Grab your Degree And Go!
I have a blog on it's way, but in the mean time, read this article below. It was published in LSU's Legacy Magazine and sent to me recently by a friend. I'm already trying to track down the fellow tiger here (that would make FIVE of us! If anyone tries to say it isn't a small world, they just don't know!) And for the record, I did fine in French 4... but when I wanted to register for my test, they wouldn't take American Express... or any other foreign card! ;o)
Grab Your Degree And Go
http://www.lsulegacymag.com/issues/april2006/story7.html
You are an American college graduate. You don't know what you want in life. Don't worry. You aren't alone. Do you have some sort of teaching experience? Then the rest of the world probably wants you.
In fact, you are wanted in dozens of countries to teach their masses English, "the new world language." Your tongue can be a piece of gold if you use it right, and many graduating seniors and LSU alumni have decided to go abroad to teach English as a second language (ESL).
French major Breton Boudreaux stands in her kitchen skillfully preparing vegetarian quiche. An upcoming May graduate, she spent last year in Paris on an exchange program with LSU Academic Programs Abroad. Before leaving she applied for and received a teaching opportunity through the French Embassy. Within the first few months of arrival, she was a bona fide English teacher for 8 to 11 year-olds, conducting classes 12 hours a week for seven months.
The kids, she says, were wonderful. She relished in their learning. The program had perks-she spoke only English and had eight weeks of paid vacation in addition to free health care. There were some notable disadvantages to the job, though.
"There's only one Minister of Education, therefore one program for the whole country," she says, which is a drawback because the teachers are all paid equally although prices are higher in big cities. France's notable tax rate also took a toll on what she thought she'd receive: her 1,000 Euro a month paycheck dwindled to 750 after withheld taxes. She sighs and summarizes: "It was unorganized, as is everything in France."
But Boudreaux is reapplying to the same program. Like many ESL teachers she's not doing it for the money, but for the experience. She'll share an apartment with a friend who already lives in Paris, and to supplement her income she'll have to find a second job. She's currently saving and looking at opportunities for brief summer jobs in France before the program begins again.
"I like France. I don't love it. And I certainly don't love Paris." She stops and peeks into a pot of cooking spinach. "I want to go back because it's probably the best thing I've done," she says, replacing the lid, "ever."
Mike Lilly, an LSU alumnus, has also taken his English skills to foreign countries. Lilly graduated in August 2003 with a degree in anthropology and a minor in Spanish. He'd been on the LSU in Xalapa summer program in Xalapa, Mexico, and the city took his imagination by storm.
"I was a skateboarder, so I hung out with skateboarders (over there) a lot," he says, and made friends with the locals. Upon graduation, he became a substitute teacher at Lusher Elementary in New Orleans.
His substitution lead to a permanent position for the remainder of the year after the teacher fell ill. That experience was "rewarding but really hard," and gave him some preliminary experience with teaching. It depleted him, though, and he wanted something fresh. He decided to go back to Xalapa.
"I loved the city and wanted to become fluent in Spanish after I graduated, and I wanted to move to Mexico anyway," he says. Without any concrete plans he flew to Xalapa and moved in with his skater friend, who later helped him find a job at the private, Toronto-based KIOSK International school of English. There he taught students both the underpinnings and intricacies of English.
Each of his classes lasted one hour and he taught four to six classes a day. Although Lilly taught at all proficiency levels, the majority of his classes were for advanced students. To rake in more money on the side, Lilly offered private tutoring independent of the language school.
"We were teaching mainly for the TOEFL," he says. Passing the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) is a requirement for foreign students applying to universities where English is the primary language in use. Companies also use it as a measure of English proficiency of prospective employees for whom English isn't their native language.
And English as your native language is the primary requirement to get you through as a teacher, Lilly says. Although Lilly had a working knowledge of Spanish, he says prior ability is unnecessary.
"They only require an undergrad degree, that English is your mother language and some teaching experience," he says. "I have no regrets. I'd recommend it to everyone. You just have to be open-minded, be aware it's a different culture."
Mexico is one of the closest foreign cultures Americans have, but some search for or create opportunities in cultures continents away. Tanya Rawal-Jindia, a senior graduating in English literature, is putting her LSU educational future on hold to teach abroad.
Together with her grandfather, a former student and school official in Chandigarh, India, Rawal-Jindia formulated an idea to teach at MCM DAV College for Women. She plans on a future as an English literature professor, so instead of just being an ESL teacher, she's teaching an English literature class once a week in addition to assisting a professor there. She won't be compensated for it, but that's not the point, she insists.
"I am really looking at the whole situation as a volunteer. Just my being there and in the women's college will all be beneficial to me," she says. She understands the area languages, Hindi and Punjabi, and plans to conduct one-on-one research with students for a project paper she wants to turn into a book.
Rawal-Jindia's case is a particular one as most graduates looking to teach will search for and find prospective ESL jobs through myriad Web sites. LSU alumna Melissa Calvert found her job via www.daveseslcafe.com, a posting area for ESL teaching opportunities. Armed with a bachelor of fine arts but unsure of the right post-undergraduate path, she began looking at teaching opportunities. She found a deal in Seoul, South Korea, where she's presently teaching English. Like Lilly, she didn't start looking for a job until arriving in the country. Though she's only beginning to understand Korean, the language barrier is spottily problematic.
"You can get around the city and do most any thing while speaking English," she says. Her pay of roughly $2,000 per month goes toward savings, debts and traveling.
"This is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I now have mountains, snow, subways, tons of people I can't understand and I can't leave out the heated floors," she says. "That is a wonderful thing. Warm water is pumped through the floors so they are always warm on cold mornings."
So keep your feet warm and don't fret about French 4. English is as widely accepted as American Express.
Grab Your Degree And Go
http://www.lsulegacymag.com/issues/april2006/story7.html
You are an American college graduate. You don't know what you want in life. Don't worry. You aren't alone. Do you have some sort of teaching experience? Then the rest of the world probably wants you.
In fact, you are wanted in dozens of countries to teach their masses English, "the new world language." Your tongue can be a piece of gold if you use it right, and many graduating seniors and LSU alumni have decided to go abroad to teach English as a second language (ESL).
French major Breton Boudreaux stands in her kitchen skillfully preparing vegetarian quiche. An upcoming May graduate, she spent last year in Paris on an exchange program with LSU Academic Programs Abroad. Before leaving she applied for and received a teaching opportunity through the French Embassy. Within the first few months of arrival, she was a bona fide English teacher for 8 to 11 year-olds, conducting classes 12 hours a week for seven months.
The kids, she says, were wonderful. She relished in their learning. The program had perks-she spoke only English and had eight weeks of paid vacation in addition to free health care. There were some notable disadvantages to the job, though.
"There's only one Minister of Education, therefore one program for the whole country," she says, which is a drawback because the teachers are all paid equally although prices are higher in big cities. France's notable tax rate also took a toll on what she thought she'd receive: her 1,000 Euro a month paycheck dwindled to 750 after withheld taxes. She sighs and summarizes: "It was unorganized, as is everything in France."
But Boudreaux is reapplying to the same program. Like many ESL teachers she's not doing it for the money, but for the experience. She'll share an apartment with a friend who already lives in Paris, and to supplement her income she'll have to find a second job. She's currently saving and looking at opportunities for brief summer jobs in France before the program begins again.
"I like France. I don't love it. And I certainly don't love Paris." She stops and peeks into a pot of cooking spinach. "I want to go back because it's probably the best thing I've done," she says, replacing the lid, "ever."
Mike Lilly, an LSU alumnus, has also taken his English skills to foreign countries. Lilly graduated in August 2003 with a degree in anthropology and a minor in Spanish. He'd been on the LSU in Xalapa summer program in Xalapa, Mexico, and the city took his imagination by storm.
"I was a skateboarder, so I hung out with skateboarders (over there) a lot," he says, and made friends with the locals. Upon graduation, he became a substitute teacher at Lusher Elementary in New Orleans.
His substitution lead to a permanent position for the remainder of the year after the teacher fell ill. That experience was "rewarding but really hard," and gave him some preliminary experience with teaching. It depleted him, though, and he wanted something fresh. He decided to go back to Xalapa.
"I loved the city and wanted to become fluent in Spanish after I graduated, and I wanted to move to Mexico anyway," he says. Without any concrete plans he flew to Xalapa and moved in with his skater friend, who later helped him find a job at the private, Toronto-based KIOSK International school of English. There he taught students both the underpinnings and intricacies of English.
Each of his classes lasted one hour and he taught four to six classes a day. Although Lilly taught at all proficiency levels, the majority of his classes were for advanced students. To rake in more money on the side, Lilly offered private tutoring independent of the language school.
"We were teaching mainly for the TOEFL," he says. Passing the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) is a requirement for foreign students applying to universities where English is the primary language in use. Companies also use it as a measure of English proficiency of prospective employees for whom English isn't their native language.
And English as your native language is the primary requirement to get you through as a teacher, Lilly says. Although Lilly had a working knowledge of Spanish, he says prior ability is unnecessary.
"They only require an undergrad degree, that English is your mother language and some teaching experience," he says. "I have no regrets. I'd recommend it to everyone. You just have to be open-minded, be aware it's a different culture."
Mexico is one of the closest foreign cultures Americans have, but some search for or create opportunities in cultures continents away. Tanya Rawal-Jindia, a senior graduating in English literature, is putting her LSU educational future on hold to teach abroad.
Together with her grandfather, a former student and school official in Chandigarh, India, Rawal-Jindia formulated an idea to teach at MCM DAV College for Women. She plans on a future as an English literature professor, so instead of just being an ESL teacher, she's teaching an English literature class once a week in addition to assisting a professor there. She won't be compensated for it, but that's not the point, she insists.
"I am really looking at the whole situation as a volunteer. Just my being there and in the women's college will all be beneficial to me," she says. She understands the area languages, Hindi and Punjabi, and plans to conduct one-on-one research with students for a project paper she wants to turn into a book.
Rawal-Jindia's case is a particular one as most graduates looking to teach will search for and find prospective ESL jobs through myriad Web sites. LSU alumna Melissa Calvert found her job via www.daveseslcafe.com, a posting area for ESL teaching opportunities. Armed with a bachelor of fine arts but unsure of the right post-undergraduate path, she began looking at teaching opportunities. She found a deal in Seoul, South Korea, where she's presently teaching English. Like Lilly, she didn't start looking for a job until arriving in the country. Though she's only beginning to understand Korean, the language barrier is spottily problematic.
"You can get around the city and do most any thing while speaking English," she says. Her pay of roughly $2,000 per month goes toward savings, debts and traveling.
"This is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I now have mountains, snow, subways, tons of people I can't understand and I can't leave out the heated floors," she says. "That is a wonderful thing. Warm water is pumped through the floors so they are always warm on cold mornings."
So keep your feet warm and don't fret about French 4. English is as widely accepted as American Express.
posted by LSULiv | 3:34 PM
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