Integrative Narrative - My evolution
I was a new student at Gavilan View Middle School, and I was extremely nervous. Everything felt so intimidating as I was standing in the office waiting for one of my peers from my first period to pick me up from the office. At this school, I would have seven periods, and my last period of the day was Spanish. This would be my first time being allowed to speak/learn in Spanish, and I was ecstatic. As soon as I walked into Mr. Magaña’s Spanish class, I felt this wave of relief because I had made it through the day, and this class seemed like it would be fun. Everyone around me was speaking Spanish, and this reminded me of home. Mr. Magaña quickly became my favorite teacher, and I looked forward to attending class. His Spanish class made me feel welcome and taught me a lot about myself and the Spanish-speaking world around me. For once, I felt accepted as a Spanish speaker, and I felt inspired to become a Spanish teacher for students like myself.
Through my positive experience of taking Spanish in middle school, I decided to further take Spanish in high school all four years of Spanish for Heritage Speakers 1 and 2, AP Spanish Language and Culture, as well as AP Spanish Literature. These classes inspired my intention to pursue a career in Spanish. But as an undergraduate, I realized that I’d like to become an elementary bilingual teacher. Bilingual education in California––eliminated as an outcome of Proposition 227 in 1998––resulted in many Spanish-speaking ethnic minorities being torn away from a chance to preserve their native language. Three years before I was born, Proposition 227 passed, robbing me of the opportunity to access bilingual education. Now that Proposition 227 has been overturned by Proposition 58, I intend to become a part of the representation for students. I believe that in California, we should count on bilingual education from K-16. Granting bilingual students the opportunity to learn in their native language as well as reinforce their ethnic identity. As a result of my Spanish classes, and my ability to speak Spanish, it has strengthened my Mexicanidad. I will become a part of the growing 21% of Hispanic, or Latino certified teachers.
Being a part of the Spanish Language and Hispanic Cultures major at CSUMB has motivated me to give back to my future students. My classes in the major have provided me with what should have been ethnic studies classes, learning about my heritage as well as healing my inner child who was not allowed to learn in Spanish throughout elementary school. This major has also taught me to love and appreciate my bilingualism, and my Spanglish. In one of my linguistics classes with Dr. Pozzi we talked about “no sabo kids” and how labeling kids as “no sabo” can discourage them from speaking Spanish. This was something very valuable to me because my younger siblings speak much less Spanish than my sister and I. We used to call my brother a “no sabo kid” for not correctly pronouncing or forming grammatically correct sentences, but we never realized the seriousness of using this term. I am most proud of myself for learning how to write academically in Spanish, as well as give oral presentations. This is a skill that throughout the major I have been able to successfully cultivate. In most of my major classes, I have had to submit a writing assignment as well as present my work in Spanish.
Furthermore, as part of MLO 6 I was able to strengthen my technology skills and was able to conduct research as well as create an ePortfolio which I had never created a website before. I have also been able to immerse myself in the community as MLO 5 states through my service learning class. My service learning class allowed me to be additional support for my community as a bilingual tutor helping adults achieve their goals to take their citizenship test as well as utilize technology. I am glad that I have been able to give back to my community through my service. Through MLO 4 I have been able to learn about Japanese culture and the role of women in the community. In the past, it was common for men to be the breadwinners similar to my Mexican culture, but now Japanese women are stepping up and fulfilling the role of breadwinners but also mothers. Through MLO 3 I was able to inform myself on different cultures around the world but more specifically Spanish-speaking countries. It was very interesting to learn more about Spanish history and how they got to colonize the Americas. As part of MLO 2 I learned more about the linguistic practices of other Spanish speakers like in Puerto Rico. Lastly, as part of MLO 1 I have been able to strengthen my ability to orally present in Spanish as well as expand my academic repertoire.
In the future, I wish to further develop my linguistics skills such as phonetics because as a bilingual teacher, I will be teaching my students how to read, speak, and write in both Spanish and English. These skills will be necessary as I move through my career. I would also like to have the opportunity to visit other countries in Latin America and experience a different way of life than I am used to in the United States. I know that my linguistic skills will be handy because I will be able to notice different dialects and characteristics used differently than my own. This would allow me to first-hand experience what it is like to be in a country where Spanish is the primary/official language.
Through my positive experience of taking Spanish in middle school, I decided to further take Spanish in high school all four years of Spanish for Heritage Speakers 1 and 2, AP Spanish Language and Culture, as well as AP Spanish Literature. These classes inspired my intention to pursue a career in Spanish. But as an undergraduate, I realized that I’d like to become an elementary bilingual teacher. Bilingual education in California––eliminated as an outcome of Proposition 227 in 1998––resulted in many Spanish-speaking ethnic minorities being torn away from a chance to preserve their native language. Three years before I was born, Proposition 227 passed, robbing me of the opportunity to access bilingual education. Now that Proposition 227 has been overturned by Proposition 58, I intend to become a part of the representation for students. I believe that in California, we should count on bilingual education from K-16. Granting bilingual students the opportunity to learn in their native language as well as reinforce their ethnic identity. As a result of my Spanish classes, and my ability to speak Spanish, it has strengthened my Mexicanidad. I will become a part of the growing 21% of Hispanic, or Latino certified teachers.
Being a part of the Spanish Language and Hispanic Cultures major at CSUMB has motivated me to give back to my future students. My classes in the major have provided me with what should have been ethnic studies classes, learning about my heritage as well as healing my inner child who was not allowed to learn in Spanish throughout elementary school. This major has also taught me to love and appreciate my bilingualism, and my Spanglish. In one of my linguistics classes with Dr. Pozzi we talked about “no sabo kids” and how labeling kids as “no sabo” can discourage them from speaking Spanish. This was something very valuable to me because my younger siblings speak much less Spanish than my sister and I. We used to call my brother a “no sabo kid” for not correctly pronouncing or forming grammatically correct sentences, but we never realized the seriousness of using this term. I am most proud of myself for learning how to write academically in Spanish, as well as give oral presentations. This is a skill that throughout the major I have been able to successfully cultivate. In most of my major classes, I have had to submit a writing assignment as well as present my work in Spanish.
Furthermore, as part of MLO 6 I was able to strengthen my technology skills and was able to conduct research as well as create an ePortfolio which I had never created a website before. I have also been able to immerse myself in the community as MLO 5 states through my service learning class. My service learning class allowed me to be additional support for my community as a bilingual tutor helping adults achieve their goals to take their citizenship test as well as utilize technology. I am glad that I have been able to give back to my community through my service. Through MLO 4 I have been able to learn about Japanese culture and the role of women in the community. In the past, it was common for men to be the breadwinners similar to my Mexican culture, but now Japanese women are stepping up and fulfilling the role of breadwinners but also mothers. Through MLO 3 I was able to inform myself on different cultures around the world but more specifically Spanish-speaking countries. It was very interesting to learn more about Spanish history and how they got to colonize the Americas. As part of MLO 2 I learned more about the linguistic practices of other Spanish speakers like in Puerto Rico. Lastly, as part of MLO 1 I have been able to strengthen my ability to orally present in Spanish as well as expand my academic repertoire.
In the future, I wish to further develop my linguistics skills such as phonetics because as a bilingual teacher, I will be teaching my students how to read, speak, and write in both Spanish and English. These skills will be necessary as I move through my career. I would also like to have the opportunity to visit other countries in Latin America and experience a different way of life than I am used to in the United States. I know that my linguistic skills will be handy because I will be able to notice different dialects and characteristics used differently than my own. This would allow me to first-hand experience what it is like to be in a country where Spanish is the primary/official language.