in Love.

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Professor Ed Davis is Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Business and Economics at Macquarie University. He holds a Master of Arts from Cambridge, a Master of Economics from Monash and a PhD from La Trobe University. He is President of ABC Friends NSW & ACT and committed to well-funded, strong and independent public broadcasting. He is a Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia.

Resume

Francesca Zorcolo Davis gained her Bachelor of Social Science and Policy from the University of NSW, and her Master of Teaching from the University of Sydney. She is a native speaker of Italian who studied at Teachers' College in Italy. She began tutoring for the WEA Sydney in March 1997, in addition to teaching at Co.As.It. adult courses, and local community colleges (Mosman/ International Language School).

She has also worked for the IBS and in various Independent and DET Primary Schools. She regularly enhances her language teaching skills and strategies through annual inservices, workshops or special training offered by Universities (UNE/Sydney Uni/Western Sydney/Canberra), Co.As.It, The Italian Institute of Culture or the DET. Francesca is a native Italian speaker.

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Olivia de Bergerac was born on the French Riviera, lived in Paris and stated teaching French to business people while completing a PhD in French Literature and Psychology. In Australia Olivia was teaching at the University of Sydney and then completed an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management and became a management consultant specialised in stress management. Today, Olivia teaches French, does research on neuroscience, longevity and life and death and writes books (in French and English). For Olivia the key is to transform all fears, fear of learning French, fear of getting old and fear of death into love.

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Graciela de Souza Oliver. Tutor of WEA Sydney

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Alison Dean is a languages consultant with over 20 years' experience in teaching, curriculum design, and educational leadership. She has taught and consulted in leading independent schools both here and abroad and was the languages consultant for the Association of Independent Schools of NSW. She contributed to the development of the 2024 NSW Languages syllabus and regularly presents on language pedagogy, Generative AI and curriculum design at conferences and institutions both here and abroad. She has presented courses on ICT integration and language methodology for the Sydney Institute of Community Languages Education at the University of Sydney and is the NSW representative on the National Association of Teachers of German.

Resume

Susan Deas is a professional musician, lecturer and teacher. She has been teaching music appreciation courses for more than twenty years, and is a regular lecturer at WEA Sydney. Her training includes a Bachelor of Music with a major in Performance (Piano) and Musicology, a Master of Music Studies (Studio Pedagogy), a Bachelor of Arts (Communications), and an A.Mus.A in Musicianship. Susan teaches piano and music theory to adults and children, and plays piano and organ at various venues around Sydney. Susan is an Accredited Member of the Music Teachers’ Association of NSW.

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Debbie is a registered Psychologist and qualified trainer. She has been working as a counsellor for over 14 years and has been a trainer for 5 years. She consults to organisations providing supervision and tailored workshops whilst working as a Psychologist. Debbie provides workshops on a variety of topics including psychology, counselling, workplace relationships, and personal development. She also teaches in structured programs such as Diploma Counselling.

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Dr Yvette Debergue has a passionate interest in all things medieval, especially Gothic architecture, medieval saints and heretics and historical fiction. She has taught medieval history and church history at several universities in Sydney since 2006 and specialises in teaching adult education, making history fun and relevant. She is widely published and presents regularly at conferences in Australia and overseas.

Resume

Antonietta is a passionate teacher with strong communication skills who has considerable experience in teaching Italian to the highest levels. She is fluent in Italian and English and have a strong understanding of the Italian culture. Antonietta uses various interesting topics to develop students' participation and motivation in order to encourage learning and reach their full potential relating to the Italian culture, language, reading, conversation and simple writing. Her teaching is “Made of Italy”!