LANGUAGE EXPERIENCE
EXPECTATIONS & CONTRIBUTIONS
An objective of the Spanish Ministry of Education program, Culture and Sport, is focused on “the acquisition of communicative competence in different languages, as well as their improvement throughout life.”
By joining the Language Assistance (LA) Bilingual Program, I expected to be given an opportunity to apply what I had achieved in my Master’s in Teaching program. I believed that the LA program would give me an opportunity to learn techniques, skills, and experiences from seasoned teachers, as well as connect me to other resources to develop a unique teaching style of my own.
As a Language Assistant, I am grateful that I have been given the opportunity to contribute to the objectives within the Bilingual Program in collaboration with teachers in the creation of activities both in-class and online. It is important for me to continue my personal objectives and the objectives of the program to provide cultural linguistic input, be a cultural reference to students who are learning about the United States, and by having direct contact with students helping them develop their reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. Overall, my contributions are to enhance international relationships in education, enriching the lives of students by expanding their language, and their cultural awareness during these trying times.
Contributions and Expectations for Language Assistant Program
My contributions and goals to the Language Assistance program are based on soft-skill and hard-skill methodologies. While my soft-skill approach to teaching is to learn how to make learning fun; I am proactive in developing hard-skills in teaching goals to advance myself as an educator by seeking certifications, and specialization efforts as an international teacher/tutor/mentor.
My soft-skill approach that contribute to student learning is to help cultivate core values that transcend the classroom, such as teamwork, effective communication, compassion, integrity, patience, inclusion, and resilience. The hard-skill approach I use in the Language Assistance program is creating exciting themes to engage students in learning English, while exposing them to cultural information about The United States and all around the world. In-class lesson plans may include: songs, worksheets, games, digital learning tools, and others surrounding music, holidays, gastronomy, geography, and include present and historical leaders, to name a few.
Further expectations and goals I have for myself and advancement goals of learners, is to expose them to tools of mastery, such as, Global Classroom, Spelling Bee, PET, KET, as well as other certifications, specializations, and resources. I believe that the objective of an educator is to be an advocate for the learner to utilize strengths and circumvent weaknesses by applying accolades to future academic/vocational enterprises.
HIGHLIGHTS
Here are a few of my best moments in the Language Assistance Program:
During times of COVID, learning how the school complies with the complexities of a pandemic, creating a safe environment, while simultaneously, keeping the spirit of the students high and friendly.
I was impressed with the students in how they adapted to wearing face masks, while showing progression in the English language and learning subject content.
Feeling welcome, included, supported, guided, and utilized; these feelings made me feel safe to share ideas, and grow as I received feedback.
Developing friendships with language assistants, administrators, and staff outside of school hours.
Seeing the pride and leadership skills in students as they made attempts to teach me about their culture and the Spanish language.
Participating in school-wide ‘Best Halloween-Themed Door Contest,’ where the students designed, decorated doors, and were judged.
Participating in the school-wide Jerusalema Dance event where administrators, teachers, staff, and students wore holiday-themed attire was a great way to start the Christmas break.