August 2, 2018

Elms College to welcome two Fulbright language teaching assistants

REGIONAL
Staff report

 

CHICOPEE – The College of Our Lady of the Elms has announced that it will host two Fulbright language teaching assistants (FLTAs) during the 2018-2019 academic year.

Akiko Takata of Kyoto, Japan, will teach Japanese language and culture, and Jill McMahon of Dublin, Ireland, will teach Irish (Gaelic) language and culture. The Irish FLTA position is co-sponsored by the Irish Cultural Center of Western Massachusetts.

“Thanks to the Fulbright FLTA program, we are able to broaden the range of languages that we offer in support of our academic programs,” said Joyce Hampton, the director of student success and strategic initiatives at Elms. “Learning a language develops a global perspective and sparks an interest in study abroad.”

The college also regularly offers classes in American Sign Language, Spanish, and English as a second language.

Japanese FLTA

Takata most recently worked as a teacher at Doshisha Junior High School in Japan. She earned her bachelor of arts degree in linguistics at Tokushima University and her master’s degree in teaching Japanese at Kobe University. She also worked as an assistant language teacher in Dublin from July 2016 to February 2017, teaching Japanese to students at Dublin City University and four secondary schools.

“My time teaching in Ireland and Japan has given me the opportunity to learn new concepts towards the way people learn in different cultures,” Takata said. “As an FLTA, I will further improve my English language skills and my teaching skills, and I will be given the opportunity to grow my knowledge and experience of teaching in another culture.”

“People who are engaged in education should have a wide perspective and understanding of different cultures,” she added. “As a teacher, my job is not only teaching but also continuously learning.”

In her teaching practice, Takata engages students and illuminates concepts by incorporating technological tools such as audiovisual teaching materials, tablets, and electronic blackboards.

One of her future goals is to set up a support system in Japanese public schools for foreign students who lack Japanese language skills. “Teachers should make school a place where students who have different backgrounds and mother tongues can get along,” she said.

Irish FLTA

McMahon, who earned a bachelor of arts degree in Irish and journalism at Dublin City University and a master of philosophy degree in digital humanities and culture at Trinity College, has worked solely in the Irish-language sector following her graduation. She most recently served as a government administrator with Gaeloideachas, an Irish organization that supports Irish-language immersion schools in Ireland.

She has eight years of Irish-language teaching experience, including working as a tutor and an Irish/art teacher, and participates in her Gaelic Athletics Association club, Na Gaeil Óga, whose goal is to encourage people to speak Irish outside of school and work. She plans to incorporate extracurricular activities into her FLTA duties, to give students opportunities to learn Irish in less formal contexts.

“The value of learning a language is directly related to the opportunities and initiatives to speak that language,” McMahon said. “Social and community activities helped me evolve from a learner of Irish to a fluent speaker with a love of the language.”

“Irish language is the catalyst that has sparked almost every passion I hold dear in life today,” she added. “This is the essence of language and its teaching: living, socializing, creating, and working through a language, taking every opportunity to use it and teach it.”

The Fulbright Program

The Fulbright Program was established in 1946 under legislation introduced by U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas. The Fulbright Program has given approximately 360,000 students, scholars, teachers, artists, and scientists the opportunity to study, teach, conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.

FLTA grant recipients are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential; Fulbright FLTA scholarships are awarded by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. The program’s aim is to help internationalize U.S. colleges and universities, a key goal of many institutions as they prepare students for the globalized 21st-century workforce.

Since 2001, more than 4,000 Fulbright awardees have been Fulbright FLTAs. The Fulbright FLTA Program is administered by the Institute of International Education. The primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State. Participating governments, universities, corporations, and foundations in foreign countries (as well as in the U.S.) also provide direct and indirect support.