This month’s interview is with Rosalie Watts, the co-founder of Let’s Love Teeline Together. She is an expert in Teeline and works both as a freelance writer and a university teacher. As this interview will reveal, she sees teaching as her true calling and feels best when in front of a class while her writing work allows her creative abilities to shine in a different way. We talk about how she found her way into teaching, the creation of Let's Love Teeline Together and the advantages (and challenges) of teaching Teeline online.
My name is Rosalie Watts, co-founder of Let’s Love Teeline Together. I fell in love with Teeline when being taught by the wonderful Jo Goodall during my time studying Journalism at Staffordshire University. It may sound cliche, but I genuinely found Teeline difficult, yet fascinating, in equal measure. I wouldn’t say I was naturally gifted, more extremely curious. I always had questions- which went far beyond the classroom. I would often wake in the night thinking about how to write outlines or words I had learnt that day in class. If I couldn’t remember how to write an outline, I would get out of bed and check my notes. I found myself looking at words in longhand, street names, or the names of chocolate bars and trying to form an outline in my head. Even when having a conversation, I was thinking in shorthand.
That’s when I knew I had the shorthand ‘bug’. With time, dedication and an endless collection of notepads I became pretty good at writing and reading shorthand, so much so that Jo asked me to help other students in her office when I had free time. Jo spent endless hours training me how to read to speed - which is more difficult than one would expect. During my final year of studies, a part-time shorthand teaching post became available and I was offered the position. Little did I know there were some concerns whether or not I would be right for the role - being a naturally fast speaker with a strong northern accent. Thankfully, Jo assured the powers that be she was sure I would be successful. I will never forget delivering my first formal lecture, I was SO nervous. I have since taught all over the country including delivering on courses for The Telegraph as well as lecturing to classes of over 100 students.
While I had never considered teaching as a career, things fell into place and I soon realised I felt at my best when delivering a lecture. I am passionate about my subject and helping students reach their potential. There’s no subject quite like shorthand and it’s a memorable experience. The high energy of a lecture theatre, the buzz of reaching a speed milestone - it’s amazing for all involved!
Collaborative, high-energy and fast-paced. I aim to create a comfortable space where students feel like they can ask anything, at any time.
I often associate teaching with laying the groundwork and tutoring with working to speed, but essentially they are the same thing.
At the start of the pandemic, when it was announced educational institutions were closing, including News Associates where I was teaching shorthand at the time, I went from being super busy to having some time on my hands - something I had not experienced before. With little chance of restrictions lifting, I decided in March 2020 to move back to my mum’s temporarily. Once we were allowed to mix households, I visited Jo and after many cups of coffee (and a glass or two of wine!), we decided we would put pen to paper and plan on how to make our YouTube dream a reality. The Let's Love Teeline Together name was actually suggested by Jo’s son, who is an advertising whizz. I remember Jo sketching the logo in her upstairs office. From there we spent many hours creating, recording and editing videos. There are SO many funny takes, forgotten lines and bursts of laughter. We had the BEST time creating the videos. It never felt like work. The vision was to inspire. We wanted students to have a place they could go to - no matter if they were learning theory or preparing for exams.
The main advantage is accessibility and convenience. I am able to deliver lessons to people all over the country - and even the world - and that’s amazing. It’s particularly helpful for those who are already in a reporting role as they can have lessons around working hours without having to travel.
Engagement. This isn’t an issue with small groups as we share our cameras and we can send over notes during the session. I tend to use WhatsApp so I can provide feedback during the lesson. With larger groups though, it can be more difficult to provide this style of feedback due to time constraints. It’s also handy to be able to watch someone write by looking over their shoulder instead of reading notes. This can raise issues such as how hard they are pressing on their notepad or whether they are holding their pen in an awkward position.
It's effective in the sense that it’s accessible - especially for people who have busy working lives. It can also be difficult to find shorthand tutors so remote teaching means centres are more likely to be able to find a good tutor who might not live in the same area. The pandemic certainly changed things as we had the chance to analyse exam results during a time when all tuition was remote. Incidentally, at my centre, there wasn’t any difference in results when comparing remote versus in-person teaching.
Live feedback can be great for smaller classes where I can share and annotate notes live. When working with larger groups, I will set an end of week task and mark their work using Google Keep - there they can see annotations. For one to one sessions, WhatsApp can also work really well. The most important thing is that tutors have a Wacom tablet so students can see live drawings.
It varies greatly. I have worked with students who have had to completely restart theory - this is either due to finding it too difficult or missing lessons due to personal circumstances. I also work with those purely on speed-building where I support their progression to obtaining a speed certificate, whether that’s 60, 100 or 120 wpm! In addition to having private students I also teach on undergraduate courses, postgraduate courses and I teach at different news organisations too - these tend to be smaller groups where their employer requires a 100 wpm qualification in order to sit their seniors exams.
When working one to one, I don’t think there are any limitations since personalised feedback can be provided instantly. As I mentioned earlier, it's helpful to be able to physically see how a student writes to discuss things like pen control and how hard a writer is pressing on the pad.
A classroom environment can be beneficial with bigger groups as they can experience a sense of togetherness and share their struggles and wins. For most students, they have never studied Teeline before and so they all start on a level playing field. Strong writers can help motivate those students finding it more difficult and those who might be struggling can see success is possible.
It has been noted some students may feel more comfortable raising a question in an online environment, however I have found students don’t ask as many questions online - especially in a large group. I think that in person, providing the environment is comfortable and open, students are more likely to ask questions and they also have the chance to approach a teacher after class to ask questions at the end of the lesson.
My concern with delivering to large groups online is that students can easily hide away. Therefore, the in-person interaction is perhaps more important with larger groups and when teaching on university cohorts - where students can sometimes need extra motivation.
Not surprisingly, when teaching those who are already in a job role and who may need to obtain the qualification to progress in their career, motivation and engagement are rarely issues, so online delivery works very well indeed.
The main thing is to always ask questions and request notes be sent over - ideally during the session, depending on group size. Ensuring all students have their cameras on and asking questions at random times always keeps them on their toes!
Admittedly, this can be difficult. During lockdown, I created an Instagram account which helped and students would send over pictures of their working set up - pets included! This is something I hope to resume this next academic year. Engaging in group chats and asking students to unmute themselves to talk can also help too. Weekly emails with motivational stories or quotes can also keep spirits high!
There are so many! I have helped many students reach their 60 and 100 wpm qualifications. It’s remarkable that I have not met all these people in person, yet we have formed wonderful relationships. I have received some lovely feedback, especially since we started the YouTube channel. I have one student in particular who found the theory really hard. She studied the LLTT Beginner Series and then we started having weekly lessons. She is now due to sit her 60 wpm this month.
I think all students can benefit from both styles of learning but from a visual perspective, learning online can be easier. Before the pandemic, I was delivering to over 100 students using a chalkboard and it could be very difficult for students to see. It’s also more inclusive as I can record the lectures which is great if someone is unwell or wants to revisit the content at a later date.
Prior to working together, I analyse notes to look for theory gaps. I ask the students if they feel it’s theory, speed or a combination of both which they are finding most difficult. When looking at a piece of shorthand, I can spot issues straight away - whether it’s missing theory, not using word groupings or forgetting special outlines. We stay in touch via email between sessions and I often ask the student for feedback. I like lessons to be collaborative. It is a team effort. I get just as nervous as the students do when it comes to exams!
I would say give it a go! Have a lesson and then make your decision from there. I have proven time and time again that it’s absolutely possible to progress with an online tutor in the same way as one would in the classroom. You have the flexibility to arrange the lessons when it suits you and can carry them out from the comfort of your own home.
I think that there will always be a need for in-person teaching when it comes to shorthand - just in the same way that there is for other subjects.
Meeting your tutor in-person and building relationships with both tutor and classmates can be extremely beneficial. I do, however, think that there will always be some who prefer the online environment - largely due to convenience. For those in full time employment, it’s fantastic.
For larger groups like university cohorts, a hybrid approach could be the answer. Where I teach at Sheffield University, timetabling has been an issue. It’s only possible to teach shorthand early in the morning due to other modules. Pre-pandemic, this sometimes had a negative effect on attendance as the lessons were at 9am each morning. This year, we are trialling a hybrid approach where we will hold one in-person lesson and four remote lessons each week. This way, students will be able to build rapport with their tutor and classmates while still having the convenience of online lessons for the rest of the week. These lessons will be recorded and saved online so they can be used as revision/access material easily if a lesson is missed.
