Yulia SYE
Hello, friends! And do not be surprised that my address sounds like this. After all, if you are reading this small passage of text, then we already have a lot in common. Namely – the desire to study, know, speak, read, understand English! And even though I have a little more vocabulary and grammar than yours, there is nothing easier than sharing it. And even though I have a school with in-depth study of the language behind me, the faculty of foreign languages at the university, 16 years of teaching experience, an endless number of competitions, courses, seminars and trainings – I still discover something new for myself every day in such a complex and multifaceted system as a language.
English showed me the world! If I didn’t know the language, I would never have been a finalist for the International Teaching Excellence (TEA) program or spent six unforgettable weeks in California. I would not see Washington, Los Angeles, Las Vegas. I would not have breathed in the desert sandy air of the Big Canyon, I would not have enjoyed the strong waters of the Colorado River … In addition, I would not have had the opportunity to collaborate with teachers from more than twenty countries of the world, attend seminars of advanced specialists at the University of Claremont, spend tens of hours in lessons at American school and tell the students there about their country.
As people who are restless and open for cooperation, my students and I managed to visit many parts of our native country, exchanging experiences and making friends here and there. In addition, we left our mark in countries such as Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, where, firstly, we improved the level of spoken English, and secondly, together with ASMBR (Association for the Promotion of International Business and Development), we established contacts, discussed possible ways of developing cooperation between the youth of Ukraine and European countries, participated in diplomatic meetings.
And one more point, which, in my opinion, has always been, is and will be in the priority of any teacher, is the personal success of his students. It so happened that last year I had 18 graduates. And I am proud that out of 18 people, six have associated professions with English. One guy became a semi-finalist of the International Speaking Competition in English and now, as a student at a technical university, he is in the USA under the Work and Travel program. He says he has no problems with communication. Another graduate studied for a year in the USA, Missouri, under the FLEX youth leaders exchange program and is already working for a prestigious American-Ukrainian firm in Kiev. Among my students there were also winners of city and regional Olympiads, there were also those who passed exams and ZNO with high scores. But the main thing is that they all come and proudly declare: “I am one (or one) of the strongest students in the group!”
This is the teacher’s inspiration!