November 2014
“So, what are your plans after graduation?”
My uncle looked at me over the Thanksgiving table as he began carving the turkey. I cringed as he asked the one question every college senior dreads. While several of my friends knew exactly what they would be doing after May 15, I was still unsure. I knew only two things. The first was that I applied for a Fulbright ETA.
The second was that I hadn’t told my parents yet.
During my freshman year of high school, my history teacher gave the class our first writing assignment in preparation for the Advanced Placement World History exam. The prompt required students to analyze a small series of historical documents and evaluate Roman attitudes toward nomadic tribes (the “barbarians”) prior to the fall of the Empire. I wrote feverishly throughout our 42-minute class period, opening the essay with the invasion of Odoacer in 476 C.E., writing a thesis about Roman xenophobia, analyzing the historical evidence from the documents, and concluding the essay with the claim that based on their violence and prejudice against outsiders, the Romans, not the nomads, were in fact the “barbarians.” I finished the essay, flushed with freshman pride at how well I thought I had done. My teacher handed back the assignments at the end of the week with the AP rubric attached. Much to my surprise, my essay received only 5 out of 9.
안녕하세요! 제 이름은 재닌입니다.
Hello! My name is Janine Perri, and I am a Long Islander, a Villanova Wildcat, and a 2015-2016 Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in South Korea. This blog will chronicle my adventures, reflections, and insights during the thirteen months I will spend abroad.
I graduated from Villanova University in May 2015 with majors in English and history. While at Villanova, I tutored in the university’s Writing Center, mentored and tutored elementary school students in Philadelphia, and founded a student publication dedicated to engaging with intellectual and cultural life at Villanova. To culminate my senior year, I wrote an Honors thesis on the state of English writing skills in college, using a survey of Villanova faculty and students to answer questions such as: What challenges currently face instructors and students in teaching and learning how to write? How do these challenges differ across academic disciplines, class years, and cultural backgrounds?
Now, I am exploring these issues and questions from a new perspective – that of an international teacher.
Over the next year, I will build upon my experiences in English writing and tutoring by serving as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) in Gimhae, South Korea, helping Korean high school students improve their English conversation and writing skills. At the same time, I will immerse myself in a new culture, a new language, and a new pedagogical tradition. As a Fulbright ETA, I will serve as a teacher, a mentor, and a cultural ambassador. And I will learn as much from my students as they will learn from me.
By sharing my own language and culture and learning from my students, I hope to engage, and help others engage, in global conversations. I invite you to follow me on this journey.
The views expressed in this blog are mine alone and are not affiliated with the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State.
Janine Perri 