Working with teenagers in a high school can feel like being sucked into a black hole. Dramatic much? Maybe, but with all the tests to grade, meetings to attend, urgent emails to reply to, parents to check in with, and, lest we forget, students to mentor and lessons to teach, it's easy to feel as if your school has its own gravitational centre. With such a packed schedule, it can be hard to find the time and energy to squeeze in some much needed teacher training opportunities. 

I am a little embarrassed to admit that my own professional development has taken a back seat in the last couple of years. "This won't do", I thought to myself last summer, so, as a new year's resolution (any teacher worth their salt will know August is when we make those!) I decided I would do better. And so, in the scorching heat of the Milanese summer break, I googled a very unsophisticated query along the lines of "international teaching conference". Little did I know that the English teaching world (or part of it at least) met annually at the IATEFL conference - a shining star in the teaching cosmos. 

Fast forward to a few months later: picture me, badge and lanyard round my neck, trying to get my bearings in a huge conference centre with dozens of rooms, hosting hundreds of talks, catering for thousands of teachers from all over the world. My first day at the 2026 IATEFL Brighton conference was exactly this: a bit of a shock, but an exciting one. After a week of interesting seminars, I couldn't be more satisfied with my decision to make time for this professional development opportunity. 

If you feel a bit stuck in your teaching routine too and you're in need of some fresh air like I was, then the IATEFL conference is for you. You may feel a bit intimidated by the wealth of learning and development opportunities the conference has to offer, but fear not, my teacher friend! Here are some practical tips to help you make the most out of your first IATEFL conference.

Plan ahead

If you have secured your visa, make sure you register for the conference plenty of time ahead to get an early bird discount. If you're on a tight budget, you can also apply for one of the many IATEFL scholarships. Sadly, the deadline for these has already closed for 2027, but there will be more opportunities available in 2028.

Check the programme

After you have successfully registered, you will receive the full conference program in your email inbox a couple of days ahead. Personally, I was a bit overwhelmed by the sheer number of events on it! You don't want to miss the talks you are more interested in, so make sure you spend a couple of hours browsing the programme. Many events are organized by Special Interest Groups (SIGs), such as Young Learners and Teenagers (YLTSIG), so you can choose to attend only those of a specific niche you are most interested in. My personal advice would be to try and do a bit of everything, but you do you!

Bookmark the talks on the conference app

Even if you're not really a tech geek, make sure you download the conference app (niftily called conf.app) on your tablet or smartphone. Use the app to:

• Access the map of the conference venues. This is especially useful when the talks you want to attend are scattered around dozens of conference rooms in different buildings! 

• Search for specific talks. Type a keyword in the search bar and the app will give you a list of talks and presentations on that topic, each one complete with information about the speaker, a brief abstract, and the time and place of the event. 

• Bookmark the talks you want to attend. This is probably the single most useful feature: once you have an idea of where you want to go, tap the star in the top-right corner of the presentation page to bookmark it in your Agenda. You will then get a daily calendar with a neat list of chronologically ordered talks. There is a lot going on at any given time at the conference, so having the agenda at hand at all times is a real life saver.

Now that you're all set, get ready to make the most of your IATEFL programme!

Take notes! 

As a teacher, you are probably all about planning, organizing, managing and, at times, overexplaining stuff - which is exactly what I'm going to do. At the risk of sounding obvious, make sure you have something to take notes with. I used my tablet, but any notebook will do. Just make sure you write down the title of the event you're attending, the name of the speakers as well as any contact information they will provide. These will come in handy if you want to contact them later on. Personally, I colour-coded my notes like this:

• Yellow for the title of the talk and information about the speakers. 

• Blue for key ideas.

• Pink for publications or books that sounded especially interesting. 

Make sure you leave some time at the end of the day to review and declutter your notes. Your future self will thank you!

Expand your network

You will meet a lot of people at the conference - it truly is an incredible opportunity for networking! Many seminars will encourage you to take part in group activities, so you will have plenty of chances to connect with fellow education professionals you happen to be sitting next to. If you find yourself chatting with or running into the same bunch of people at different events, there's a chance you share some common interests, so why not exchange contacts and stay in touch after the conference is over? 

The same goes for the speakers' presentations: if you found a presentation particularly interesting, speakers will usually email you a copy of it, if you ask nicely a couple of days after the conference. 

Make it stick!

In conclusion, the IATEFL conference is truly an amazing opportunity for learning about new teaching strategies, connecting with colleagues from all around the world or simply getting new ideas to freshen up your teaching. It’s lifelong learning in action. However, don’t think of the conference as a mere break from your teaching routine: after the conference is over, make sure you go back to your notes, review the materials you have been sent, and put those new ideas into practice. That’s how you’ll make the most out of your first IATEFL conference! 

I truly hope that these tips will encourage you to participate in the next edition and make it an unforgettable experience for you. Meet you there?