Katie Ella Field

Professor Johnston

Assignment 6

November 11, 2010

Kids of the Future

My heels make a severe clacking noise against the sidewalk as I make my way toward the

classroom that will become my second home for the next few years. The sun is beating down on

my head, attempting to fry my skin, yet failing to succeed due to the copious amounts of

sunblock I applied before leaving my small apartment. The streets around me are bustling with

activity and people brush past me as they make their way to a destination unknown to me, their

minds already preoccupied with thoughts and goals for this new day. The setting is New Delhi,

India and my job is a professor of English as a second language.

Personal Goals

While I attend college at North Dakota State University, the goals that I will have for my

personal life will include finding myself and working in the Center for Writers on Campus to

improve my editing and teaching skills.

In order to succeed professionally, one must know who they are as a person. While taking

classes inside your major is the main requirement to receive a degree, it is also very important to

branch out and take classes that may not be required of your major. By doing this, you may find

something else that you’re just as interested in which would therefore allow you to enhance your

education further.
 By working in the Center for Writers, I will be able to get a taste of what it feels like to be

a teacher. Through demonstrating editing techniques and teaching students like myself how to

properly write papers, I will learn effective methods that I’ll be able to use in the future.

Professional Goals

As I mentioned in my introduction, the first thing I plan to do once I graduate from

college is teach English as a second language in another country. Although my primary major is

English, my secondary major is international studies, so teaching in another country will allow

me to use everything that I learned in college to its fullest extent. After teaching for a couple of

years, I plan to attend graduate school to further my education. By not going straight to graduate

school after I complete my undergraduate study, I will gain real-life experience and knowledge

that lessons in a classroom couldn’t teach me.

Outcomes for the English Major

Outcomes four and seven will be most prevalent in my personal and professional life both

during and after college. Outcome four, which states, “English majors will be able to manage

sophisticated writing and research projects, planning, documenting, completing, and assessing

work on-time and within the constraints of the project,” will help me in completing my writing

assignments all throughout college while also teaching me how to use time-management in

completing lesson plans and correcting homework during my professional life as a teacher.

Outcome seven, which states, “English majors will develop professionalism exhibited in

such qualities as self- direction, cooperation, civility, reliability, and care in editing and

presenting the final product,” will also help me in both education and professionalism. By being

personally responsible in college, I’ll learn to complete assignments in a timely fashion and well

within the date it’s due. In my professional life, the outcome will also help me in the way that it
 taught me to complete everything on my own by being a self-motivated individual. This is very

important in every area of the professional world because those that are in the position of hiring

someone specifically look for individuals that show great initiative.

Graduate School

As I have stated above, after teaching abroad for a year or two, I plan to attend graduate

school at DePaul University and work my way toward the combination of a Juris Doctor, which

is a law degree, and a Master of Arts in International Studies. This particular program provides

students with the opportunity to become experts in the application of theory to problems

affecting the international community.

English (Bachelor of Arts) & International Studies (Secondary Major)

Category III: Required Cultural Diversity Courses (6 credits)

• ENG 335: Multicultural Writers

• ENG 456: Literacy, Culture and Identity

Category IV: Upper Division English Major Courses (15 credits)

• ENG 301: Peer Tutoring & Writing in Disc.

• ENG 322: Creative Writing I

• ENG 453: Social & Regional English

• ENG 455: International Technical Writing

• ENG 467: English Studies Capstone Experience

I chose all of these classes because I believe they will be most helpful in reaching my

goals of becoming a professor of English as a second language in another country. For example,

by taking courses 335, 455 and 456, I can learn about writing across the globe and apply what I

learn after I graduate from college and begin my career in another country. By taking courses
301 and 453, I’ll be able to understand how to best teach someone from a different country who

may have begun learning the language a different way than I did. Having this empathy for my

students will allow me to be a better teacher overall.

Financial Aspects

Because of my hard work in high school and good standardized test scores, I’ve been

fortunate enough to receive the Presidential Honors Scholarship from North Dakota State

University, which means I will receive $10,000 over the course of my four-year undergraduate

career. I also received a scholarship from the state of North Dakota that will allow for me to

receive an additional $6,000 to put toward my undergraduate education. In addition to all of this,

my parents have agreed to help pay for as much of my education as possible; therefore, I’m

incredibly thankful to be able to say that I won’t have to worry much about paying back student

loans after college. Without having the added stress of financial problems on my shoulders, I’m

able to concentrate solely on being a good student and maintaining a 3.0 GPA in order to

continue receiving my scholarship money.

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After analyzing various aspects of my education, including my personal and professional

goals, the outcomes of being an English major that will help me most throughout college and in

the professional world, various job opportunities for me after college, classes that will help me

achieve my goals and the financial aspects of getting a college education, I’ve realized that I’m

very lucky to have such direction in my life. My parents have raised me well and given me so

many opportunities to grow as a person and without them, I don’t know where I’d be. Life is a

series of struggles and achievements, and it can be like an incredibly scary roller coaster. And to

live, you must learn to overcome your fears and ride it.