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View larger image

TEA Fellows include, from left, Sophea Sar of Cambodia, Kamonrat Chimphali of Thailand, Victoria Ayanlowo of Nigeria, Alex Quarshie of Ghana and Raphael Adeyemi of Nigeria. Photo by Marie Freeman

Teaching Excellence and Achievement program (TEA)

Appalachian hosts 21 international educators enhancing their teaching skills

About 140 international teachers have participated during the TEA program’s seven years at Appalachian.

By the Numbers
  • Fall 2017 – 21 TEA Fellows from 18 countries
  • 2010 to 2017 – 140 TEA Fellows overall
By Linda Coutant
Posted Oct. 5, 2017 at 2:49 p.m.

The Teaching Excellence and Achievement program (TEA), now in its seventh year, brings teachers from other countries to Appalachian State University to enhance their skills in teaching science and English as a foreign language.

From mid-September through Oct. 30, this year’s TEA Fellows are in the High Country learning about:

About 140 international teachers have participated during the TEA program’s seven years at Appalachian.

  • student-centered teaching approaches that are highly engaging
  • project-based teaching
  • instructional design and assessment
  • teacher-leadership throughout their careers

The TEA Fellows spend four weeks on Appalachian’s campus engaged in discipline-specific workshops. Then, they spend two weeks teaching in regional schools alongside a U.S. partner teacher.

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Also visiting campus as TEA Fellows are, from left, Luciano Valencia Iman of Peru, Sophea Sar of Cambodia, Rita Tiwari of Nepal, Hasmik Dibaryan of Armenia, Doli Chaudhuri of India, Maria Alejandrina Casa Coba of Ecuador, Gunay Babayeva of Azerbaijan, and Kamonrat Chimphali of Thailand. Photo by Marie Freeman

Meet the 2017 TEA Fellows
Meet the 2017 TEA Fellows

The Teaching Excellence and Achievement program (TEA), now in its seventh year, brings teachers from other countries to Appalachian State University to enhance their skills in teaching science and English as a foreign language. Meet the 21 TEA Fellows, representing 18 countries, that visited campus in fall 2017.

Meet the 2017 TEA Fellows

The local community benefits from the program, too, as the visitors share their culture with local students and spend one weekend with host families.

“In coming to Appalachian and Boone, these master teachers greatly impact our campus and the local community. They contribute to global learning by meeting with hundreds of Appalachian students and local school children during their six weeks here,” said Dr. Maria Anastasiou, executive director of the Office of International Education and Development (OIED).

By the Numbers
  • Fall 2017 – 21 TEA Fellows from 18 countries
  • 2010 to 2017 – 140 TEA Fellows overall

“More importantly, we hope the teachers will continue working with our students and faculty once they return home using the amazing technologies that they learn about during their time here.”

TEA is a program of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and implemented by IREX. At Appalachian, it is cosponsored by OIED and the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences.

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Natalia Borta of Moldova leads an English class at Watauga High School, one of eight regional schools hosting TEA Fellows. Photo by Marie Freeman

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TEA Fellow Natalia Borta of Moldova works closely with a student at Watauga High School. Mainov partnered with Watauga High School teacher Amanda Wallace during her fellowship. Photo by Marie Freeman

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TEA Fellow Kamonrat Chimphali of Thailand works with biology students at Watauga High School, one of eight regional schools hosting TEA Fellows. Photo by Marie Freeman

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Said Laaroua of Algeria talks with a student about a physics project at Watauga High School, one of eight regional schools hosting TEA Fellows. Photo by Marie Freeman

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Said Laaroua of Algeria, second from right, discusses physics with students at Watauga High School, one of eight regional schools hosting TEA Fellows. Photo by Marie Freeman

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2017 TEA Fellows

See images from the 2017 Teaching Excellence and Achievement (TEA) program at Appalachian State University.

TEA leaders at Appalachian

TEA’s core team at Appalachian consists of Dr. Beverly Moser and Dr. Maria Anastasiou, project co-directors; John Spagnolo, technology coordinator; Dr. Linda McCalister, field experience coordinator; Dr. Rachel Potter and Dr. Leslie Bradbury, science teacher coordinators; and Mallory Sadler, social/cultural and logistics coordinator.

Schools hosting 2017 TEA Fellows
  • Ashe County High School
  • Hardin Park School
  • Caldwell Early College High School
  • Hibriten High School
  • East Burke High School
  • Watauga High School
  • Green Valley School
  • West Wilkes High School
Faculty collaborators represent these departments and areas
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Curriculum and Instruction
  • English
  • Languages, Literatures and Cultures
  • Leadership and Educational Studies
  • Mathematics
  • Recreation Management and Physical Education
  • Physics and Astronomy
  • Belk Library and Information Commons
  • Office of International Education and Development
  • Appalachian-Public School Partnership
  • Reich College of Education
  • College of Arts and Sciences
Appalachian receives $183,000 grant to train international science and English teachers
Appalachian receives $183,000 grant to train international science and English teachers
June 25, 2014

Appalachian State University has received a $183,000 Teaching Excellence and Achievement (TEA) Program grant to implement a training program designed to enhance the capacity of 20 teachers representing 17 countries to teach science and English. The TEA Fellows will come from Bangladesh, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Guatemala, India, Jordan, Mali, Nicaragua, Niger, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Zambia.

Read the story
Building Bridges: International language teachers study at Appalachian
Building Bridges: International language teachers study at Appalachian
Nov. 12, 2012

Twenty-one teachers from 17 countries come to Appalachian to boost their skills in teaching English as a second language.

Read the story

About the Office of International Programs

Appalachian State University combines a strong liberal arts foundation with a comprehensive, pervasive and integrated commitment to global engagement. The Office of International Programs assists App State in fulfilling its global engagement mission by working to develop awareness, knowledge, appreciation and respect of cultural differences — in both domestic and international contexts — in the university’s students, faculty and staff, as well as in the surrounding communities. Learn more at https://international.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.

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About 140 international teachers have participated during the TEA program’s seven years at Appalachian.

By the Numbers
  • Fall 2017 – 21 TEA Fellows from 18 countries
  • 2010 to 2017 – 140 TEA Fellows overall
Schools hosting 2017 TEA Fellows
  • Ashe County High School
  • Hardin Park School
  • Caldwell Early College High School
  • Hibriten High School
  • East Burke High School
  • Watauga High School
  • Green Valley School
  • West Wilkes High School
Faculty collaborators represent these departments and areas
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Curriculum and Instruction
  • English
  • Languages, Literatures and Cultures
  • Leadership and Educational Studies
  • Mathematics
  • Recreation Management and Physical Education
  • Physics and Astronomy
  • Belk Library and Information Commons
  • Office of International Education and Development
  • Appalachian-Public School Partnership
  • Reich College of Education
  • College of Arts and Sciences

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Share your feedback on this story.

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Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

If you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian State University Podcasts
  • Stories and press releases published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found in University Communications Records at the Special Collections Research Center.
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Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

If you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian State University Podcasts
  • Stories and press releases published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found in University Communications Records at the Special Collections Research Center.
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian
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