RCOE International Student Teaching Spring 08

I’m a Biology Secondary Education major and I chose this concentration, because of the great need for science teachers. I believe students are often intimidated by science in general, because some of the difficult language involved. I hope through being a science teacher I can enlighten students to how science affects their everyday day lives and hopefully peak some interest in science related fields.

I applied for international student teaching to gain a more diverse experience before entering the classroom. I feel that my field experiences in the classroom thus far have been limited in diversity. I think the multicultural experience of international student teaching will make me a more well-rounded teacher with a better understanding of students coming from various backgrounds. I’ve never traveled anywhere outside of the United States.

I’ve been to Colorado and Utah several times to ski, but haven’t traveled much other than that. I'm really excited about going to Costa Rica!

-Kendall Fuller

Hi, my name is Sara Marshall and I will be an Appalachian State International Student Teacher in Nicoya, Costa Rica for the Spring semester of 2008. I am a Spanish Education major and I will spend my first ten weeks of student teaching in Iredell County, just north of Charlotte, NC, followed by five weeks in Costa Rica.

I chose the profession of teaching because I have grown up under the same roof as an amazing teacher, my mother. I have seen the difference that she has made in students' lives, and as much as I fought it at first I have that same calling in my life. I want to be able to make that difference in a child's life. I chose Spanish because I have a love for the language as well as the culture and it only made sense for me to pursue a degree in the language that I have such a passion for.

I think it is obvious why I would choose to take the opportunity to teach in Costa Rica. Along with the amazing chance to affect children who are from this Spanish culture I love, I will be able to experience the country first hand and bring back so many experiences and ideas to enrich my future classroom. I believe that there is no better way to truly learn a language and culture than by placing yourself directly in the center of it, and this will only add to other experiences I have had through my Study Abroad in Barcelona, Spain. In Barcelona I truly fell in love with traveling and experiencing other cultures and I can't wait to experience the culture of Costa Rica!

I feel prepared in so many ways from my learning experiences at Appalachian State University as a North Carolina Teaching Fellow. As my last semester in Boone comes to a close, I am able to see all of the different ways I have been shaped and pushed to be ready for my lifelong profession. I know that this trip to Nicoya will be the final force I need to add to the great education I have recieved!

Hello, my name is Marley Hambacher and I am an Elementary Education major from Appalachian State University. During the spring of 2008, I will student teaching in a Charlotte-Mecklenburg School for the first ten weeks and then the last five weeks in Nicoya, Costa Rica.

I chose to go in this profession for many reasons. I have had multiple teachers that have influenced me. These teachers have taught me to love education and have shared the same passion for learning that I do. I also would like to make a difference in children's lives, much like adults, in the past, have done so for me. I feel that education is way that I can do this.

After learning about ASU’s International Student Teaching Program, I was immediately interested in it. I feel by participating in this program, I will be able to learn new things that will affect my life and my teaching in the future. The idea of living and working in a different environment and culture attracts me to this program. I feel that being surrounded by a different culture will let me see the world in a different light. I believe that this is important in today’s world, especially in the education field.

While growing up, I was given the chance to take many global trips. I have experienced many diverse cultures and environments and they have all taught me lessons that I still use today. These lessons have helped to mold me into the person I am.

My travels have not all been to prime “vacation spots.” I have spent four summers going to a colony in Mexico doing mission work with my church. On these four trips, I have immersed myself in a very diverse culture that is nothing like my own. I have also spent a summer in Germany, studying with ASU’s German department. During this trip, I was able to interact with the local students and form bonds with them. Besides volunteer work and study abroad trips, I have also traveled to many places on vacations. I have been to many states across the country, the Caribbean, multiple countries in Europe, Mexico, and Costa Rica.

My name is Lauren Dalton and I am an elementary education major. I will be doing my student teaching in the Spring of 2008. I am not sure exactly where I will be doing the first part of my student teaching; however, I will be in Nicoya, Costa Rica for the last five weeks.

I choose to be a teacher because I want to be a part of something bigger than myself, and what better way to do this than teaching children. There are so many teachers that have made impressions on my life and ever since I can remember I have wanted to do the same for children today. It is hard for me to pin point one particular reason for my desire to become a teacher however it is most important to me that I am able to make a difference in a child's life through education.

When I first heard about international student teaching I said, "Where do I sign my name?" I can not imagine a better opportunity to explore my passion for education beyond North Carolina than this one. I have never traveled outside of the country and I yearn to be immersed in a culture that is different from my own. I have studied Spanish for seven years and I immediately chose Nicoya, Costa Rica as my desired destination. I love the Spanish language and I know I will love the Spanish culture even more. I am excited to dive right into a world that I am unfamiliar with and share my passion for children and education with other educators in Costa Rica.

I have never traveled outside of the country and I have never been more excited to do so. I have traveled as far as Colorado in the U.S. and I look forward to extending my traveling experience in the future.

My name is Lindsay Richard and I am an Elementary Education major. I am planning on doing my international student teaching in Dublin, Ireland. I chose to be a teacher because I love children and I want to make a difference in their lives. I want to be a support system for my students in my classroom.

In my teaching program so far I have enjoyed the opportunities that I have received by having internships in the schools. I think the more experience you have with children the better you will understand how they learn and you will be able to teach in a way that they learn best.

The reason that I applied for international student teaching is because I want to experience other cultures and see how children learn in other cultures. I want to have the experience of going to live in another culture that is not my own. Working in North Carolina, especially in agricultural environments, there is a large immigrant population. I could and probably will have students in my class that will have come from another country and it will be a culture shock and hard for them. I think that if I have had a similar experience it will help me be a better support system for those students. I think this will be an experience of a lifetime.

I have not traveled out of the United States before. I have only been on an airplane once in my life and that was to New York City. I have only traveled on the east coast of United States; therefore, I am very excited about this trip!

I am very curious to learn about the educational system in Ireland, how it compares to ours and the daily schedule for an elementary aged child. I enter this teaching experience are to gain a greater insight when teaching students of multicultural situations and to increase my awareness of sensitivities that may exist of which I am completely unaware. I want to learn new and different teaching strategies that I may use when returning to North Carolina. I want to learn about Europe as a whole and get a lot of cultural experience there. I am very exited about this trip and can not wait to start planning.

My name is Torrey Hanna and I am a Middle Grades Education major with a concentration on Math and Social Studies. I chose to be a teacher because I love working with kids and I think young adolescence is such an impressionable time for students and I hope to be positive role model for them during this time. I think that school is such a vital part of student's lives and futures and I hope to have an impact on that.

I have really enjoyed my teaching program so far. It has been great to be with the same group for a while because we really get to know each other and can learn from and help each other out. I have had wonderful experiences in the schools I have been in and am looking forward to my student teaching.

I chose to apply for international student teaching because I would love to teach in another country one day and I figured this would be an awesome way to get a taste of what that would be like. I spent a spring break teaching in Jamaica and loved every minute of it so I thought it would be fun to try again in a different country. I also chose to do international student teaching because it would give me an experience unlike one I would get in North Carolina that will hopefully make me a stronger teacher and person.

I love to travel and have done a fair amount and hope to do much more. I have traveled to Thailand, The Bahamas, Jamaica, The Virgin Islands, and many states within the United States.

I hope to learn so much from this experience. I really hope to embrace the culture in Costa Rica and build relationships with my family and students. I expect to learn how to handle a variety of classroom situations. I also expect to learn what it is like to be a stranger in another place so that I can better relate to future students that I may have that will be going through a similar experience.

I'm Julie Troutman and my major is Elementary Education. Me decision to become a teacher was really made in my own time as a student the public education system. There were so many teachers I just loved to learn from and teachers who truly inspired me that I felt like teaching was the career for me. This is a field in which we can truly make a difference in the world, and that is good to know!

My field expereince so far has been incredible. I have been with teachers who are very different and teach different grades, but who still invest in their students. These teachers have each shown me how much better students respond to you when they can see that you care about them. I have also been fortunate enough to see two very different grades, which has taught me how versatile I must be in the teaching profession! Above all, though, the best thing has been the students. They are always so excited to see a new face, and I love the welcomed feeling I get from them.

I chose to participate in International Student Teaching because there is not going to be any better time in my life to get a true experience of immersion into a new culture. At this point I almost feel like I have nothing to lose! I will certainly gain new knowledge about the culture and lifestyle, but I will also be met with new challenges! Meeting these challenges will certainly result in a great amount of learning, which I am not yet aware of!

I have had a little bit of experience in Central America. I did spend ten days in Costa Rica and about as many in Guatemala on two separate mission trips. I've also had some purely tourist experience in the Caribbean.

I am Elyse Addington and I am an elementary education major here at App. Basically my entire life I have not wanted to do anything besides teach. I love children and the chance to impact their lives with knowledge. Education can be the key to open so many doors for children whose parents may not have had the same opportunities. One of the biggest reasons I want to teach, besides the fact that children are the most fun people to be around, is the chance to watch them grow and become who they are as they learn more and more.

My experiences here at Appalachian I feel are preparing me to be a strong leader and teacher when I graduate. My Block 2 experience has been absolutely wonderful and I know that I have learned so much in this last semester that I can take and directly apply to my classroom one day. I feel my professors have imparted a lot of really valuable knowledge to us over the past few years. My experiences in schools have also been very beneficial and have given me chances to grow as a future teacher and become more comfortable in the classroom.

I chose to student teach in Costa Rica for several reasons. I have always wanted to work and teach outside of the country, and I think this would be a great stepping stone and allow me to make connections with people in an other country. The Spanish language is another reason why I am excited about this trip. I am hoping to pick up lots more Spanish during our time in Costa Rica.

Before this I have had some travel experiences. I traveled for Spain for two weeks in high school and toured lots of the country while I was there. Also, I spent a week in a small Panamanian village in Central America through Appalachian's Alternative Spring Break program last spring. I have also done some tourist traveling in the Caribbean to the Cayman Islands..

My name is Jamie Kluttz and I am an elementary education major with a concentration in music. I am very passionate about learning and have always wanted to share my passion with others, so teaching has always felt like the perfect occupation for me. I have unfortunately had plenty of experiences with teachers who have lost their passion for teaching and their love of children, and I feel like elementary teachers have the power to play a very positive or negative role in a child's life. If the teacher is dedicated to education and enthusiastic about working with children, this excitement is easily transferable to the subject being taught. I feel that the learning process can be fun and exciting and I have high hopes that my future students will share my passion and enthusiasm for school as well.

I am so thankful for all the opportunities to work with children in multiple classes. There are very few other universities that offer practicum experiences in CI-2800, Block 1, Block 2 and Student Teaching classes. I have had a diverse experience with Appalachian State University and feel well prepared to teach in Costa Rica as well as in the United States after graduation.

I applied for International Student Teaching because I felt that this would be a highly beneficial and valuable opporunity that I could not pass up. I worked at an orphanage and local school in Monte Christi, Dominican Republic and was heavily impacted by my experience there. We are so fortunate to have a great public education system in the United States. While in the Dominican Republic, I witnessed first hand the quality of education that some children receive. I feel that my training at Appalachian has provided me with knowledge and skills that will be shared with students and teachers alike in Costa Rica to hopefully bring a better educational opportunity to the local Costa Rican schools.

I have travelled to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Bahamas, and various states throughout the USA.

I expect to learn many valuable experiences in Costa Rica that I would not have the opportunity to experience in a traditional American classroom. This will be an eye-opening trip that will teach me to be thankful for the school systems in the United States, to be grateful for the materials and teaching tools readily available to educators, and to develop an appreciation for the diverse programs and opportunities many schools in the United States have available to their students. This will also be a time to observe another culture and gain a better understanding of how children from cultures outside of America feel when they are placed in a foreign school and a completely new environment. I expect to gain a deeper understanding of the customs and lifestyles that many of my non-American students possibly participated in on a regular basis.

My name is Megan Wiedenman. I am in the elementary education program and have a concentration in social sciences. I cannot wait to become a classroom teacher. I appreciate the constant joy and positive nature of children during these years, they always know how to cheer me up and make me laugh. I love that they are willing and interested in the learning process. Children's enthusiasm and excitement are what keep me motivated to be a wonderful teacher. My goal as a teacher is to have an impact on each of my students’ lives. If I teach to be remembered by my students, then I know that I will always remain passionate.

Within the teaching program I have welcomed the many and varied experiences I have been able to participate in. I have worked extensively with Kindergarten and third grade and have been surprised at how much I have learned in each encounter. I am grateful for the opportunity to observe and be a part of widely varied classrooms and teachers, so that I have been able to learn valuable and unique information from each location in order to more fully develop my own philosophies of teaching.

I decided to be a part of International Student Teaching because I want to learn about education throughout the world and experience different cultures with a purpose outside of tourism and personal travel. I look forward to learning the traditions and daily routines of Costa Rica and I cannot wait to share my experiences and cultural knowledge with my family, friends, and future students. I hope to build personal and professional relationships and bond with each new person that I meet, so that I will never forget the faces of Costa Rica.

I have traveled considerably throughout the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean but have limited travel experience outside of tourist destinations. I love traveling to new places and am excited to become a part of Costa Rica and bring Costa Rica into my life.

That's pretty much how I feel.

I love books, I've always loved books, and I can't imagine a world without books. I knew I wanted to be a teacher from a young age but it wasn't until late high school that I finally connected my love of literature with teaching, and decided to become a high school English teacher.

I can't possibly think of a more challenging experience than teaching literature to ESL students in their home country.

I plan on spending my life traveling from country to country, accepting teaching jobs and working my way around the globe, seeing everything I possibly can. I can't imagine anything more fulfilling, for myself and for those I'll teach. I want to lead a life with purpose.

I have traveled plenty. I've probably been on thirty or forty flights across the U.S. to visit family, back when flying was reasonably priced. Though I have traveled all over the south, midwest and to New England once or twice, I've never been out of the country, which is also part of the reason I am going to Costa Rica.

I expect to learn about the Costa Rican culture, how it fits into the greater Hispanic culture, the perceptions of Americans in Latin American countries, how my students think and learn, and how other school systems work. More than that, I plan on learning as much about myself and what I'm made of as possible.

I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. I used to play school with my little sister's in my moms classroom afterschool when I was in elementary school. She is a third grade teacher in Burke County so I got a lot of inspiration and motivation from her. I absolutely love little kids and everything about teaching and being around them. They are so funny!...and can say some of the most intellegent and hilarious things. I especially like working with children who struggle in the regular classroom. I love getting through to students who feel that they cannot succeed, and building up their confidence by helping them perform to their best ability. The thing that I have enjoyed the most about teaching so far is seeing a student get something I am teaching for the first time. When they light up and get excited about school and learning is the reason I teach and why I love to teach so much.

I am so excited about the opportunity to get to teach internationaly in Ireland next semester. I feel that this is an excellent opportunity and would benefit my teaching career greatly. The chance to see how a school works in another country, how they educate their students and how their school works is something I am looking forward to seeing. I feel that I will learn a lot and get to bring back tons of information, experiences and ideas and be able to use them and implement them in my classroom.

I have never had the chance to travel outside of the United States, so not only will this be an excellent opportunity for me, it will also be exciting and new. I cannot wait to travel to another country! I have always loved the idea of traveling and this experience is something I am looking forward to for many different reasons!

-Cassie Mauser

Hello all, my name is Julia Swinn and I am an art education major with qualifications ranging from primary school to high school. The thought of teaching never really stuck me until mid-way through my freshman year of college at UNC Greensboro. I knew my talents were in both the sciences and the arts but I was unsure as to the direction I should take with either. I realized that visual art was my true passion and to share it with kids, big and small, was really the best way to further art appreciation and cultural production. So with that in mind I transferred to Appalachian. It is through my studio classes and wonderful relationships with my art education professors that my love for sharing and teaching art has grown.

Perhaps it is the camaraderie with other students and professors in my concentration that has kept me from second guessing my decisions regarding my education at ASU. The university and the colleges of education and fine arts have afforded me opportunities and experiences in art and teaching that I feel are truly exemplary. More than anything, my practicum experiences preceding my actual student teaching semester have been second to none.

My reasons for applying to international student teaching stem from my love for travel. I've been fortunate enough to travel internationally my entire life, but not only that, the ability to travel independently of others has helped my awareness of international etiquette and allowed me to adapt to different situations and be respectful and responsible to my destinations. International student teaching has always been more of a necessity to me and my teaching philosophies.

My most recent international venture placed me in Italy, touring the Reggio Emilia infant toddler centers that are world renowned for their progressive interdisciplinary and democratic ways of introducing culture to young children. Prior to that experience, I was fortunate to be able to spend time throughout North and Central America, Spain, France, England, Zimbabwe. I have also spent a considerable amount of time in South Africa, where I was exposed to foreign dignitaries and diplomats. As well, I received first hand experience in a school outside Pretoria.

More than anything, I want to gain insight into how children learn throughout the world. Being in an international setting is something I've always been keen about and to be able to share cultures through a common interest in art seems so fulfilling. The richness of Irish history and the Irish contemporary culture is a major point of interest to me so the opportunity to really immerse myself in that country is something that I think about constantly. I know this experience is something I will surely learn from and be able to use in my future teaching ventures.

This is me in Reggio Emilia, Italy this past March.