“I have followed the dream I had from the age of eight, and through my international experience, I have also learned so much about different cultures and languages.”

Meet Kathryn Huyton, EAL teacher, retiring this year after working for twenty-five years at ISA.

How did your time at ISA impact your life?
My time at ISA certainly allowed me to advance my own professional development, which in turn was a benefit to the students. I was fortunate to be able to go to Harvard University in the early years of Project Zero and then to come back to ISA and put into practice what I learned. I also had two trips to the Teachers College at Columbia University in New York to learn all about the Reading and Writing Workshop, which is used in the Lower School at ISA. I feel that the professional development course I did that had the biggest impact in the Lower School was a course I did to become a mentor for those staff who were involved in working with students who were learning English, called ESL in the Mainstream for the Early Learner. This was an accredited course for staff, and in the time I delivered the course, over one hundred staff completed it.

What are some of your most memorable moments at ISA?
Teaching the many students from a vast array of countries around the world. Even this year, which is my twenty-fifth year at ISA, I still managed to be teaching students from two countries I’d never had students from before, namely Lithuania and Morocco. The beginning of the school year, when students arrived with no English, was always a time when you heard my voice more, but by the end of the school year, the room was always full of chatter from students being able to have engaging conversations with both myself and fellow students.

I also hold dearly lots of memories of times spent with colleagues from around the world. We are a school with lots of expertise and we work together well on a daily basis, always for the good of our students.

What is your current career, and why did you choose that path? What advice do you have for others looking to enter your field of work?
After forty-five years of teaching, it is now time to retire! I have loved all the experiences I have had with the hundreds and hundreds of little students I have taught both in the UK and at ISA. Would I have changed any of it? Definitely not! I have followed the dream I had from the age of eight and through my international experience, I have also learned so much about different cultures and languages. My advice to others would be to follow your heart, follow your passion.

What advice or insights do you have for our current ISA students?
No matter what you are doing, just have a go! Those students whom I have taught English to and who have a growth mindset are not afraid to have a go, and they certainly progress quicker.

The ISA Alumni Spotlight series aims to showcase the journeys of individuals in our student, teacher and parent alumni communities. We ask them to reflect on how ISA made an impact on their life, and to share their advice on how to carry the mission of international understanding.