- Reflect on your language learning and acculturation during your SLA Grant experience. What insights did you gain into the language acquisition process? How did you engage and understand cultural differences. Did you meet your goals for language learning that you articulated on the blog before you started your program? Why or why not?
This question is a bit hard for me, as I have spent the past year studying abroad gaining insights into the language acquisition process. However, changing the school at which I studied certainly helped me gain more insight into the process of teaching one’s brain to easily and rapidly use a foreign language. The professor’s at L’alliance Française had clearly received great training in the way the brain functions in relation with foreign languages. My professor taught me numerous new tools for helping learn a language, which I had never even thought of before. Gone are my days of believing that French television is enough comprehension practice! Overall, I am extremely happy with the results of the program, and I can confidently say that I honored my pact to only speak French (with minor exceptions…) during my SLA. My ability level has certainly risen during my studies, and I can even say that my ability to speak fluently (as opposed to translating back and forth between french and english) is much more concrete than before.
2. Reflect on your SLA Grant experience overall. What insights have you brought back as a result of this experience? How has your summer language study abroad changed you and/or your worldview? What advice would you give to someone who was considering applying for an SLA Grant or preparing to start their own summer language study?
This experience has been especially impactful, in part, because I engaged the language in an incredibly diverse class. Students came from all over the world, were different ages, some married, some with children, and some college students like me. Not only did I enjoy the diversity after a year in a University setting, but these students offered me valuable insight into their fields, how they moved to France, and how they have utilized their French skills to work their way into certain careers. This has been incredibly important, as a few students in particular really steered me into a new career direction. Living in Paris also helped me broaden my worldview, as I was constantly encountering French culture and the cultures of the immigrants who surrounded me each and every day. The city truly helped me learn and experience culture in a way that I never have before.
In terms of advice, I would certainly advise students to speak solely in their target language. In addition, I would recommend that students make sure to spend time with native speakers. While it can be comforting to find friends who speak your language and understand your culture, speaking with natives will help you learn to speak colloquially and without accent (well, at least not a bad accent…!).
Where do you go from here? How will you maintain, grow and/or apply what you have learned? How might you use your SLA Grant experience during the rest of your academic career and post-graduation. How will your SLA Grant experience inform you as you move forward academically, personally and professionally?
I will hold my SLA experience near and dear to my heart no matter what my future holds. However, I can also say that this experience has helped me understand that I want to continue to work with the French language for the rest of my life. Because of this, I will be using each and every opportunity on campus to continue my French progression. This includes French Club, Café Français, and (hopefully) conversation opportunities with native speakers. Further down the line, I will ideally work within the International Development field, in which French will be an integral skill, as much of the work takes place in French speaking countries. Not only this though, but I will also take what I have learned about cultural sensitivity, personal growth, and language growth with me when I (hopefully) embark on Western Africa to aid in the development process. Overall, my SLA grant has been a breath of fresh air that has acted to reinvigorate my passion for language, culture, and respectful humanitarian aid.