Today marks my one year anniversary in Tampa. It was one year ago today that I drove a packed U-Haul and my car in tow up the turn pike, across alligator alley, up I-75 to my new home. I moved to Tampa with one goal in mind, and that was to return to graduate school to pursue a Master’s in Teaching Foreign Language Education. I now have two semesters of graduate classes completed. I still have about a year and a half to go until it is all completed. Making the decision to move to Tampa and to start over in my late 30’s was scary to say the least. Since I graduated with my bachelor’s degree in 2001 (technically 2002), I have always had a full-time job with promotions and made a comfortable living wage. Moving to Tampa I knew that I would have to self-demote myself in order to devote more time to my studies. I had a notion of how difficult it was going to be to return to school, but I could not have been prepared for how different things had become in higher education over the past 13 years, or how quick-paced the classes would be or that I would have zero time to spend with my partner. Though I wrote often in my previous jobs, I was definitely out of practice with the level of expository writing expected of me. During my first semester, I worked a full-time job as a Night Auditor. I also took three graduate level courses. I had moments that I thought I would not make it. The stress was daunting; but, I ended up securing 3 As. Toward the end of my first semester I wondered how I was going to gain teaching experience to be able to apply for teaching positions later when the time came for my internship. It’s so amazing how so many doors have opened up for me. Before the end of that first semester, I was offered a TAship (teacher assistantship) through the university to teach beginning French in the fall. So, I put in my resignation at the hotel. I couldn’t believe it! I was astounded but extremely grateful (the TA in this case stands for Teacher Associate, not assistant). The department provided me the book and the syllabus and I created the lessons and taught the classes. The pay was meager at best, the benefits were amazing, and the experience was priceless. I taught two beginning French classes. The amount of work that a teacher puts into communicative language learning is impressive. I was not prepared for just how much personal time I would be putting in to teaching in addition to my own studies. It was not easy to balance. One of the requirements for securing a TA position at my university is that you must maintain a B or above in all of your graduate studies (this also happens to be the requirement to be part of the graduate program itself). Over the course of this semester there were times that I wanted to pull out all of my hair, I have never felt so pressured to be extremely organized, creative, and studious. I had an obligation to my students to present their material in an efficient and professional manner. They were paying a lot of money to be taught this language. Lessons had to be challenging and engaging. At the same time, I had to complete the readings for my own assignments (which seemed unending) and find time to observe students at elementary schools and interview ESOL (English speakers of Other Languages) students to assess their English skills and determine appropriate techniques to assist in their English learning. I had major projects to complete which required a lot of independent reading and research. I had moments of panic, tightness in my chest and massive headaches. Yet, somehow I was able to make it all come together. In some cases I had to turn in work that was not my best in order to complete everything. I suppose that is part of being a student, learning to prioritize. It was interesting for me to note how invested I became in my students progress. I was so concerned when my students were not doing well. I wanted to understand why. There were times I had to stop myself from prying too much into my students’ lives, because I just couldn’t understand why they weren’t completing their assignments or why they weren’t doing the easy things that could help raise their grades. In the end the desire to learn must come from the students. I can engage, I can push, I can try to interest them, but if there is no desire, they will not learn. I really liked my students. Some were a bit more challenging than others, but all in all, they were a great group. I couldn’t have asked for a better “starter” group for me. I have been signed on for another semester of teaching in addition to taking classes. I am currently on a three week break; decompressing all the bottled up stress and mourning the recent death of my aunt earlier this month. I can’t believe the amount of stress that I have bottled up over the semester. I have been plagued with body aches, and an inability to relax. This semester coming up, I will have to find a healthier way to handle the stress. I am looking at 2015 to be a good year. So that about wraps up my first year in Tampa. I already have some new things to adjust to this year, let’s hope that everything goes smoothly. For those of you who have gotten this far in the reading… thanks for your support :) Here’s to 2015!
Posted on: Sun, 21 Dec 2014 16:25:05 +0000
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