Beyond the Growing Seasons

You cannot imagine how an educational work will expand and flourich when you start compiling a data to include in your work. That's what came up from this Hartville life depiction. Many teachers are involved to have the book in their curriculum, studies, lesson plans, policy...

On the satge of the conference & hot choclate

These people are part of the community; 'they have access to the author's identity with the local community' said a Canton County school teacher who teaches 6, 7, 8th grades. He implement critical thinking skills in his classroom and students can identify with the characters of the story. The math teacher teaches about measures and strategies to count for farmers. The school principle spoke about 'a police car' which was driven by the bridegroom. the car was something unacceptable in the hartville community from Texas in the begining. It is getting to know this community importance. We should 'not think out of the box' We have got to know the culture we are communicating with. We have to listen, converse, discuss, read, analyse the needs and requirements.

Conference Growing Seasons

Thursday, February, 26th , 2008.

Migrant workers do not stop their work when the weather turns harsh—like them, we are still on for this evening!

The Gerald H. Read Distinguished lecture Series will feature Growing Season: The Life of a Migrant Community and its Educational Implications, tonight at 7:00 p.m. in the KIVA.

David Hassler and Gary Harwood, and the panel of educators will be there to inform and to inspire you with the story of the Hartville migrant community ... warm your heart with stories of family, coming together, hope for the future, and photos that will tell a story beyond the words that you will hear. ...

Linda Robertson

This book is really inspiring. It is an attribute to human change. It is a life culturing. It is an outreach activity. It is voices of a village. It documents knowledge, inspiration, award, inspiration... it is a story telling to celebrate.

It took the David Hassler seven years to collect the data needed, including a series of photos and a long journey to take to have the actual book. The journey was more than five stages to get to self-satisfaction and more inspiration. He struggle hard to get a place in the Mexican community. Though this physical existence, he tried to get personal integration in the community by making different acquaintances. It is so hard to the community to accept a stranger to take photos. They are afraid of being arrested by the police as coming illegally to the land. He got to have permission to the farm to a witness of the community daily life. He consider 6:30 to 7 a.m. as the most hectic and lively time. They are getting ready to go to the farm, getting the kids ready for school. They excel to decorate their hats with flowers and ribbons. Their hands reveal their endeavour to achieve well in the farm. The author took tough decision to look for self-integration. He tried to learn their language, shop in the same area. There was too much pressure on him to leave their vicinity.

However, here came the opportunity for him when he was invited to a wedding party. It was a good step to move from personal access to the family household. This stage led him to get more involved in their in their life. He was asked to take picture during the ceremony. There were seven camps to explore to dig out the cultural components of the community.

After the wedding party, he was introduced in the medical facilities, school, church and their birthday parties. What is surprising enough is the great number of people attending each ceremony of birthday. Everybody has to wash up and gets dressed up. They have a great fun and women, men, and children have their gathering to concentrate on their own affairs.

Indeed, there was a lot of patience, endeavour, tolerance and sacrifice to bring this story the front pages. It is extremely rich and enriching of acculturation. Gary Harwood interviewed member of the community to give more life and enrichment to the photos depicted by Divid Hassler. I was able to write down some of their conversation during the conference:

Father to his daugther who was intending to get married: ' Are you sure you want to that? if not, just turn down and way away'

Lovely quote and meaningful cultural implications can be deduced?

Have your own car!

Sure, one should have his personal vehicle to be on time and invest that time in more useful things.

Less people in the Ohio are walking in the streets. It is noticeable that only the international students do so. I would go along a street without seeing any human being walking. It must be me who is a special case, then.
I would say that a lot American suffer a lot for being so obese. They care carrying extra weight, eating all the time, driving all the time. There is less time for exercising.
Even the bus is most often empty. None is there. Sometimes, I would take the alone for more than six stops, None show up, except the bus driver and me.
Buses' schedules is different from what is written on the bus flayers. You have to wait either ten minutes after or before the bus would come.
Strange enough in Kent, no cabs, less buses, trolleys.
Let's walk should be the motto for everyone to be less overweight!!!

Speech Testing

I have been in the speech testing in Nixon Hall on Thursday, 21st February, 2008. I was there on time. The room is a sort of small classes or laboratories. They are probably teaching languages, especially American. The focus is how to Americanize your communication English. It seems that they are driving everyone to be American in everything. Could it be, even we sneeze, whistle or walk in an American way?

White Hall, room 215.

There were nice, educated and beautiful female teachers in the lab. They warmly welcomed me to the room. I hung my coat and scarf and stepped to a room where I had to face the wall while sitting on a chair. The aim was to test my auditory skill s by raising my hands when I heard any sound from the headphone I was asked to put on. The test was great by the encouragement of the ladies. Then, they have to test my tongue and all part of articulation inside my mouth. It was really amazing and entertaining to utter some sounds after taking a deep breath. I had to hold on uttering the same sound as far as I can. It sounds that you are in a music chorus.

Later, I had to read a small text and different vowels and consonants. Throughout the test I was engaged in an educational discussion by reflecting on my previous teaching and learning strategies and about the courses i am taking in Kent State University as a vi ting scholar.

I discovered and explored some good aspects of my speech. I tried to act out and converse as if I were an expert actor. I learnt about the way I teach my students. I tried and tried to show I articulate well, understand, listen, rargue... with those who are my teachers assessing my performance and how much I have achieved in my educational journey. I took things from different aspect. I was one the learners who have to exhibit their skills and expertise in the field. I have learnt about my fossilization of pronunciation, especially when you just you want to finish what you are reading. I have recognize that I speak so quickly which makes it difficult for my interlocutor difficult to get my message. I have to practice more and interact with people, basically engaging or delivering a presentation. Sure , there is stress at the beginning, but you feel so strong and more lively to voice your ideas fluently.

Philadelphia

Drexel experience on December, 25th 2008.

There was a lot of fun and entertainment. It was so quick, but we got to know each other pretty well. There were five countries: Morocco, Indonesia. Egypt, Bangladesh and Jordan. We had a nice community as we shared everything we had. We were all together all the time. One thing that we like best is the spirit and the motivation we had to foster our skills in different issues: American culture and education, public speaking skills, language courses. Once in Washington and Ohio, I felt that there is a big difference. Taking turns in conversation is a very important issue, namely I see some of my colleagues say whatever they like and jumping to say anything, indeed, there is too much verbal with less information.

Also, jumping the queue is another one, when you see people going on line regardless who is fist. You may notice the greediness of some of them. They would complain about anything comes across to their mind. The other opinion is of no value to them.

parade in Phil.

Learning Strategies

Personal Learning strategies

Being a teacher for more than 14 years, I believe in professional development. This means that I am not only teaching, but acquiring as well new things. Learning is a long life process. I have never stopped learning and improving my teaching strategies and exploring and implementing some best practices that I would come across or learn from seminars, conferences and study days that I have been attending, either as participant or speaker. I want to improve my public speaking skills; hence, I should correct my personal pronunciation.

Certainly, I have a fossilized pronunciation that I have to address because I am a language teacher. I am not a native speaker of this target language. That will not discourage me form improving my voice production. Sometimes, I feel I am not conveying my message successfully, by making my interlocutor struggle hard to decode what is said or what is meant. I speak too quickly. I have to slow down when speaking. I surely use different techniques to promote my teaching performance. I should be giving role model to my students.

I consider the following techniques effective to better my utterance. I would watch the same movie for countless times to hear and watch how the actors speak. My favorite movies are: “Gulliver Travelers” written by Jonathon Swift; the second is “The Lost Secret” series which I used with my students. I unquestionably learnt by hearth some phrases and words from these movies. Radio is of equal importance when you have the journalist and program that you like best. My much loved one is Akron Radio station in Cleveland. Television is very essential as well, namely, morning shows as fluent speakers are selected for discussion.

I am trying to practice my pronunciation by listening to my beloved collection of songs, especially pop and country music. I also use audio dictionaries on my computer to check my pronunciation. There is a motto which stresses that we should check even the utterance of the familiar words.

Engaging in different conversations with native speakers is excellent. I will be learning ‘best from lectures, tutorials, tapes, group discussion, speaking, web chat and talking things through’. One of the best things is used with my students is using various scenarios to put them in a creative ways.

Case Wetern Reservre University Conference

Food Workshop

In Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, I attended a conference about leadership Journey Series, spring 2008. I participated in 3 different workshops which appeal to my own interest. But the most important, unplanned workshop was about the etiquette of having a meal with a American business or the upper classes families.

My first workshop was about ‘The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People’. Actually it is centered on the best practices that the person inspiring to be a leader or improving the skills and knowledge of leadership. The second one is essentially ‘being an integrated part of the community’ but, I attended another one by mistake because the speaker taught that her workshop was for the Greek community. Then, I attended “living your Rituals’. I did not like it as it is on lecturing. There was no valuable interaction. My third workshop was ‘creating Competency Portfolio” it dealt with techniques of having portfolio for live is a long process and wait for no lazy people. We have to update our portfolio to best introduce ourselves to our institutions which take them as benchmarks tom select the appropriate person. It is a reflecting mirror to see what to improve. It is to give a model to other people or students to use.

Other benefits would be the ability to step in to improve our public speaking delivery. Most workshop have a limited numbers of participants who contribute successful the discussion and the fostering of knowledge. I like going to different presentations in different locations, though; they were non-stop conferences. There is a chance different participant in each presentation, but with similar opinion and sharing the interest.

The food workshop was of equally significant, by Lorrie Thompson Bossart, the Etiquette Consulting/ training expert. She did a great job to teach us a lot of the American table etiquette. What have I learnt then?
The gentleman on the right of each lady sitting in the same table has to assist her to sit down or stand up to harmony the chair she wants to sit on. It is his responsibility to lend a hand to every lady in the table if he is the only man there. He is supposed to be alert to offer help every moment a lady stands up. In case of conversation, you are required to speak to speak on your right after the salad or main course. There should be no use of mobile or text-ing use, there are people around, and they want to hire you for their own business! If you have an emergency call as a doctor, you have to go out to answer the coming call. You have to watch out your resting position as well.
The napkin must be put in a particular manner! That’s your role to for more information using custom location perhaps Google.

Tips:
- You knife should not be facing your neighbor.
- Waiters serve from left and clear up from your right
- Cut bread in small pieces, then add butter to eat
Activity:
Match the pictures with the suitable caption:

I am done, the waiter can clear the dishes
I am not done. The waiter cannot clear the dishes. I am resting.
I do not want to be served any other dish

The lab

Today is Feb. 13, 2008.

We have been to a highly sofisticated and equipped computer. It is what we need to better implement and integrate technology in my classroom. The teacher is given the opportunity to explore and enhance the process of learning and teaching.

If I was given the chance to have this laboratory, I would motivate my students and encourage them to be autonomous learners. They would contribute a lot and save time to be used and invested on other projects and learning materials.

If teachers are highy motivated and has the skills, with this lab, they would create miracles