Workshop N°1 "Back to School"

1. How were your school days? Did you enjoy them? Talk about the school you studied and its setting.

I think I never forget my school days because I have really good memories. In elementary school I went to Ana María Janer, a Catholic school, in Viña del Mar. They were severe, but me and my classmates had a nice experiences and had a good times. That is the advantage of growing together, because your classmates are like brothers.
In secundary I went to a technical-professional school, I made good new friends, and also had and enjoyed a good times too.
So I never forget my school days...

2. Talk about a teacher who influenced you. What characteristics did he/she have?

I think, two teachers influenced me; one of them was a language teacher and the second one was an English teacher.
Always, after each class, they left a couple of minutes to speak and share his experiences and things in life. I think that is one of the most important things as a teacher, because we are like second parents, and we must understand this, because we have a direct influence on students, both positively and negatively.

Moreover, I guess the characteristics they had were very important like understanding the students, patience, respect and tolerance for them. And I think the most important characteristic is vocation.

But I think the best teacher who influenced me was my mother.

3. Why did you want to become a language teacher? And why English?

First of all, I like teaching more than any other profession. Before, I studied two years of Computer engineering, but I never thought to working in an office, I thought being a teacher in delivering that knowledge.
Then, due to personal experiences I discovered my vocation of teacher.
And I chose English because I was good at school, and part of my family lives in USA, so I was always in contact with the language.

4. What experiences and personal strengths do you bring to language teaching?

My main strength is my vocation, I like to teach. And I think the vocation is the most important thing to do a good job as a teacher.
I have experience, and a project, related to rural schools in southern Chile. My friends and I won a support to work in schools with high social risk, to try and break the cycle of poverty. Between Valdivia and Osorno.
During the summers, we working with children, young people and parents, giving courses and classes in different areas, including English.

5. What do you expect of the VISE I process?

I expect to learn about the reationships between teachers and students. Because I think one part of the work as a teacher is interacting with other teachers. And obviously, the most important relationships, as a teacher, are with your students.

I hope to get the maximum experience and reflections about VISE. It’s important as future teachers to be directly linked to the role of professor and his relationships with the school environment.