From Refugee to Math Teacher in Estonia
- Farera Helery
- 14 hours ago
- 6 min read
Have you ever noticed something curious about people who speak foreign languages?
No matter how fluent they are, there's one moment when almost everyone switches back to their mother tongue.
It's calculating.
Even when it's something as simple as splitting a bill, I can always hear my foreign friends (and myself included) whispering numbers in our native languages.
That's why I wanted to meet a foreigner who became a math teacher in Estonia, teaching numbers, formulas, and logic in a language that isn’t his own. In a country facing a chronic shortage of math teachers, his story reveals what it truly takes to become that foreign talent Estonia needs.
The interview was originally in Estonian, and if I say I was blown away by his fluency, I’m not exaggerating.
Let's meet Celal.
Starting Over in Estonia 🇪🇪
Celal Yildirim, a Kurdish man from eastern Turkey, has appeared several times on Estonian TV, speaking about integration and how watching over 500 episodes of the cultural touchstone Õnne 13 helped him learn Estonian.
So honestly, I wasn't sure I’d even manage to get his attention for an interview. But as it turns out, Celal always has time to speak warmly about Estonia and its people 🙂.
"Estonian language is really important to Estonians."
Before arriving in Estonia in 2019, Celal worked as a computer science teacher in Turkey, until political circumstances forced him and his wife to leave their country. The first stop was Greece, where the hope for a safer future and the idea of building a career in programming led them to choose Estonia as their new home.
After arriving, they stayed at the Vao Refugee Centre, where Celal quickly realised that becoming a programmer would take longer than expected.
“I didn't want to wait, I wanted to work,” he says. “I didn’t like the feeling of going to the municipality every month to ask for money."
How a Cup of Turkish Coffee Helped Learn Estonian
After four months of receiving social benefits, Celal found a job in a Turkish shop - something he now sees as a turning point.
"The job you dream about doesn't always come immediately. But if you want to adapt to life and people in Estonia, it's incredibly valuable to work somewhere - anywhere - that gives you real contact with the local culture," explains Celal.
"I think when you tell Estonians you want to learn their language, they 're really happy to help."
Thanks to language lessons at the refugee center, his Estonian was already around A2. Since the work wasn't too demanding, he used every free moment to study.
What impressed me most, was how cleverly Celal involved the shop's customers in his learning journey.
He would ask them one simple question: "Kas Teil on aega?" (Do you have a moment?).
"You can probably imagine the confused look 🤔 on Estonians' faces," Celal laughs. "The usual response was: Mis mõttes? (What do you mean?)"
"I'd then explain that I'm learning Estonian and I want to practice. I can offer free Turkish coffee, so if you have a moment, we can sit down, drink coffee, and speak Estonian." Some stayed for 15 minutes, others for an hour and Celal quickly advanced to B1.
But one day, he received an email that changed his life.
Becoming a Math Teacher in Estonia
Celal had once told his Estonian language teacher that his childhood dream was to become a math teacher. She remembered and reached out to ask if he would still be interested.
"Of course I was," he says, "but I didn't have the degree."
With math teacher shortages being a real and ongoing problem in Estonia, Celal’s background in computer science worked in his favour. His teacher explained that in Estonia, IT and mathematics are closely connected, so he was given the opportunity to start teaching while becoming a student himself.
The school told him in June to take the 6th and 7th grade textbooks, solve all the exercises, and return in August ready to teach. With the help of his Estonian teacher, he memorised the terminology in just two months. At the same time, he was accepted into Tallinn University to study mathematics (in Estonian!).
He worked five days a week and studied on weekends. “It was very hard. But I finished my bachelor’s degree and in 2025 started my master's," says Celal with a proud voice.
A Foreigner in Front of the Class
When I asked whether he was afraid of not having enough vocabulary or making mistakes in front of students, he said his friends who are teachers in Turkey had warned him: “The work with kids is not easy. You’re a foreigner and kids take advantage of it or laugh when you make mistakes.” But Celal chose a different approach. He made an agreement with his students.
“I told them I’m a foreigner and I know I make mistakes. I really appreciate it if you correct me.” At the end of lessons, students began bringing him small notes and say: “Teacher, you said it like this, but in Estonian we don't say it that way.”
Whenever he had a chance, he also observed other teachers’ classes. “Teachers speak in a very similar way. I wrote down the sentences they used and memorised them to improve myself.”
“I told them I’m a foreigner and I know I make mistakes.”
Four years into teaching, Celal describes the experience as very positive. “I play football with my students and they’re not used to a math teacher joining the game. Sometimes I tell them that if everyone get at least a "3" in a test, I'll make Turkish pizza or baklava."
"They really want the baklava", laughs Celal.
Advice for Foreigners Who Want to Live in Estonia
What advice would Celal give to foreigners who hope to build a life in Estonia?
"If you can, focus the first 6-months only on the language,” he says. “Study every day, at least 2 hours. With that effort, reaching B1 is possible and with B1, finding a job becomes much easier.”
Foreigners want to master grammar first, but with Estonian, that doesn't work."
Fluency takes about two years, he adds. But how you study matters. Having taught Estonian to other learners at B1–B2 level, Celal sees the same mistake again and again.
“Foreigners want to master grammar first, but with Estonian, that doesn't work. It's so different that people get overwhelmed and say they can't manage. Of course they can't."
Instead, he focused on real-life language. Whenever he heard an interesting sentence, he wrote it down, memorised it, and used it in conversations. He says his biggest advantage was that he began learning immediately after arriving.
"When I first spoke Estonian, people said - Wow, you speak so well. It wasn't actually "so well", it was just a few sentences. But I saw how important the language is to Estonians, and that motivated me."
There is, however, one obstacle.
When Locals Switch to English
When I asked how easy it was to practise with Estonians, who aren’t exactly famous for small talk, Celal laughed. Back in Greece, he had read online that Estonians are cold people. “But I think if you speak Estonian, it’s not like that.”
“The problem is that Estonians switch to English very quickly when they see you’re struggling. But then foreigners can’t practise. I always said that I don’t speak English, I speak a little Estonian, let’s try with that."
"When you speak Estonian, you don’t feel like a stranger anymore."
Although Celal often heard that English is enough to live and work in Estonia, he disagrees. If you want to grow professionally and open more doors, language is key. Nobody expects perfection or a C1 level. But reaching B1 and being able to understand people and handle everyday situations changes everything.
“When you speak Estonian, you don’t feel like a stranger anymore,” he explains. “That feeling is very important if you’re a foreigner, especially a refugee. Otherwise you keep wondering — do they want me here or not? And that feeling can make life heavy.
“Even just for that feeling - it’s worth learning Estonian.”
Home is where your family, friends, and freedom are
After talking with Celal, it becomes clear that the key to fluency in Estonian wasn’t just the notebook filled with hundreds of phrases. It was his attitude.
I couldn’t resist asking him about something I mentioned at the beginning — how most of us automatically return to our mother tongue when calculating. What happens when you have to teach mathematics in another language?
Celal smiles.
"I’m a religious person. I believe everything is under God’s control. I wasn’t a math teacher before, so I learned all the mathematical terminology from scratch in Estonian. That helped me and I immediately started thinking in Estonian.”
Thank you Celal and you dear reader! I truly hope that his dedication, and respect towards Estonian culture and people will inspire more foreigners. Not just how to learn a language - but how to build a life in a new country.
👉 I'm happy to hear your thoughts or experience in the comments sections below.
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