Our first post in 2025 is another alumni post, this time from a teacher who joined LTS in 2016 to obtain the MA after many years of teaching experience already. We’re grateful to our alumni who keep us posted about their lives after LTS!

Hi John! You graduated from LTS in 2016 as a teacher of Spanish and German and are now teaching in Türkiye. Can you tell us about your path as a language teacher?

During my middle school years, my family and I lived in Mexico and Central America. There I learned Spanish and gained a love for foreign languages and cultures. In college, I focused on German. I studied for a year in Germany and also decided I wanted to teach. During my teaching career, one year I did a Fulbright exchange in Germany and for two years we were teaching in an international school in Bolivia. Through the years I have found that teaching ESL is one of the better paths for those teachers that desire to teach overseas or work with foreign students in their home country. I do love working with foreign students and traveling overseas. So now I am doing both as a teacher in an international school in Türkiye.

What are you enjoying most about Türkiye so far?

Türkiye is a beautiful country filled with wonderful people. There are so many impressive archeological sites from a variety of different cultures spanning thousands of years. Besides meeting great people, eating delicious food and seeing amazing sites, I really enjoy the challenge of learning how to do everyday tasks in a new language and a new culture. And by the way, Turkish is great language, but quite difficult and amazingly different from other languages I’ve learned.

Has anything surprised you?

My wife and I have been amazed at how kind, honest and generous the Turkish people are, and how safe we feel there. Besides that, we have been surprised at how modern and prosperous Türkiye is, especially in the larger cities.

You came into the LTS program as an experienced teacher already. What do you feel has been most useful for you from your year in LTS in terms of how you have applied it to your teaching since then?

I had a lot of experience teaching foreign language and math, but not much teaching ESL. The LTS program was a big help in that area. The coursework, the instructors, and the other cohort members were invaluable in giving me not only the information that I have used, but they also gave me the opportunity to gain experience and confidence, not to mention the credentials that I have needed to continue on the path that I wanted to pursue.

What has been most rewarding to you in your career as a teacher, looking back?

My biggest reward has been seeing the growth and the gratitude of my students. I was recently able to make a surprise visit back to the high school that I taught at for the last 6 years. I probably should have called or emailed first, but I was on a tight time schedule, and I didn’t know if I’d be able to go there. Nobody knew that I was even in the area, and I was a little nervous about how I would be received. Well, I was able to see most of my former students, and their kind words and enthusiasm for the classes they had taken with me was simply overwhelming.

Would you give any advice to incoming or current LTS students?

Teaching isn’t the easiest career or the most lucrative. But few other jobs provide such an opportunity to make a positive impact on such a large number of individuals. Knowing and loving the subject matter you’re going to teach is important. But I believe it’s crucial that a teacher truly cares for their students and is willing to do what it takes to help them succeed – not only in the classroom, but in also in life.

Do you have any other fun facts or stories you’d like to share about your adventures so far?

We have enjoyed our time in Türkiye and specifically at our school, but it hasn’t all been easy. In fact, as I write this, we find ourselves back in the US, trying to finally obtain a work visa. Many countries, including Türkiye, are quite fond of bureaucracy and lots of paperwork, and the regulations and requirements may change often. We are fortunate that our school is very helpful and that as a result of our visa issues we have got to spend some unexpected time in interesting places like Washington DC, Paris and Tbilisi, Georgia.