IS: I’d been working in TV since 2004 doing many reality TV shows; I started working on Israeli Idol and worked my way up to direct shows. I did Israeli Big Brother and the Trinny and Susannah Show in Israel. I’ve also been doing lots of documentaries – lots of different formats such as seeing how a family deals with crisis.

The PIE: What made you decide to go into education?

IS: That’s a tough one! I was actually doing the Trinny and Susannah Show when I got an email from this guy from Kaplan International and I had no idea what it was and he said to me ‘I’ve seen your Instagram presence and I also heard about the things that you do’ – because I also did an international campaign that was featured on the Huffington Post and CNN. He said ‘I like the way that you share a story. Do you want to do a project together?’ I said I didn’t have time – I also said ‘I don’t do commercials.’ And he told me ‘If I want to advertise I can buy an advertising spot. I don’t want to advertise.’

Turns out this guy was Erez Tocker, the Managing Director at Kaplan International English. I went on their website and just have a look at what they were doing and it hit me – because this company has 40 schools all over the world, they teach English to international people and I loved it. So I got back to him, more interested, and I said ‘I can give you one month. Send me to New York. I want to see the story you’re talking about.’

So far we have 45,000 pictures on the #KaplanExperience hashtag on Instagram which is exciting

So he did. He sent me to New York to show me the story of study abroad. I had to promise to go to classes and all social activities. So along with the social media manager for Kaplan we started the #KaplanExperience hashtag on Instagram. That was two and a half years ago. So far we have 45,000 pictures on the #KaplanExperience hashtag on Instagram which is exciting.

The PIE: What was it like being a student?

IS: I was surprised, I was in the high proficiency level, but still it was hard! I guess it doesn’t matter your level, when you are not a native speaker there’s always room to improve. It was interesting. And I made amazing friends, I was sharing pictures of students and used the hashtag, showing what it’s like to study at Kaplan International.

The PIE: Was it a hard decision to leave TV?

IS: It wasn’t an easy decision because I also left my family and country and I still ask myself sometimes why I left TV and why I chose education – I think I know the answer better now after visiting 22 schools worldwide, from Australia and New Zealand to the UK.

Learning a language and being able to communicate with people is magic!

Learning a language and being able to communicate with people is magic! I met some Chinese students who didn’t know English at all. Within four months they spoke English and they were able to communicate.

So I find that amazing and I also find it challenging, because education is not sexy. It’s usually perceived as something boring – tests, exams, homework, lots of expectations and grades, however, I find learning language so important for someone’s future. From students who want to be able to communicate in English to those who are trying to get into universities abroad or have an international career. For me it was like: ‘There’s a challenge here. What can I do to make people understand that studying English with Kaplan is really interesting and important?’

The PIE: What are you doing now at Kaplan?