Mariam M. | Mar. 13, 2026
featuring: Aya M.
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Some ideas don’t leave you alone.
For Aya, educational travel was one of them. Even in a busy Edmonton high school year, where schedules are full and time is limited, the possibility of leading a high school trip abroad kept resurfacing. What changed was realizing that with EF, she wouldn’t be adding more to her plate. She’d have structure and support from the start.
We caught up with her to talk about what made saying yes to educational travel feel clear, supported, and ultimately like the best decision.
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Tell us a bit about yourself. What do you teach and where are you based?
Aya: My name is Aya. I have been teaching for 9 years. I am a biology, general science, and medical studies teacher at a large High School with the Edmonton Public School Board.
When did travelling with your students go from just an idea to an actuality?
Aya: For years, two of my colleagues talked about their trip to Japan with EF in 2008. We promised each other that one day we'd plan a trip to Japan and go together. In February 2020, I won a voucher at our local Teachers' Convention to take students on a trip. A few weeks later, the world shut down for travel and I put the idea of travel out of my mind. We got to realize our dreams in March 2023 when Japan opened for tourists again. Seeing the joy and the learning the students got to do on the trip sold me on doing more trips. Since that experience, we also experienced Italy and Spain and are now getting ready to travel to Greece!
What gave you pause before saying yes?
Aya: The amount of work I thought I'd need to do and I was worried about getting school board approval. I worried about logistics, student safety, fundraising, and whether I could truly take on something that big alongside full-time teaching, coaching, and all my extracurriculars.
What made EF feel like the right partner for you?
Aya: There are so many reasons EF was the right partner for me. First, our school used to travel with EF pre-covid and always had great experiences. I was supported at every step by every single person at EF. I could call anyone and no matter who picked up the call, they would know my context, travel plans, and they would answer every question I had. The trips were always well-planned and both students and chaperones had a great time. They always guaranteed a good value for our money. Just great experiences all around!
How did EF help make the planning process feel clear and structured?
Aya: EF supported me at every step of the planning process. All materials for meetings were shared with me, questions were answered right away or in a reasonable time if needed, and I knew I was never alone when going through the process.
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Once you decided to move forward, what was the first step you took?
Aya: My first step was to ask my principal for approval and support. Then we let the school board know that we were planning the trip. I led a student interest meeting to see how many students were interested, then a parent meeting to share details, then 6 months before the trip we filed the paperwork!
What did the school board approval process look like for you while planning with EF?
Aya: It was a lot easier than I anticipated. I found a draft of an international trip field trip form on my board's portal and filled in the details for our trip. I sent it to the school division to approve it, and they let me know about edits I needed to make. Once it was good, it was sent to the Superintendent's office for approval. The whole process took a few days.
When did you feel confident everything was in place?
Aya: When the wheels were in motion, the meetings were successful, and students were enrolling on the trip.
When did you feel certain you had made the right decision?
Aya: On the trip when the students were having the best time and saying, "thank you for bringing us here" but even before that when they were telling me they were learning Japanese/Italian/Spanish or what suitcases they should buy for the trip or what outfits they should bring along. The excitement building up to the trip and the genuine joy they experienced on the trip let me know this was the right decision. Also, walking through Japan in the spring surrounded by cherry blossoms and watching my students take in the history and culture firsthand was unforgettable, having fresh pasta and pizza in Italy was an experience of a lifetime, and stumbling upon Easter processions in Spain... There are so many memories to pick from!!
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What has travelling with your students made possible for you, personally?
Aya: As a science teacher, I’m always looking for ways to bring learning to life beyond the classroom. Travel allows students to experience history, culture, and science in real-world contexts which is something no textbook can fully capture. I got to see the world through different eyes.
I also got to really know my students in a way I couldn't just teaching them in a typical classroom. I saw introverted students come out of their shells and make new friendships that carried over once we returned from the trip. I saw students speak to locals in their language and have their eyes light up when the locals complimented them. I saw my chaperones dancing to music in places we visited and having the best time saying, "these trips motivate me on the hard days."
I got to see some pretty awesome places with some pretty awesome people and I am genuinely grateful.
What’s made you keep saying yes to travelling with EF?
Aya: Every Tour Director, Consultant, and Tour Operations Specialist went above and beyond to make our experiences wonderful. Everyone is so kind and they really want you to have a great experience. I always have the best time with the EF team, and having students take multiple trips with EF shows me just how deep the EF advantage goes. The consistency matters. Every trip, even in a different country, in a different year, has delivered the same level of care and organization. That reliability builds trust, and I have become part of the EF family.
If you could go back and tell yourself one thing before your first tour, what would it be?
Aya: That it isn't as much work as I thought it would be and to not stress so much. I also wish I took it in more! Now I know that I can trust the process and that I have the support, I can allow myself to experience the trip alongside your students instead of just managing it. I think I was so focused on making sure everyone was happy, healthy, and safe that I didn't really focus on myself and the experiences. I need a redo trip to Japan with this new mindset 😄 But also, I've now taken 130 students on international trips, some of whom are planning to return to these countries for study abroad programs or to work internationally. It's probably the most important statistic of my teaching career.
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