John Spiri

I started my teaching career as an ESL instructor in Taiwan. In Vermont I taught English Composition, among other courses, at Champlain College and the Community College of Vermont. Since 1997 I have been teaching in Japan at universities such as Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University.

I often use content based learning so my university students in Japan have the opportunity to learn content while learning English.

I have won two small awards as a presenter at conferences, and won a local Toastmaster Humorous Speech Contest.

M.A. in Early Childhood Education from the College of Saint Rose. While my B.S. is in Accounting, I earned the equivalent of a B.A. in English from Sienna College, but they wouldn't award a second bachelor's. Since then I've taken courses such as a David Paul teaching workshop, a Paul Nation vocabulary course, and education courses from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell (online).

I enjoy bicycling and hiking and, when time allows, the Japanese game "go." I am also a freelance writer and enjoy photography. I live in Japan with my wife and two sons.