I believe my outside-school experiences have both expanded and deepened my subject area content knowledge. In teaching a foreign (world) language, one must immerse themselves in the language as much, and as often as possible. I am fortunate enough to be a member of a Spanish-speaking family so opportunities are abundant. Partaking in full immersion opportunities forces you engage in the language in ways beyond basic conversation (which is at the heart of what I teach in Levels 1 and 2). It also boosts your confidence and challenges you. There is one experience that holds this especially true for me. Having grown up a Spanish speaker definitely does not mean that I was always confident in speaking to other native speakers. When I was in high school and even through part of college, people that actually grew up in a Spanish speaking country always intimidated me. I was always so nervous that I would not understand them, or that I would say the wrong thing that I would just not speak Spanish to them. However the summer after my second year at UC Davis, I lived in Granada, Nicaragua for three months and volunteered at an elementary school. I feel that this experience enriched my command of the language, widened my understanding and appreciation of culture, and boosted my confidence. Once I came back, I had no more hesitation in speaking to other native speakers, even those from other countries. I try to create a full immersion enviornment in my classroom because of this.
Escuela Angela Morales Granada Nicaragua
When I first read Ball's article I disagreed with many aspects of it. After the discussion, my perception was broadened, deepened, and my disagreements were to a lesser extent. My first impression was that the article was basically bashing teachers. Ball's claims that teachers are inadequately prepared to teach really offended me. During the discussion, I realized that Ball did not say this with malice, but instead was just pointing out an issue that she finds problematic. I, however, find it problematic that Ball really does not offer any suggestions or solutions to this problem. In general, the class discussion was interesting and did enrich my understanding of the article and its arguments.
I have zeroed in on a question for my capstone project. My questions is, "What culturally relevant experiences are available to students studying Spanish in the Bay Area?" I am very satisfied and completely excited over my question. I want to include museums, cultural centers, festivals, dance classes, films and many more
experiences to create my capstone project. I am interested in looking at the positive and negative effects of experiential learning, and the (growing) presence of Latinos in the Bay Area over time. I feel that the Bay Area is such a rich source of Latino culture, and I want to take advantage of that. For research I am hoping to find articles written by Latinos and their experiences immigrating to the Bay Area or anything along those lines really. I also intend to visit the Presidio, Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, different exhibits, La Pe
ña Cultural Center, perhaps even some dance classes and do a tour of the murals in San Francisco. I am ready and excited to dive in.
My Comments:
Troy Bristol: fatheadtroysmc.blogspot.com
Julie Wegher: masterblogger.blogspot.com
Alana Scott: mademoisellescott.blogspot.com
Yadira,
ReplyDeleteI am really excited about your capstone project! I think that it is really important to get students out of the classroom especially in foreign language classes. Some of my greatest memories from my spanish class in high school are from when we took a field trip around San Francisco to see the murals painted by Diego Rivera. I think that it is great that you are trying to give your students those same memories as well.
Yadira - I had the same reaction to the Ball article. Particularly the fact that there is no recommendations for solutions to the problem. Its like Ball is telling you about a problem and the natural reaction is... and what should we do about it? In our section, we discussed the "what should we do about it" at length. How can you ensure that teachers are working to expand their content knowledge throughout their career? Do schools mandate it? Do they give incentives through stipends? Do you look for subject passion when you hire someone hoping they will continue to expand their content knowledge on their own?
ReplyDeleteYadira, like you, I have definitely experienced anxiety about speaking French to native speakers. I know it is completely important for me to practice whenever possible, but I am still intimidated and don't want to be judged for saying the wrong thing, having an American accent, etc. This is a fear that I am overcoming little by little, and especially by talking in the target language to native speakers, like Sarah Colard, who I feel comfortable with.
ReplyDeleteI think your inquiry question is really amazing, and the more places you visit in your experiential learning, the more places you will feel comfortable taking your students on study trips. With less parent involvement apparent in many Bay Area schools, it is so important that these places are accessible to students via public transportation or even within walking distance of their own communities. Bon courage, mademoiselle!
Yadira,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you about outside experiences and the hugely positive effects they can have on the ability and confidence in teaching a foreign language. I am also a Spanish teacher (and extremely jealous that you grew up in a Spanish-speaking home!) and have been extremely intimidated by native speakers. I've spent a lot of time abroad, though, and this has helped me significantly in my confidence of both the language and many cultures of Spanish-speaking countries.
I absolutely love your project idea! In my few years of teaching in the Bay Area, I was constantly searching for authentic cultural experiences for my students, and authentic materials to bring into the classroom. The murals in the Mission in SF are incredible and a great teaching tool. When I was in high school, I went to El Salvador for 3 weeks and before we left, our teacher (who lived in El Salvador for much of the Civil War), brought us to the Mission to see the murals showing Salvadoran history and then to a pupusería. I love exploring traditional restaurants of different cultures in the Bay. Dance classes are a great idea as well. Great topic and great ideas.
Yadira--your enthusiasm for teaching and for your students comes through your writing, and I am so excited about your research topic. Please let me know if I can support your efforts....I am eager to follow your progress.
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