Testimonials from former students and other feedback
This section will only be of interest to potential employers.
Content
Testimonials
Certificates
Testimonials
“Michael was one of the best teachers that I’ve ever had. Not only did he make the material fascinating—I could never wait to get to class to learn more—but he also was able to create such a relaxing and fun learning environment. As I think back on it now, every aspect of the class, from homework, to discussions, to tests, was genuinely enjoyable.”
Telynia
US citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2015
“Dr. Anklin is an amazing teacher, who motivates and encourages his students with kindness and good humour. His class was always fun and highly engaging throughout a multitude of topics. He always treated his students with respect and earned our respect in kind.”
Georgia
Australian citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2014-2016
“When I first came to the school where Michael used to teach, I had to sit in his class and decide whether I wanted to choose history as one of my IGCSE subjects. I had no intention of doing so, as I had had terrible experiences with history teachers in the past and never wanted to answer any questions in class. Passing a history exam seemed almost impossible to me. However, when I sat in Michael’s class, I soon realized that Michael was not a history teacher to be afraid of, and I would soon voluntarily answer many of his questions and also ask my own questions. Michael was very clever in never pressuring me into answering his questions, so that I could soon let go of my tautness in his class. I decided to take history, even though economics would have been easier and a lot less stressful for me.
“Michael is a teacher that every student would love to have. He is kind, funny and inspiring. He does not need to be strict or harsh because the students love him and will therefore want to do well in his class and make him and themselves proud. Michael will teach the students how to be interested in a subject that they never thought could interest them. Michael will teach the shy students to believe in themselves and the confident students how to fly even higher. I am quite sure, although it may sound impossible, that at our school there was not a single student who did not enjoy Michael’s history lessons. I ended up having an A* on my IGCSE history exam. I will always be grateful for having had Michael as my teacher, and I hated to see him leave the school, even after I had graduated. Students who get to attend Michael’s lessons are very lucky.”
Svea
Swiss citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2016-2018
“Michael Anklin was one of my favorite teachers and will always be in that special group of people who left a lasting impression in my life. Classes with him were always fun and engaging. His ability to support other students and me in a way that would make us try our hardest and give it our best no matter the task was extremely fascinating and still holds me in awe. His patience to give us the time we needed so we could try again and again to give it our best, even if our best was a month late, still fills me with gratitude.”
Hannes
Swiss citizen, former IGCSE and international AS history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2014-2016; 2017-2018
“Michael went out of his way to make sure that I understood everything, especially while I was going through a hard time. Not only does he care about his students personally, he’s particularly invested in their ability to appreciate and learn properly from the material and will go above and beyond to ensure that.”
Tara
First-generation university student at Indiana University Bloomington, USA, summer semester 2009
“Michael is an amazing teacher. He made learning history so fun and made history one of my favourite subjects (it wasn’t before). I always felt comfortable to go and talk to him about my academic issues and other issues, and so did other students.”
Taniya
Indian citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2015-2016
“Michael Anklin taught history at IGCSE and AS level to me in the years 2014 to 2016. Michael is gifted with a unique wit and humour, which he couples with deep understanding of the subjects he teaches and the world around him. He engages and understands his students, offering tremendous insight—not only into his subject, which is brilliantly taught, but also into the world around us today. His lessons were eagerly anticipated by all and were furthered in a philosophy club he created, which was always highly attended.”
Joshua
British citizen, former IGCSE and international AS history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland
“Before Michael Anklin became my teacher, I hated the subject history. However, once he taught me history, I fell in love with it. He prepared amazing history lessons for us, so that we really dove into the subject and could really understand what was happening during the time period that we were currently studying. I was so lucky to have had him as my history teacher, no one could have done it better.”
Léonie
Swiss citizen, former Key Stage 3 and IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2014-2017; plus one year of IGCSE history taught privately online
“Michael is one of the greatest if not the greatest teacher I’ve had in my 13 years of school. His lessons are very lighthearted but also super informative. I’ve not heard of any student who doesn’t enjoy Michael’s lessons or his personality as an authority figure.”
Noah
German citizen, former IGCSE and international AS history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2015-2018
“Having attended 12 schools during my K12 years, Michael is one of the few teachers who made a lasting impression. The lessons he taught went beyond books, developing critical thinking skills that facilitated my admission to a highly competitive university program. His passion for education and care for his students is sincere and can be felt by anyone he is teaching.”
Brenna
US citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2015-2016
“I was a private student of Dr. Michael Anklin from November 2013 until he moved to the UK in summer 2018. He successfully prepared me for my IGCSE English degree and for 3/4 of my AS and A-Level History exams. I liked and still like him a lot—equally on a professional and personal level. He was always very passionate about the two subjects he taught me and very knowledgeable about information not included in the textbooks. Even though I was his first English as a Second Language student ever, he helped me get an A. This didn’t require any resits.
“Whosever teacher he may be in the future, I am sure he will be a good teacher who really cares about his students and their progress. I can only recommend Dr. Anklin as a teacher, on a professional level as well as on a personal level!”
Leonard
Swiss citizen, former private English as a Second Language and international AS and A-Level history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland
“Michael Anklin was my IGCSE history teacher in 2015. He was a brilliant teacher as he taught the class in an interactive yet structured way where the exam was not the main focus of the class, but the actual understanding of the historical events covered in the module. This led to very good results.”
Alexandra
Swiss citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International school, Basel, Switzerland, 2015-2016
“Michael taught me both AS and A Level History at Academia International School in Basel, Switzerland. I have since graduated from Durham University with a 2:1 honours degree and about to begin my postgraduate studies at National Taiwan University. Michael is very personable compared to other professors I have had experience with, which makes it easy to form a good teacher-student relationship, and is very easy to talk to and approach. His essay marking showed good critique and allowed me to understand and fix the issues I had in my writing technique. It Is clear that he cares deeply about his student’s performance and has passion for his areas of teaching. His experience in essay writing and its technique was something that helped me greatly, allowing me to achieve consistent A’s in my history essays during my A Levels.
“Equally, these skills carried on to my university life where I achieved multiple first-class grades in both essay-based exams and summative assignments. Michael was also willing to help with my postgraduate university application process without any hesitation, a testament to his care towards his students, even after they enter a different sphere of education.”
Alistair
British citizen, former AS and A-Level history (British specifications) student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2014–2016
“Michael Anklin was my favourite teacher at school because he didn’t just teach us some facts and dates, he is passionate about what he teaches. He always knows how to make topics interesting and he cared about us, as his students but also as people.”
Anja
Polish and Swiss citizen, former IGCSE history student at academia International School, Basel, Switzerland, 2015–2017
“I have been working with Michael Anklin for more than 5 years. When I was the principal of an international school in Switzerland, I hired him as am IGCSE and A Level history teacher. During the past year, I have started considering Michael as an online tutor for history and have linked him to several students who live in Switzerland and would like online tutoring.
“Michael is not a ‘normal’ history teacher. He is so passionate about the subject that he automatically motivates the students. My daughter ‘hated’ history, but now with Michael’s help, she is a big fan.”
François Matthey
Former employer, parent of a student, and education consultant in Switzerland
All student information made public with permission of the students.
Certificates
I have been working as a supply teacher in the UK for a while now. This certificate was given to me by a Year 7 student at a school in Cambridgeshire a day or two before the Covid-related lockdown of all schools in England on 20 March, 2020. Written in silver ink, it says, “Best supply for this year and BEYOND!” It made my day. I had taught at the school for a little more than four weeks.