My name is Brittany R. Something interesting about me would be that I’m 17 years old. I really love to read and write. My favorite thing to do is write down my dreams and try to make stories out of them.
I am a Secondary English Education major. I chose this major because it’s really been something I’ve always wanted to do. I remember as a child thinking about what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I would look at that teacher sitting behind that desk and think, “I want to be in that position for once instead of just on the receiving end.” However, in the past I have been a little indecisive about what career field to go into because I was always brainwashed with people telling me that “teaching is a horrible job! Try something that will make you money!” I tried looking in other fields, but one day I realized that my future could not be controlled by stereotypes or what other people tell me is right or wrong. I control my future, so I decided to just go with my gut!
My family has been very supportive of my decision. My friends are also excited for me, saying that they think I’ll be a great teacher. I have been told by many that I seem like an English teacher, and I like to think that’s a good sign!
I think in the U.S. perspectives on literacy and literature are changing, but I think they are changing for the worse. In my limited experience, the people I have spoken to about literature think that it isn’t relevant in today’s world. The “shiny-object” mentality, so named by my mom because she gets distracted very easily, keeps some people from focusing on books long enough to be interested. This results in the all-too familiar "books are boring." My opinion is that these people just need to find books that interests them.
Once I graduate, I plan to continue my education in graduate school until I have my Master’s. From there, I hope to be able to teach overseas on military bases to broaden my cultural horizons. One day I hope to become a fiction novelist.
Expertise in English is definitely useful in the workplace in America because even simple emails to one’s boss have to be free of spelling and grammatical errors. Knowledge in proper English not only is an impressive asset but a tool of sophistication. Also, in presentations, one must be able to give efficient summaries or hard copies of the material covered for the group being presented to. If the format is inconsistent or the information presented in too casual a fashion, this reflects negatively on the employee who wrote it.
Hello Brittany,
ReplyDeletegreetings from Slovakia. My name is Jan. I am studying English language and literature and Slovak language and literature at the Comenius university in Bratislava.
To be a teacher is not a very lucrative job here too. But it is nice when there are people like you, who would like to be teachers.
But what is interesting me is that idea you have outlined. That nowadays people do not read because they can not focus. They can be disrupted very easily and so they are unable to "get" into something as reading is. Because "to read" is a really demanding process. I think that reading requires a lot of mental capacity. And especially when we are talking about children. How to show them that those black letters on white paper are as colorful as computer games and TV?