Sorin Popescu

31/07/2026

Well done, Theodora!

Some more news from our time in London this summer. Alongside the IPSC finals, where we were so proud to see Theodora represent Romania, our chairman Ela Nicolae was elected President of the ESU International Council.

The International Council Meeting brought together representatives from ESUs around the world, including Argentina, the Cayman Islands, Nigeria and Mauritius, to share ideas on organisational growth, brand awareness, expanding opportunities in rural communities, and the role AI can play in our work going forward. There was also a live example of a Discover Your Voice workshop, led by the ESU's Director of Education, Louisa Searle.

We're grateful to outgoing president Bolormaa Bella Jamiyansuren for her dedication over the past two years, and congratulate Nadiya Ivanenko of ESU Ukraine, elected as the Council's new treasurer.

It capped off a memorable week that also included our study visit to Cambridge with 22 students, accompanied by our vice president Catalina Georgescu, ahead of the finals.

More to come soon on the summer's programmes, from our summer programmes in Bishop's Stortford, Market Harborough and Brighton, and now University Prep in Cambridge.

13/05/2026

Young people. Standing up in front of a room full of teachers, professionals, their parents and their peers. Arguing, challenging, persuading, holding their ground on some of the most complex and important questions of our time.

In English. Their second language.

This weekend the ESU Romania Public Speaking Competition national semifinals and finals took place, and I had the privilege of being in the room.

I have spent years in classrooms and around language learners. I know what it takes to do what these young people did. The preparation, the courage, the sheer intellectual effort of constructing a coherent, passionate argument in a language that isn't your own and then delivering it in front of judges who are listening to every word.

I am always in awe of their courage, the willingness to engage with ideas fully and boldly, in their own words.

This is what ESU Romania exists to build. Voice, confidence, the ability to enter a room, stand behind an idea, and make yourself heard.

Today I am deeply proud of every single one of them.

12/05/2026

Do you get suspicious when a written piece looks too good? Have we started to look critically at well written copy? Are we now in a place where misspelt words, sloppy sentences or awkward conclusions are signs of human work and therefore more valuable? This seems to be where we're going and it doesn't feel right. Do we take things at face value and judge a piece by what's in front of us or do we spiral into paranoid AI detector scans and infer character traits of the writer based on their use of LLMs? I don't think we have time to do it all.

10/05/2026

What a day and what an event! See you tomorrow for the finals!

Mirror mirror on the wall, who has the most picturesque location for the finals of them all? The finals of the national public speaking competition are taking place tomorrow at Cărturești Verona. Well done to all semifinalists and congratulations to the 10 finalists!

08/05/2026

A special thank you to Carturesti Educational Cărturești for the continuous support they offer The English Speaking Union Romania and the work we do. A heartfelt thank you!

See you all on Sunday and Monday for the greatest English speaking competition in the world.

Cărturești, one of Romania's most beloved bookstores, will be bringing their magic to the National Public Speaking Competition in English, with a dedicated bookstand waiting for you at ICHB Pallady on May 10! 🎉

Cărturești has long been a home for curious minds and passionate readers across Romania, and we couldn't think of a more fitting partner for a competition that celebrates the art of language. Make sure to stop by, browse, and maybe find your next favourite read.

A huge thank you to Cărturești for supporting our community and making this event even more special! 💛

06/05/2026

Looking forward to EdVenture Training Series 4! Henrique Ribeiro is going to walk us through how language moves across networks of people, tools (analog and/or digital) and contexts.

Very happy to be working together with the wonderful team at EdVenture School , and in particular a shoutout to Ciprian Nita who is constantly supporting the values and mission of the ESU in Romania.

Registration in the comments!

30/04/2026

Tell me if this is relatable.

You've got four (maybe more if you work in education) notebooks at home. One or two you bought because you wanted a fresh start on taking notes, most of them are empty after a page or two.

I see this both when I teach and when I run workshops. Generally, people see notes as just writing down whatever they can catch, whatever seems relevant, or just transcribing as much as possible.

What I do might be useful for others (you or your students). I've been using the Cornell method for notetaking for years now and it is one of the best ways to bring order into your note taking process.

The Cornell Note-Taking System, developed by Walter Pauk at Cornell University, divides the page into three sections: a narrow left column for keywords and questions, a wider right column where you capture content during the session, and a summary box at the bottom where you synthesize everything in your own words after the fact.

The power isn't in the layout necessarily. It's in what the layout forces you to do: listening actively, thinking in questions, and processing what you heard rather than just transcribing it.

Cornell University's Learning Strategies Center has a free interactive module where you can learn the method properly, straight from the source: https://lnkd.in/dVAZf_a7

I've also put together a clean, ready-to-use template, the one I use, no branding. Drop a comment if you're interested and I'll share a link. Or message me directly and I'll get it to you.

27/04/2026

No doubt that AI can amplify, augment your lessons and really elevate materials especially by adapting and tailoring content to class needs. But it can't make or break a lesson (yet). We have to go back to core principles: why are we in the classroom and what are we doing there?

23/04/2026

With TeachingEnglish - British Council – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

23/04/2026

With LANGUAGECERT – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉