Teach english in Argentina

Nicholasville native says she’s excited to learn about the culture while teaching English there

Two years after applying and a year after notification, 2007 Western Kentucky University graduate Katherine Hale will finally reap the rewards of a prestigious grant.

The 24-year-old Nicholasville native left Saturday to spend the next eight months in Argentina as a recipient of a 2009-10 Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship grant.

The Fulbright Program, an international educational exchange program, is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. An Honors College graduate, Hale, who majored in Spanish, German and religious studies, received one of 15 Fulbright grants available to teach English in Argentina.

“I’m very excited,” she said. “This is a great opportunity to get teaching experience, learn the culture and improve my Spanish.”

Hale applied for the grant in 2008 and was notified that she was a recipient in 2009.

However, this wasn’t the first time Hale applied for the grant.

“I applied to be an English teaching assistant in Chile, and I made it past the first round, but I didn’t make the final cut,” she said. “So I was pretty thrilled to get the award this time. It was a relief after putting in all the work. The application process is a long process.”

The grant is for the 2009-10 academic year. She said the grant terms are for fall through spring, and most normally leave for their teaching destinations in the fall.

Hale said she is leaving now because it is the beginning of the school year there.

“It is fall where they are now,” she said.

Hale will be working as a language assistant at the Universidad Nacional de Villa Mar’a – the National University of Villa Mar’a – in Villa Mar’a, C?rdoba, Argentina. She said her work will consist of presentations on cultural and historical topics relating to the United States in English classes, helping students learn English and providing overall assistance to faculty members and students within the English department. In addition to working 18 hours at the university, Hale said she also will volunteer at the local orphanage, working on preschool children’s pre-literacy skills through reading, word games and conversations.

This will not be Hale’s first experience living abroad. She spent a semester in Morelia, Mexico, studying Spanish with the Kentucky Institute for International Studies. Also, as part of her undergraduate studies in German, she spent a semester at the University of Education Vienna in Austria.

Hale said she chose Argentina because she had never been to South America before.

“I wanted to explore a South American country, and I was intrigued by the Argentinean culture,” she said.

Students like Hale work closely with the Office of Scholar Development on Fulbright applications, said Jeanne Sokolowski, Fulbright application coordinator for WKU’s Office of Scholar Development. She also said faculty members are a key element in recruiting and encouraging students in applying for the scholarships.

Hale said her time in Argentina also will help her when applying for graduate school, and hopefully help her decide whether to pursue teaching on a collegiate level.

Hale said she has never been clear on a career path, but since graduating from WKU, she has worked in the field of education. She has worked at the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Kentucky, planning activities and as a residential counselor, and recently she has been working at Warren Elementary School as a preschool assistant teaching English as a second language.

She said these experiences have steered her into the education field, though she is still not sure what in that field she wants to do.

“I do know I like to work with students,” she said.
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SOURCE:
“Fulbright sends WKU grad to Argentin”
By NATALIE JORDAN
The Daily News
njordan@bgdailynews.com
Sunday, March 14 – 2010

http://bgdailynews.com

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