Global LT finds and onboards the best teachers to give our students the best language learning experience. Because our teachers are the backbone of our work, we want to showcase some of their amazing talent. Meet Amy, one of Global LT’s English Experience teachers.
Amy is from Reston, VA. She’s a mom of three and loves cooking, couponing, and traveling. She has taught English for over 26 years and has been part of the Global LT talent network for almost 20 of those.
She started as a special education teacher, finding her passion in unconventional places like homeless shelters and psychiatric hospitals. After her third child was born, she added a nighttime job of teaching English as a second language (ESL) classes, working full-time during the day, and raising three kids.
Wanting more flexibility with her time, Amy eventually moved to teaching ESL full-time. Initially, she was teaching in person, commenting, “I love the personal relationships I build with students teaching in-person, but teaching remotely has opened the door to meeting way more students than I would if I just taught face-to-face.”
Those personal relationships have developed into wonderful friendships between Amy and her students. With one student, they’ve visited and stayed at each other’s houses several times. With another student, her child stayed with Amy for an entire month in the summer to keep up with his English lessons while his mother returned to Spain.
When asked how she evolves her relationships from student to friend, Amy said, “You develop trust in the relationship. Even after the lessons are over, it’s easy to stay in touch. Most friendships start after the lessons are over. In some cases, we’ve developed this relationship for a year or two, and then we want to keep in touch because we enjoy each other so much.”
Amy also recognizes the benefits of virtual language learning. Because she can move from student to student without commuting, she can use her time efficiently and share her love of teaching with more students, regardless of where they are in the world.
Imagine you’re in a new country with a limited grasp of the language, and your car breaks down. You don’t know what to do, so you call your language teacher. That is exactly what one of Amy’s students did. Because they didn’t know who to call for help, they called Amy, knowing she would tell them exactly what to do and help them in their time of need. Amy is so dedicated to her students that she makes herself available to them outside of lessons, any time of day, and loves to help whenever possible. She’s taken students to get their driver’s licenses, to the grocery store, and even to the doctor. Her availability and openness with her students help bridge the gap between their language learning and thriving in their new home.
In addition to teaching one-on-one language lessons, Amy also teaches Language Experiences for Global LT. One class she really likes to teach is couponing and saving money. She loves getting deals and likes to help others do the same by learning how to clip digital coupons and sign up for rewards cards.
Another class she enjoys teaching is about appliances since they vary greatly depending on where a person lives. Amy mentioned, “One of the things that expats don’t know how to deal with is American appliances, like the dryer, the dishwasher, the oven. I’ve had so many students that wouldn’t even touch the dishwasher.” It may seem like a weird way to teach language, but any way Amy can help her ex-pat students acclimate, she turns into an experience. She goes over all the different types of appliances they may have in their home and how to use them, and it’s a big hit with English students because it makes their lives easier.
Amy’s advice for students new to the U.S. and Global LT’s language lessons is to sign up for everything – go to as many Cultural & Language Experiences as you can, and you’ll learn so much from every different instructor. “You’ll get a lot out of going to your language teacher, but when you go to these other Experiences, you’ll get other instructors' knowledge and teaching styles. You’ll learn something different from everyone.”
Not only is Amy appreciated by Global LT, but her students also have a lot of kind things to say about her. Here are some of the messages we’ve received about Amy’s teaching:
“Language on the Move is great! And Amy is all the time adding info and really useful and helpful info and tips.”
“I like Amy’s style and the way she knows what I need to know.”
“Amy taught me the most helpful information for me to feel comfortable going to the store and doctor. I feel much more confident now.”
If you’re ready to start language lessons and experience Global LT’s incredible teachers for yourself, let us know!
This post was written by Megan Tully, Marketing Manager.