Michael Carrier is an educational consultant and writer based in London and Washington, DC.
He has been involved in English language teaching for over 50 years as a teacher, trainer, author, school director, and network director. He has worked in Germany, Italy, Poland, the UK, and the USA, and has lectured widely in many other countries.
Mr. Carrier has an MA in Applied Linguistics and an MBA, and has worked in various senior management positions in language education. He was formerly Executive Director of Eurocentres in Washington DC, heading up the US subsidiary of the Swiss group of schools.
Mr. Carrier then worked as CEO of the International House World network of schools. Later he was Director of English Language Innovation & Partnerships at the British Council in London. In this role, he led the British Council’s teams running capacity building projects in low-resource countries, and developed digital ELT resources such as the BBC TV series “Word on the Street” and mobile phone apps. He initiated the British Council’s contract to deliver the English language component of the distance learning program of Plan Ceibal in Uruguay, and designed the hybrid learning model of the ground-breaking project.
Until 2022, he was founder and Managing Director of Highdale Consulting, an educational consultancy working with clients such as Cambridge University, ALTE, and the British Council on language teaching projects. Highdale’s work for the British Council included developing radio programmes for language learning in Africa, and video materials for Workplace English development programs in Africa.
Mr. Carrier is currently serving on a number of boards and committees including TIRF and the ICC (the international language association). He is also a member of the British Council’s English Language Advisory Group and chairs the UK government’s ELT Working Group for the Department of Trade and Industry. His former Board service includes being on the Boards of EAQUALS, International Students House, ELTJ, and the Language Teaching Journal.
One of his main fields of interest is in e-learning and the application of technology to language teaching. He was the Editor of the Technology section of Modern English Teacher Journal, and was Associate Professor at New School University, New York. Also, he is involved in research into the intersectionality of historical linguistics and archaeogenetics.
Mr. Carrier is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a member of the Philological Society, and a Member of the Society of Authors, London.
