Taylor McCracken
Senior Vocational ESL Instructor
San Diego
Summary
Professional educator with distinguished experience in supporting refugee and multilingual populations. Skilled in designing trauma-informed, culturally responsive curricula as well as while implementing linguistic and cognitive learning tools to enhance student engagement and performance. Passionate about building a comprehensive understanding of how a brain-based learning principles can transform education to promote equity amongst conflict-affected learners.
Overview
5
5
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
2
2
Languages
Work History
Senior Vocational ESL Instructor
International Rescue Committee, IRC
10.2024 - Current
- Delivered intensive, cohort-based Vocational ESL instruction (25 hrs/week) for newly arrived refugees
- Administered pre-/post-assessments; tracked attendance, case notes, and learning data and used results to adjust instruction, monitor progress, and support decision-making.
- Facilitated safe learning environments that promoted positive associations with academic challenge.
- Demonstrated a strong understanding of serving diverse populations; from teaching varied linguistic competencies to resolving non-academic related issues in order to promote equity in the classroom.
- Lead department team meetings and provided mentorship to newly on-boarded staff
English Teaching Assistant
Spanish Ministry of Education
09.2021 - 06.2023
- Designed and facilitated English speaking, listening, and pronunciation activities grounded in communicative and immersive learning principles for students ages 11-17.
- Directed the school's Global Classrooms (Model UN) program 2 years in a row; taught 100+ students' speech and debate, argumentative essay writing, and critical thinking skills in the context of resolving international conflict.
- Adapted instructional approaches and materials for learners with varying proficiency levels, learning styles, and processing speeds.
Policy Researcher
UCSD
08.2020 - 12.2020
- Conducted structured phone surveys with participants across the U.S. to collect data on public perceptions related to immigration, community identity, and civic engagement.
- Recorded participant responses accurately in real time using research data platforms, contributing to large-scale datasets used for policy analysis.
- Collaborated with research supervisors to refine data collection strategies, improve participant outreach, and resolve methodological issues.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - International Security And Conflict Resolution
San Diego State University
San Diego 05.2001 -
Skills
- Evidence-based instructional strategies
- Data-driven assessment tracking
- Curriculum design & adaptation
- Trauma-informed teaching
- Working memory-friendly lesson planning
- Proactive conflict resolution
- Project management
- Community partnership building
- Cross-cultural communication
Certification
TEFL
Accomplishments
- Awarded Professional Development Scholarship at the International Rescue Committee for lead role in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion education team.
- Promoted from Vocational ESL (VESL) Instructor to Senior VESL Instructor after six months in the role.
- Proven efficacy of early ESL teaching: Across nine cohorts from 2024 - 2025, students showed an average of 22% point improvement in the pre- and post-assessment tests.
Timeline
TEFL
05-2025
Senior Vocational ESL Instructor
International Rescue Committee, IRC
10.2024 - Current
English Teaching Assistant
Spanish Ministry of Education
09.2021 - 06.2023
Policy Researcher
UCSD
08.2020 - 12.2020
Bachelor of Arts - International Security And Conflict Resolution
San Diego State University
05.2001 -