These are a few of my favorite things…

As I prepare for my departure from New Zealand and contemplate the last four months of life in Wellington, I find myself growing a bit sentimental. While I look forward to returning to family and friends in Ohio, there is a lot that I’ll miss from my time here….from the simple pleasures that have made Wellington a lovely home away from home to the important people and experiences that have made these last four months so memorable. 

Here are a few of my favorite things in New Zealand…

1.  Coffee:  The coffee culture in New Zealand is really quite special.  No matter where you go or what kind of coffee you order, you can be sure it will be an experience:  it tastes outstanding and looks almost too fancy to drink.  I always feel like a tourist taking pictures of the coffee I order in cafes, but I can’t help myself.  Each one looks like a piece of art.  Here are a few of my favorite photos.

   

2.  The lovely sounds of birds singing:  I have loved hearing the exotic bird sounds that we don’t have in Ohio, especially those of the tui.  Can you believe that this is simply a common sound in yards and sometimes even in the city?  Especially in neighborhood where you find pohutukawa trees.

3.  Living on Oriental Bay:  I have never once grown tired of looking out our two front windows onto Oriental Bay…even when it’s foggy or cloudy.  In fact, every single time I look out the window I feel like I’m looking at a postcard.  I’m easily distracted by the arrival of the huge container ships and the constant stream of ferries, and I’m baffled every time I see a little head of someone braving the freezing cold water pop up out of the bay.  I will definitely miss these simple distractions.

         

4.  Time:  Time has been a true gift these last four months.  Although my project kept me busy, I still had the time to relax, travel, explore new ideas, read poetry,  begin to learn a new language, and keep (or at least attempt to keep) a blog.

5.  Being able to walk to most places:  I won’t miss waiting for the bus nor those frustrating moments when the bus drives right on by me (even though I’m clearly waiting at the bus stop).  But I will miss being able to walk to the grocery store, movie theater, cafes, restaurants, park, and right across the street to the beach.

6.  Amazing colors of New Zealand:  I have seen some absolutely amazing nature here!  At times I thought I must have had my filter on my little iphone camera on, but these photos are in their original form.  I will never forget the colors of New Zealand.

Wai-O-Tapu

Wai-O-Tapu

Abel Tasman National Park

Wellington Botanical Garden

   7.  Friends:  Last but not least, I will especially miss my advisor Eric Yates and his wife Anne.  Eric has been an incredible mentor in helping me to develop a new understanding of Intercultural Competence.   But also he and Anne made sure I experienced Kiwi family life and the beautiful landscapes of the region.  I’ll also miss the language teachers at my placement school, who welcomed me as if I were a member of their department.  And of course, I’ll miss the students with whom I worked for 3 1/2 months. I look forward to continuing my collaboration with them after I return to Ohio and after they return to school for their new academic year.

These have been a few of my favorite things in New Zealand.

Summer holidays begin, but my learning continues

Monday, December 1.  As I look out the window of my Oriental Parade flat I notice an unfamiliar calm that seems to envelop this city.  Not one hint of wind.  The windows and doors aren’t rattling from the gusts, and I don’t hear the wind sweeping up the staircase of our building.  The water in the bay is almost motionless.  I notice that the few people walking along Oriental Parade are actually strolling instead of rushing from point A to point B to avoid being swept away by the chilling wind.

The water is absolutely still.

Could this mean the Wellington summer is near?

Summer holidays in New Zealand: I listened to the students’ chit-chat today as they entered the classroom.  “Today is the first day of summer!” I overheard many of them proclaim.  Today is December 1.  Just as June 1 marks the symbolic start to summer for American students and teachers, December 1 signifies a much needed break for NZ students and teachers is right around the corner.  Only three more days until summer holidays begin.

Runners take advantage of sunny and windless days on Oriental Parade.

For me, this week is significant for many reasons.  First of all, Samuel is arriving this week!  Secondly, it is the three-month mark for me in New Zealand. Unbelievable! It also means that I have just one more month to wrap up my work…the work which has been the focus of my life here.  One more month to enjoy the luxury of time –  time to learn, read, plan, write, and have rich conversations with new friends and fellow educators.

Most importantly, I will have the time to reflect on the progress of my Fulbright project in New Zealand. For the last three months I have been exploring  the question:  “how can language teachers best help their students develop their intercultural competence?”  A major part of my project has been looking at whether students’ intercultural competence develops when given the opportunity to interact and collaborate in meaningful and authentic ways with their peers from another culture .  The group of New Zealand students studying German at my placement school has been working with a group of German students from my home school.  They have been collaborating within an online classroom called Taking it Global (www.tigweb.org).

Students collaborate via the Taking it Global online classroom.

The focus of their collaboration and communications has been on youth culture.  Students have explored their own cultural identity as they created and shared presentations about themselves and the youth of the culture with which they identify.  They have communicated with each other via messaging, starting with questions about each others’ presentations and then taking the conversation in different, yet natural directions.  The students have taken photographs of objects or environments that represent Kiwi or American teen culture and have reacted to each others’ photographs.  They created and shared hilariously creative videos about school life and culture in their respective schools.  And, finally, they had the opportunity to meet each other “face to face” via skype.  Oh…and one very important detail….with the exception of some of the skype sessions, all of the communication and collaboration were conducted IN GERMAN.

Presenting on my project at Victoria University Wellington.

One of the goals that I set for myself was to be able to measure the growth in the students’ intercultural competence (with a focus on intercultural communicative competence) as a result of this project.  I will measure their growth using the data from the surveys they took and from the comments they made during the focus group sessions.  However, even without looking at the data, I can say that students have grown from this experience.  (I will write more at a later date on this.)

My own professional growth: I still have a pile of work facing me for the next month….and well, maybe for the next many months.  It is difficult to summarize what all I have learned since my arrival in New Zealand, but I also don’t need to finish my work of interpreting data in order to talk about my own growth.  My personal and professional development reaches far beyond the requirements set forth for the Fulbright DAT teachers as well as the goals that I set for myself.

One of the most incredible aspects of  the DAT program has been the rare opportunity to work with a group of students without all the “extra” responsibilities of a classroom teacher.  This has allowed me the time to explore new teaching techniques, carefully consider what I was observing in the students’ learning, and to reflect on how I can apply what I’ve learned when I return to the U.S.  Through this experience, I have been reminded of some of the most basic principles of teaching and learning that are often forgotten over the course of our days packed with lesson-planning, grading, meetings, developing materials, reading and writing email correspondences…. Here are the top three principles that have surfaced again and again in reflecting on my experiences:

Some of the best teaching and learning happens organically. Compared to New Zealand teachers, we American teachers want to be able to  organize, plan, and structure the students’ learning to the point that it can sometimes get in the way of students becoming more independent learners.  In my conversations with NZ educators and my classroom observations, I have been reminded of the importance of  flexibility as well as how powerful self-directed learning can be for students.

Never underestimate the impact of authentic learning opportunities. About six weeks into the project, I began to have my doubts about the effectiveness of our cross cultural collaboration.  But then one day I noticed that almost all of the students were experiencing a major “a-ha moment”.  Students were asking for less help in writing messages in the online classroom, but the questions they were asking were much more sophisticated than usual.  They were no longer worried about making mistakes and were taking risks.  Most importantly, they seemed to be having fun communicating with their new friends on the other side of the world.

I remember two students in particular, who had clearly stated at the start of our project that they did not feel confident in their language ability.  On this “a-ha day”, they were thrilled that they had received multiple messages from their new friends.  They immediately responded to the messages awaiting…not once questioning their language ability…engaging in real communication.  This was the turning point for them and many other students.  Not only did the communication become real and meaningful for them, they were also directing the conversations themselves.

Real growth takes time.  In an age when so much emphasis is placed on data collection and documenting student growth, it’s good to be reminded that growth is ongoing.  At one point during my project, I noticed that I was beginning to stress out about the students in my study developing their intercultural competence over the brief three month period.  Reflecting on this, I think my stress was due to being conditioned to think of growth in very defined periods with a beginning and end.  Intercultural communicative competence is something that develops over a long period of time and shouldn’t ever stop developing.

Taking the time to enjoy my learning:   I know these next four weeks will fly by, especially as the summer days grow sunnier and less windy.  I also know that I have some interesting work ahead of me, which will hopefully provide me with good feedback to attempt to answer the guiding question of my project. But I will definitely take the time to enjoy the last few weeks of New Zealand.

Taking the time to stop and smell the roses.

 

 

Up to this point, I have reflected on my amazing learning experiences in New Zealand, but in this post I’d like to share some thoughts I’ve had recently about my Global Language colleagues in Upper Arlington.

It’s 9:00 am on a Wednesday morning in Wellington, New Zealand.  I look at my laptop, which happens to still be set to Eastern Standard Time, and notice that it’s 3:00 pm on Tuesday in Upper Arlington.  3:00 pm…. five more minutes until the bell rings.  I wonder how things are going for my colleagues and students at Upper Arlington High School at the moment.  I remember…oh, today is Professional Development Day.  I wonder what the teachers are up to right now.

10:00 am rolls around and I’m still sitting at the dining room table, enjoying a nice cup of coffee.  Today is an exam day at my placement school, which means I can stay at home and catch up on reading, transcribing, interpreting data, pondering intercultural competence.

Suddenly, my phone lights up and I see a what’s app message from my Upper Arlington Global Language colleague and dear friend, “wanna Skype in 15 minutes?”.  “Ok”.  I continue to work as I wait for the call, but then I realize, “oh, I’m still in my sweats and my hair is sticking up all over the place!”  I have to look half-way decent if I’m going to skype, so I run to change.  But then I get another what’s app message from another Global Language colleague and friend, “where are you? Why aren’t you picking up?”.  Oh no, now two people are going to see how frightful I look!

I see my Skype window light up and click on the green accept button.  There they are:  two smiling faces!  And suddenly, it really doesn’t matter that my colleagues get to see how I look when I wake up in the morning.  We talk about everything that’s happening in school.  I’m eager to tell them all about my project in New Zealand, and they attentively listen to all the details.  Then another GL colleague and friend walks in to join our conversation, and it feels like I’m sitting there in Room 246  along with them.

Our conversation turns deep, as it often does.  We start talking about standards, curriculum, and assessment.  Then we dive into an even deeper topic: Modes of Communication versus Communication Skills. Why?  Because we have to?  No, simply because that’s what UA Global Language teachers like to talk about at 5:00pm, when we really should be heading home.  Seriously?  Seriously.

During my time in Wellington, where I’m participating in the Fulbright DAT program, I have gained a new appreciation for the Upper Arlington Global Language Department and its teachers (whom I also feel privileged to be able to call friends).  I always was aware that they are a very special bunch, but sometimes it takes traveling thousands of miles to another country to realize just how special the people in your life are.

Let me start with the daily communication that I receive from my colleagues.  I love their regular quick messages to me:  “Hey, hope you have a nice day today.”, “Just wanted you to know we just finished our meeting and made a lot of progress!”, “I miss you!  Come back!”, “Please don’t stay there!”.  These may be short messages, but they mean so much to me.

The eighteen hour time difference does make it hard to have “conversations”.  But occasionally, I get a message from colleagues who are waking up at some godforsaken hour, as I am winding down for the evening:  “hey, saw that you’re awake, how’s everything going?”.  Then we have time to chat for a bit.  And they indulge me by reading my long text reports about anything from the Wellington Wind to my school visits.

I always knew that Upper Arlington Global Language teachers were some of the most dedicated educators I’ve ever met, but receiving their updates on their semester has reminded me just how dedicated they are.  These teachers work tirelessly to ensure that their students receive the best language learning experience that they can deliver.  They are constantly looking for meaningful materials and new methods for engaging their students in language learning.  They look for ways to draw students in and give them access to other cultures, even if the students can’t travel to far-away places right now.  They are student-focused, and they give so much of their own time to meet the needs of all students.  For my colleagues, teaching is never just a job.  It is their passion!

UA Global Language teachers are not only knowledgeable about their content, but they are also constantly refining their practice.  They are experts in the field of language education, carrying on the tradition of excellence that our mentors established for us with our language proficiency program over twenty years ago.  Simply stated:  these teachers know what’s going on.

And I may not forget…if it weren’t for my colleagues’ support, I wouldn’t be in New Zealand today.  A little more than a year ago is when I first decided to apply for the DAT program.  I brought it up to two colleague friends as we graded papers over lunch  They encouraged me to apply.  Over the weeks that followed, they patiently listened to me think aloud about dream projects I wanted to propose in the application and reeled me back in whenever my ideas became “a little too creative” (without ever laughing at me).

Some special acknowledgements:   Richard D. and Karen R. for volunteering to assume my duties as District Department Chair.  By making this sacrifice, they have allowed me to put my “mother hen” tendencies aside in order to truly enjoy and benefit from this incredible learning experience!   Emily A. for so graciously agreeing to have her students collaborate with the Wellington students.  She has been amazingly patient with the technology glitches and the time difference issues so that we can provide both groups of students with an authentic opportunity to build their intercultural competence .  Kristy W. for always answering my SOS messages containing special requests for pictures for my blog.  Martha v.H. for taking such great care of my students.  And all the GL teachers at Jones, Hastings, and the high school for all your support.

It is now almost a week later….12:00 am Tuesday morning and time for me to go to bed, as UA is waking up and preparing for another week of teaching and learning.  Have a fantastic week, everyone!   I miss you all.

 

My own personal journey in understanding Intercultural Competence

This blog post is dedicated to my 2013-2014 AP German students, who have taught me the importance of having a good sense of humor.

A few years ago, one of my students asked me how to use a certain German particle that shows up in conversation all the time…it was something like doch or mal.  For readers who don’t know German: there are so many different uses of these two little words.  Sometimes it’s hard to find a good definition for them, as it depends on what you want to express.  For example, you can use doch to disagree with someone’s negative statement or to emphasize an idea, and you can use mal to add a touch of politeness to a statement or request.

Some of my amazing AP German students and myself right before they departed for university and I departed for NZ

I tried to provide my student with a clear, thoughtful explanation, but I could tell by the puzzled look on his face that I was not succeeding.  So, I said, “well, it’s one of those things that you will learn when you go to Germany.”

Based on my prior language learning experience, I know that there are many confusing aspects of the language that become clear as soon as you are immersed in the culture and start interacting with people.  Plus, I always want to send the message to my students that their learning doesn’t end the day they leave my classroom as high school students.

The student (along with all the other students in the class) thought my answer was hilarious. I never lived down my response.  In fact, they managed to remind me of my “funny” response just about every other week for the next three years.  I’m pretty sure this statement made it to the growing list they were compiling called “The funny things that Frau (Fellinger) says”.

These students also wrote down my “funny” quotes on dry erase boards and lined them up above the chalk board…many times I didn’t understand the humor, but at least they made the students laugh.

Relating to My Students:  I have thought back to this interaction many times in the last two months as I make my journey through understanding a culture that is so new to me.  Not just because I miss my students while I’m in New Zealand, but also because I am able to relate to their language learning frustrations.  I am not faced with the challenge of negotiating my way through a non-English speaking culture, but I have experienced some interesting linguistic challenges.  There is no way that I could truly internalize and begin to use certain Kiwi expressions before living here, but learning them in context makes all the difference.  Some examples:  “I’m keen to…”, “full on…”, “that’s alright” instead of  “you’re welcome”, “protocol” instead of “etiquette”, “revise” instead of “review”, or my new favorite, “that’s really flash”….

The same goes for using certain Māori words and phrases for the appropriate occasion.  Possibly, I could have learned these words and phrases necessary to understand and participate in a pōwhiri (welcoming ceremony).  But would I have felt comfortable using them?  No, definitely not.  Not until I had been through the experience myself.  I was told before departing for New Zealand that I would have to learn to sing a waiata if invited to a pōwhiri, but before living here for a few weeks I couldn’t grasp the importance of this gesture.

These may seem like little details.  And some people may argue that I could survive in New Zealand without knowing them.  However, I would say that these are important details.  The more we interact with people, the more necessary it becomes to understand the nuances of language…. to avoid misunderstandings, to express politeness, to demonstrate respect, to send a heartfelt message…. And to gain a deeper understanding of the culture.

My Journey as Language Learner:  I believe – or at least I hope – I have always had empathy for my students as language learners, because learning German did not come easy to me.  I had to work really, really hard at it.  And now I find myself in their shoes again as I try really, really hard to learn Te Reo Māori in a weekly evening class.

Two weeks ago I started my language journey.  The class is offered every Wednesday – free of charge – to anyone who is interested in learning the language.  It’s a thirty-minute commute to the Marae in which it takes place, but it’s worth it.  Each class begins with about 15 minutes of speeches, prayers, and singing in Māori.  I admit, during the first class, I felt a sense of panic come over me, afraid that I wouldn’t be coordinated enough to sing in a language that was completely new AND make the right movements at the same time!  How could I read the lyrics with my limited knowlege of Māori pronunciation AND copy the movements of the person in front of me? But I realized the only way I would learn is by doing, and ultimately you can’t separate the language from the culture!  And besides, as soon as we sat down with our learner group, the teacher for Beginners put me at ease with her gentle spirit, patience, and kindness.

Cuisenaire Rods (or rakau) for the Ataarangi Method (or also known as Silent Method). This method has been used to teach Te Reo Maori to adults for the past 30 years in New Zealand .

The language program uses the Ataarangi Method, which was introduced to New Zealand by Katerina Mataira over thirty years ago.  I feel like a child again as I count the rakau (or rods) on the table and tell the teacher and fellow students the color of the rakau. I have now progressed to being able to say how many of the brown (or red, or white…) rakau are on the table.   It’s a truly humbling experience, but at the same time it’s exciting and fascinating to be placed in the role of the language learner again.  By the time I leave New Zealand, I realize, I still won’t be able to ask where the bathroom is or how to get to the bus stop in Te Reo Māori.  However, I hopefully will be able to pronounce words or names that are used in every-day interactions more accurately.  This is a sign of respect.

(Watch this cool Marae TVNZ video if you’re interested in learning the amazing success story of how the Ataarangi Method has helped to revitalize Te Reo Māori in New Zealand.)

panels created by graduate students in Kura 301 (Understanding Māori Values and Culture).  This is a course at Vic University, which all teachers in training are required to take.

My Journey as Teacher:  I realize that the experiences along my journey as language learner are key to developing my practice in helping students to develop their intercultural* competence.  They have reminded me what it’s like to be the learner.  It can be terrifying.  It can be embarrassing.  It can be confusing.  I’ve certainly made some mistakes along the way.  But it can also be exciting, rewarding, and fun.  And it is a key to gaining new perspectives and insights into the culture.

These experiences have also reinforced some of the principles that I have always seen as key in language teaching and learning.  First, and in my opinion most importantly, we can’t separate the language and the culture.  Students will not learn from memorizing a long list of vocabulary words.  They have to learn the language in a meaningful context.  The best case scenario would be, of course, if every learner could be immersed in the target culture for an extended period of time.  But the reality is that this opportunity is not always possible or available to all learners.  Therefore, it is the responsibility of teachers to provide that context for their students (by simulating situations from the target culture, using authentic materials, providing access to the target culture through online partnerships with students in other countries, etc.).

The second principle is that students need to play an active role in their learning.  One way to do this is to encourage students to explore the answers to their own questions.  I believe we teachers put a lot of pressure on ourselves to know and understand everything, especially language teachers.  Teaching language requires language proficiency, but it doesn’t require us to know every single word in the dictionary (despite what our students might believe about us having super-human language abilities).  In the university courses that I visited at the beginning of my program here, I noticed a recurring question: “who has access to knowledge in the classroom?”.  I have reflected on this question as it relates to the language classroom.  In a classroom in which students are learning the language in context, they should be encouraged to seek the knowledge and to make discoveries through deeper learning opportunities.  In order to develop intercultural competence, they will need to know how to think critically and problem solve.

So, I think back to my story at the beginning of the post.   I wonder why my students found it so funny when I said, “it’s one of those things that you will learn when you go to Germany”.  I could chalk it up to silly teenage humor.  But now I think maybe it was because they aren’t used to teachers admitting they don’t possess the magical key to knowledge.

My stay in New Zealand is half-way over, but I know that my journey in developing my own intercultural competence and helping my students to develop theirs is constantly evolving.  I look forward to finding out where this journey will take me during the second half of my stay.

* To reflect the research and practices in New Zealand language education, I am now using the terminology “intercultural competence” in place of “global competence”.

 

Miss, do they have Fish and Chips in the US?

“Miss, do they have fish and chips in the US?”  To many this may not seem like a very exciting question.  But to me it was a fantastically exciting one.  One of the young people that I have been working with here in NZ posed this question to me the other day, and for me it carried a much deeper meaning than one might think.

Before I explain, let me backtrack a bit…

In my first four weeks in New Zealand I have had the strange feeling that every time I enter a conversation with someone or visit my educational policy class, the theme of identity keeps resurfacing – in one form or another.

Here are a few examples…

On my first visit to my new “home” at the university, I had the pleasure of meeting one of the instructors of a course that I will start visiting next week called “Matauranga Māori in Education” (Matauranga = understanding or knowledge).  Something that she talked about really resonated with me:  the importance of helping Māori children to understand who they are and where they come from.  A few days later Jessie and I hosted a birthday party for our new friend Sarah.  At our party I met many nice, young Kiwis, but one guest in particular, Nathan, has left such a lasting impression.  Only after a few minutes of introducing himself Nathan told me proudly about his Māori heritage.  And by the end of the night he was singing beautiful traditional Māori songs for us.  The deep emotion with which he sang told me that being Māori is a major part of his identity.  Last week one of Jessie’s new colleagues and friends was kind enough to take us out for a drive around Wellington and the surrounding areas.  At each stop he told us wonderful stories of the Māori leaders of the past and their strength and will to survive.  These stories have been passed down from generation to generation and clearly play an important role in helping young people understand where they come from.

Totem poles like this one in the Whitireia park reserve in Titahi Bay were used to communicate stories before te reo Māori was a written language.

My exposure to the topic of identity has not been limited to Māori identity, however.  In my readings about intercultural competence and conversations with people interested in my project topic the issue of identity and understanding oneself always comes up.  In my many enjoyable afternoon conversations with my advisor Eric Yates, Eric has reminded me what happens when students learn another language in a setting in which there is a dynamic relationship between language and culture (i.e. learning about another culture in the language).  Not only do students learn to communicate and learn about the culture and values of another group of people, but they also develop a better understanding of themselves and their own culture. (for those of you interested in reading more about the concept of interculturality, I highly recommend reading the summary of the Newton Report written by Johnathon Newton, Eric Yates, Sandra Sheam, and Werner Nowitzki.  It is a document used to introduce language teachers in New Zealand to the concept of intercultural communicative language teaching and learning).

All of these experiences and conversations have led me to place the concept of identity into the context of my project here. In thinking about what young people today will need to succeed in a global community,  I am convinced that a stronger sense of who they are and where they come from will benefit them.  When students are exposed to the values, customs, and perspectives of another culture they hopefully will begin to start questioning their own.  They might realize that somethings they have taken for granted their whole lives are not the same in other parts of the world.  Hopefully, the end result is more tolerance for others and ultimately will make them more effective communicators and collaborators.

Theoretically, it all sounds so easy.  But asking students to dig deeper below the surface of what they like to eat and what they like to do in their free time is quite a challenge.  American teenagers often tie their identity to their favorite sports team or their favorite music group.  Or when asked about their heritage, they say “I’m 1/4 German and 3/4 Irish.”  But do they know the stories of what their ancestors went through to survive in the US?  And more importantly, do all young people feel comfortable talking about their identity if it isn’t one that is seen as part of the mainstream?

Now allow me to fast forward to:  “Miss, do they have fish and chips in the USA?”

The young man who asked me this question was working on a presentation in German about himself, which he would send to my students in the US.  He wanted to write about his favorite food – fish and chips.  This simple question showed me that he was starting to dig below the surface and think on a deeper level about the values and customs of his own country.  He was beginning to understand that one cannot assume that values and customs are universal.

The reality is that in ten years many of our students will find themselves in situations in which they will need to know how to communicate and collaborate with people from other countries – whether that be in their native language or another language.  So why not give them opportunities now to engage in meaningful conversations with their peers in other countries?  They not only will gain a better understanding of another culture but also of themselves.

Feeling at home in school

It’s only been two weeks since I arrived in Wellington, but I feel like I’ve been here about two months.  Many people have gone out of their way to help me feel at home here.  Their kindness, openness, and hospitality are truly touching.

But it is not just the Kiwis and the American Fulbrighters who have been here a while longer who have helped me to make this transition.  It is also being connected to a school that has helped me to quickly feel grounded in my new home.

This experience has helped me to realize how much of my identity is tied to working with young people.  As soon as I stepped foot into a German class here in New Zealand, I felt a huge sense of being at home.  This is what I know!  This is what I love!

Most high schools here are designed in this way – several one or two-story buildings

I am truly grateful to my advisor Eric Yates for organizing my placement and helping me to get started on my project already my first week here.  He was able to place me in a school with a strong German program and an enthusiastic German teacher, who has been so accepting of my project proposal and eager to work with me from the start.  I think we are on a path to something really great for our students (the students in this class and Emily Alaudini’s IM students at UAHS).  I have to admit….I think I caught myself leaving school yesterday with a little spring in my step…pretty amazing for a Friday!

The school is situated up in the rolling green hills across the bay from my apartment.  One thing you need to know about the school is that the view from just about any building on campus is AMAZING!  But I believe that the view from the classroom which I’ll be visiting must be the most beautiful!  There is an entire wall of windows from one side of the room to the other, and the windows open so that you are breathing in the crisp, clean, fresh air while you teach and learn (the air here reminds me a bit of the air at Machu Picchu…really indescribable).  No matter what the weather is like….Wellington fog or blue skies with fluffy white clouds….I find myself staring out the windows, simply in awe of the green space that surrounds me.  I have thought a lot lately about the huge impact our physical space has on both teachers and students, on our teaching and our learning.

Who wouldn’t love to teach and learn in a room with a view like this?

Although I will be visiting and working with the students here at least twice a week, I won’t be able to begin the research part of my project for another few weeks.  So, my first goal has been to get to know the students and give them time to get to know me and to feel comfortable with having a new person in their classroom.

From the first day I visited the students I could tell they are sweet, polite, inquisitive, and funny…amazing how similar teenagers can be across cultures!  By the way, I love the way they address me as “miss”.  (I know they address all female teachers in this way, but it makes me feel young again.  🙂 ) And I love the questions that some of the students asked me:  Is the popular boy always a football captain and the popular girl a cheerleader?  Do you prefer Walmart or Target?  Can you explain the difference between the Republicans and Democrats?  Do students get bullied in schools?  What happens to students when they get in trouble? Why do you start the school year in August?

Really great questions!  They reveal a lot about teenagers in New Zealand.  From what I can tell they are informed about our popular culture but also about our politics and are very keen to find out what life is really like in a country that most have only seen on TV or in the movies.  It’s interesting to see how American youth culture is  perceived by another culture.  But mostly, I just really appreciate the inquisitive nature of these students.  They weren’t embarrassed or bashful about asking their questions (in fact we didn’t have enough time for them to ask all their questions…to be continued).

During the lunch hour yesterday my partner teacher had “lunch duty”, which means walking around the grounds to check on students.  I love the concept of the lunch break here:  students have an entire hour to spend how they please (which seems to be standard in most schools in NZ).  On our “rounds” of campus I saw the boys basketball team practicing on their own (without a coach!), three girls practicing their dance routine in the dance room, a girl in the music room playing violin, students outside playing net ball, students quietly reading in the library, students working on computers, a group of girls sitting outside quietly chatting and enjoying the warm sun, a group of boys sitting in one of the corridors having quiet fun talking about something obviously fun or funny…..

Do you see a theme here?  Quiet and independent engagement.  Everyone looked happy.  Everyone looked relaxed.  It was peaceful.  And there was just such a positive vibe.   And….get this…students were pretty much unsupervised!

 

The idea that students have an entire hour to actually take a break from the school day and relax by engaging in their activity of choice really shouldn’t seem so revolutionary to a teacher!  We all know that young people need down-time during the school day to remain physically, emotionally, and intellectually fit.  Yet we so often fail to remind students to use that time to refuel.  I asked whether there are ever any conflicts that occur when students are in these unsupervised situations.  Hardly ever, my partner teacher replied.  This has really caused me to reflect on the importance of giving students the space and time to make smart choices during the school day so they are ready for life after high school and so that they grow to be healthy and happy adults.

These are just a few of my initial observations and reflections about this exciting part of my journey.

Next week I will begin the first stage of the project with the students:  Understanding Yourself.  More to come on that topic in the next post.

I would just like to end this post with a photo, which relates to the communication part of my project:

Right on!  This is one of many signs hanging outside the world language classrooms.

Wellington…a great place for a language geek like myself

I love languages!  I love hearing different languages spoken.  I love learning new languages.  I love learning the latest slang from my students.  I love teaching language.  

Before leaving for New Zealand, I heard this question over and over:  “Why New Zealand?”.  Why would I choose to travel to New Zealand to study Teaching for Global Competency in the World Language Classroom if the primary native language is English? My standard simplified answer has been:  to investigate how another English-speaking country teaches for global competency in the world language classroom.  

Most people look at me with a blank stare and reply, “sounds like a great opportunity!”  And I agree whole-heartedly.  

My longer explanation for people who are willing to listen would be….World language teachers in countries where English is the primary language of communication share a common frustration: the under-appreciation for becoming proficient in a language besides one’s own.  English-speakers often believe they will be able to communicate in English in every part of the world.  So how can we as teachers overcome that frustration and make language learning meaningful for our students so that they WANT to communicate in other languages?  But at the same time how can we utilize the classroom as a place to help students develop other global competencies besides communication such as collaborating with and interacting in culturally appropriate ways with members of other cultures?   

After three days in New Zealand, I have discovered that Wellington is really a perfect place for me to study this topic.  Among the many reasons, here are the top three:

Reason #1:  I am re-learning what it means to learn language in context.   

My first interaction with a Kiwi was with the kind customs official.  He noticed my visa stated that I am here on a Fulbright program.  His first words to me were:  “So you’re on a Fulbright, are you? Good on you!”  After traveling for 30-some hours, I tried to quickly process what he was saying.  He repeated, “good on you!”.  I suddenly realized he was giving me a compliment (as in American English “good for you.”) and thanked him.  (by the way, what a nice welcome!)

I Iove these little language details!  Yes, I admit it, I am a major language geek!  

But also this first cultural interaction reminded me that you can’t learn another language in isolation.  Even learning New Zealand English as an American English speaker.  I probably wouldn’t have known what that sentence “good on you” meant without the cultural context.  

Reason #2:  I am surrounded by different languages.  

Wellington seems to be a city with international flair.  I walk down the street, and I hear many different languages. As I walked through the Sunday Harbourside Market, I heard French, Chinese, Spanish, German, Russian, Arabic, and many other languages that I couldn’t identify.    

Reason #3:  Wellington is just so beautiful!

Ok, so this reason doesn’t relate directly to my topic.  However, studying in such a lovely environment makes a real difference in one’s learning growth.  What a rare opportunity to have the time to learn, reflect, and work in a context such as this!  These pictures will give you an idea of what I’m talking about:

The view from our dining room table/desk. What an amazing space for reading, thinking, reflecting, writing….

A five-minute walk from the apartment

 

The view from Mount Victoria Lookout

Great walking/hiking paths in Wellington

The Harbourside Market (where you can hear many different languages and find food stands with dishes from all over the world)

   

    No one in New Zealand has asked me why I would choose to study this topic in New Zealand.  But if anyone does ask me, after three days of being here, I’m tempted to reply simply:  “I can’t think of a better place”.  

Fulbright DAT Orientation in Washington, DC

Orientation for participants in Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching.  What an amazing group of educators!  US teachers will be traveling to Chile, Finland, India, Israel, Mexico,  New Zealand, Palestinian Territories, Singapore, South Korea, United Kingdom.  Visiting teachers from Finland, India, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore will spend their four months in Bloomington, IN.

pictured here is the US/New Zealand group

My story (in a nutshell)

For those of you who know me, welcome to my blog where I will share with you –  my family, friends, colleagues, and fellow teaching professionals – my adventures  in New Zealand, as I search for the answer to an important question:

How can we better utilize the Global Language classroom in an effort to teach for global competency?

If you don’t know me and/or want to know more about my professional background, please read on…

My story (the longer version)

Hallo!  My name is Tricia Fellinger, and I’m an American teacher of German.  I teach at Upper Arlington High School in Ohio.  

Besides teaching my students to communicate in German, I hope to inspire them to explore a world beyond their immediate surroundings…whether that be a German-speaking country or not.  As globalization constantly opens up new opportunities, I firmly believe it is the responsibility of educators today to prepare students for a world in which they will be communicating, interacting, collaborating with people beyond the US borders.

In my search for best practices in teaching for global competency, I will spend four months in Wellington, New Zealand – thanks to the Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching Program.  There  I am excited to work with Mr. Eric Yates in the Education Faculty at the Victoria University and with German classrooms in a secondary school.  I am excited about this incredible opportunity and thank everyone at IIE/ Fulbright DAT (especially Holly and Becky) and Fulbright NZ (especially Stefanie) for making it happen!