Gabriel Díaz Maggioli is a teacher, teacher educator, and researcher who serves as a tenured Professor of TESOL Method in Uruguay’s National Teacher Education Council and as faculty in postgraduate programs at the Institute of Education, Universidad ORT Uruguay. He holds a BA in TESOL from Uruguay and a Master’s and Doctoral degree from the University of Bath, UK.
Over more than three decades, he has consulted for major international organizations and ministries of education worldwide, focusing on initial teacher education, teacher professional development, and curriculum innovation. His main goal is to empower teachers to teach for social justice and to strengthen the profession through meaningful, sustained professional learning.

Gabriel is the first person to have been elected president of both IATEFL and TESOL International Association, reflecting his long-standing commitment to advancing the field globally. A Tier 1 researcher in Uruguay’s National Agency for Research and Innovation’s National Researchers’ System, he has authored numerous books and peer-reviewed articles on teacher-centered professional development, sociocultural approaches to teacher learning, and language teacher education. His work consistently centers on helping educators design powerful learning experiences, build robust professional communities, and use language education as a lever for equity and social justice.

Title: Beating Strong: Placing learners at the Heart of Teaching and Learning
Abstract for the program
This session explores what truly sits at the heart of teaching and learning by introducing the 6Es framework: Explore, Engage, Encounter, Experiment, Express, and Extend. Participants will see how these mediational episodes humanize classrooms, deepen understanding, and support diverse learners while honoring teachers’ professional judgment and commitment to social