I am a professional in the international development field, with a specific focus on Latin America and China, and have a passion for teaching Spanish and Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese). I graduated from Brown University (2003) with a double major in International Relations and Anthropology, with languages studies in Spanish and Chinese (Mandarin). I also received my Masters in International Education Policy from Harvard University (2010).
Mandarin
I've had extensive experience teaching Mandarin - The first time I started teaching was in high school, where I started my own extra curricular class to teach other classmates the language. Then, I joined a summer program to teach middle school children, with amazing results. Since then, I've tutored other students in Mandarin in college and started one-on-one teaching/tutoring in my own professional time. My experience level is teaching beginners to intermediate and I like to focus on precision in pronunciation and building the fundamentals of grammar. I mainly focus on speaking and listening, but know how to integrate writing as well.
Cantonese
I am a native Cantonese speaker, which in order to learn how to teach it, I bought a dozen of books to learn the language so that I understand the fundamentals and be able to deconstruct the language for learners. Cantonese is very difficult to learn as it is mainly a spoken language, but I started a Cantonese independent course in college to gain some experience, which was very helpful. I also taught 2 students in the past, but only in the beginner level.
Spanish
I have always loved learning Spanish since my first Spanish class in the 6th grade. I studied it throughout high school and college, traveled all over central and south America, and use Spanish extensively in my professional work. As I plan on transitioning to becoming a Spanish teacher in the future, I will be starting a Spanish teaching certification course in the Spring. In the meantime, I hope to gain valuable experience teaching this language that I love and hope to instill in others the same Iove I have for it.
All in all, I like to cater teaching to the learning style of the student, using a combination of practice exercises/work books, conversation, and using social media and technology. I also have a high expectation of mastering grammar and pronunciation and aim to teach in a way that is organic to the student, so they will develop a love and interest in the language they are studying.
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