Reflection #1

It has always been my goal to positively impact the lives of those around me; eventually positively impacting the world.  It was my freshman year of college, however, that I wanted to make the "others" that surround me be in different countries.  I became very passionate about global education and the importance of being culturally aware (as Savignon states).  That is when I first recognized my role of potentially being an ESL teacher.  I initially looked at the role as being easy for I considered myself a native speaker of English.  When I went to China this past summer, that view changed.  I realized that it takes more than being "fluent" in a language to be able to teach someone that language and even my idea of being "fluent" was not accurate.  We have discussed what it means to be fluent in a language in class, which also helped broaden my view for being an ESL teacher.  I realized that communication can be more than just words in a sentence.  It can be hand motions, facial expressions, words in a song, the media and various other sources.  It was due to the sources mentioned that I was able to communicate effectively while in China for I had no Chinese language background.  I was able to put myself in a potential future student's position and see what it is like to be immersed in a culture and language so different than your own.  It was mentally exhausting trying to keep up with conversations and even something as mundane as ordering food became a challenge.  Seeing this side of the learning perspective really benefited me as a potential future ESL teacher.  I realized the importance of patience, repetition, enunciation, and ENGAGEMENT!! I feel that this class will further prepare me for a position of being an ESL teacher and I can't wait to learn more!