Objectifs Professionnels: Vocational Goals

Studying abroad will help me determine whether or not I would like to return to France after obtaining my Bachelor's Degree to teach English in the elementary-level classes. Becoming fluent in the French language, understanding the school system in France, and having an awareness of the expectations for an elementary teacher are a few of the steps I would like to take to determine this. 

UniCaen does not offer volunteer positions to students only studying one semester, but I hope to make connections with international students fulfilling volunteer roles in the local elementary schools to better understand the system.

The classes I will take will allow me to build a working knowledge of the French language and become familiar with literature that increases this learning. I also hope to visit a local elementary school, sit in on a class session, and speak to current teachers. This will help me understand what skills they think are best to be successful in their field. 

If I choose not to be an English teacher in France, gaining the perspective of another culture will help me in my professional and personal career regardless. It will allow be to consider the differences in opinions, values, and attitudes and react accordingly. I want to be a writer as well, and this experience will give me insight that will better my writing as well as exposure to new and different kinds of writing.  

Vivre Comme un Local: Living Like a Local

As a Writing and Communications major, and more importantly, as a person with a passion for writing, I find that the best way to preserve my experiences is to write about it. Not only does this help me remember the details of my life, but it helps me to cope with whatever the situation may be. It is absolutely essential that I have a journal and good pen when heading off to France for an entire semester. When I get back, I expect that the journal's pages will be worn with use and stuffed full of memories from my trip abroad. Already, I have an idea of the memories I will have written down. I have daydreamed entire situations that I will experience. Why? Because I am ready to live like a local!

I have already befriended a girl from another U.S. campus that will be studying abroad in Caen at the same time as me. Because we have both discussed our intentions to visit as many places as possible while abroad, we have agreed to travel together. Already, I am prepared to experience the French culture directly. Not only do I intend to learn about it, but I also intend to integrate myself into the culture. How, you ask? 

I want to capitalize on all the things France has to offer that the U.S. lacks. For instance, the food in France is more healthy for one's body and comes at a cheaper price than healthy food in America. I do not consider myself a foodie, but this is because I am not fond of the American dishes am exposed to. Also, the ability to buy healthy food cheaper will encourage me to prepare my own healthy meals. I am ready and willing to fall in love with food, be it French of otherwise. 

Also, the French prefer a small group of one or two trustworthy friends rather than a large mass of "friends". In America, it seems common enough that one person has a large group of friends, but I have never been that person. I am ready to build friendships based on intellectual conversation and an appreciation for differences and diversity. 

I will do this by getting as involved in the campus as I can. I hope to join a few clubs and hang out in local cafes. I have a love for coffee that can not be competed with, and so, I believe this love will transcend the culture difference and allow me to try new types of coffee in the numerous cafes in France. 

Although I am not a social butterfly, my interest in the French culture and my need to obtain a working knowledge of the French language will push me to converse with the locals. Already, I have come into contact with the father of two students currently studying at Caen in France. The father, a Frenchman, lives and works in Knoxville and has offered his daughters assistance managing life on campus. I am slowly establishing relationships that will be advantageous to me when I am studying abroad. 

Academic Differences: A Comparison between France and the U.S.

One significant difference between French universities and American colleges is the student's interdependence. While there may be daily homework assignments/grades within an American college class, French college classes may have as few as one grade for the entire semester: the final exam. While the class size of both French and English universities varies based on the size of the school itself, Maryville College is known for its manageable class sizes of no more than 60 students. 

At UniCaen, it is likely that I will be exposed to a lecture class size of a couple hundred even up to 1,000 students. This significant difference in class size will be a struggle for me. I selected Maryville College because of its small class size and one-on-one attention with professors. In France, I will experience  class in large lecture halls and will be expected to depend more on myself rather than reaching out and setting up a private meeting with a professor. 

Despite the large class size and distant professor-student relationship, there are resources that Caen offers. Typically, French universities organize student-led study groups where they go over the material discussed in class. Aside from this, there is also the option to ask a classmate for help. The grading scale in France is also difference. Instead of being graded 0-100 as in America, France grades its students on a scale of 0-20. A 10 would be considered a 72/100 or a C in America.

In the U.S., one is considered a full-time student if they are enrolled in at least 12 credit hours. In France as an ISEP student, I will be enrolled in 12-15 units which will consider me a full-time student for both locations. In France, typically the student doesn't have much freedom concerning the classes the take. In America, the electives and core classes make the education process longer, while in France, one is able to obtain his or her Master's Degree in just five years. This process takes 7+ years in the U.S.

 Each class will meet 1-2 hours a week, with the majority of the learning being done independently by the student outside the classroom. Once again, here is another example of the student's interdependence. Studying abroad will present me with challenges I have never faced before, but I am eager and ready to being this journey of self-discovery and discovery of the world. 

  

Une Americaine a l'etranger

Many conditions have influenced my life to make me the person I am today. I was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and I have never lived in any other state. My family is large, with nine kids in the household, and being the second oldest, I've had to fend for myself many times. Independence and self-reliance is important to me, and my self-audit reflected as much. Because the feminist movement is still underway and not without its to-do list, I have found within myself a passion to advance myself for the sake of finding accomplishment and pride as a woman.  For me, equality has always been important.

Because I will be studying abroad in northern France, I know that the culture, the customs, and the country itself will make for quite an adjustment. France recognizes, like many European countries, that the family is a working unit, in need of respect, privacy, and attention. French family members make decisions with much importance placed on the opinions of the other family members. Because my background and upbringing with my own family is not solid and strong, it is impossible for me to adopt these culturally significant values for myself. It will also be difficult to remember that other students, perhaps native to the country of France and the idea of a tight family unit, were not exposed to my background, and therefore, have no need to be as self-reliant and independent.

Within my self-audit sheet, I scored strongly in openness and weakly in flexibility. My willingness to try new foods, visit new places, and meet new people will combat and hopefully conquer my need to know all the information regarding a situation. I am inflexible with my planning habits and feel the need to live by an agenda. In doing this while overseas, I might miss valuable opportunities to partake in spontaneous adventures. This is something I will have to be aware of and control.

The popular opinion regarding Americans is that the are loud, selfish, polite for the sake of politeness and not respect, and boastful about their busy schedules, seeming to have no time for friends with all their time going to work/school.  I get loud when I become excited or angry. I manage a schedule because I am used to juggling work, school, volunteering, and other obligations that require focus and time of me. The cultural atmosphere I exist in does not allow for much flexibility and so I have grown inflexible along with it, and my independence and ability to work well alone can often be perceived as selfishness. I fit much of the standard expectations regarding Americans, but I want to show that I am more than those things, and I want to learn all I can about the French people and the unique individuals that exist within that group.       

Study Abroad: Universitie de Caen

My goals for studying abroad at the Universitie de Caen are, first and foremost, to gain knowledge and understanding of the French language. From there, I hope to carry out or make easier the goals that follow. A second goal of mine is to be more culturally aware of a country's history that is not my own. To do this, I plan on visiting France's historical monuments and well-known landmarks. So not to miss out on the lesser known or "labeled" bits of France's culture, I hope to travel and visit bookshops, cafes, and other enjoyable areas that may be off the beaten path. Using the train system, I hope to see as much of France as possible by taking weekend trips to visit other areas. I do not want to limit myself to France only, though France is my main focus. I would also like to see other countries that surround France if given the opportunity.
 This upcoming travel experience could not be more highly anticipated for me-nor more nerve-racking. I have never lived outside of Tennessee and, furthermore, I have visited very few states and no other countries aside from my own. Caen is situated in Northern France, and I will be going in the spring semester. Because Winter is the most difficult season for me to cope with, I know that I with struggle to handle the colder temperatures at that time of the year. Despite my fears of getting lost in a foreign country and being unable to understand the people that surround me, I feel that to immerse myself in the country's rich culture gives me no other choice than to learn and grow with experience.
I am unsettled about being away from my family for a long period of time. I am very close with my nephews and niece, and at their young ages, I know that I will be missing out on their landmark achievements such as learning to walk and talk. This personal attachment I have with them both discourages and encourages me to go. This trip will allow me to grow in ways I have not been given the chance to, and I will be exposed to the world in a way I have never been. In going away, learning, and coming back, I hope to bring with me knowledge that will also help my niece and nephews in their lives.
This study abroad experience will be something I have never encountered, and I look forward to the challenges that I will be faced with.