All of us on the International Field Experience were given two prompts from Dr. C to respond to.
The first prompt is: What has surprised you about yourself on this trip - either good or bad, in schools or not; and why was it a surprise?
- I believe that I have surprised myself in multiple ways over the course of the four weeks that I have been here in Belize so far but I have to say that there is one weekend in particular where I truly surprised myself the most and that was the weekend we went Inland from April 2nd - 5th. I feel like for as long as I can remember I have always been someone who always sticks with what I know and doesn't really take chances in life because I usually play it safe. I have most definitely NEVER been someone I would consider who was adventurous in any way, shape, or form but I have to say that I surprised myself in how adventurous I was during our time we were in the Cayo District on our trip to the Mainland. I love traveling, meeting new people, seeing new places, and experiencing new things but I did SO MANY things that I would've never dreamed that I would have ever done in my life had I not been on this Trip and I WAS SO PROUD OF MYSELF. Now not in a cocky "I Can Do Anything Life Throws At Me" Kind-Of-Way but in a "Wow...Did I actually do that?!" Kind-Of-Way. I mean...I climbed all of Mayan Temples at Caracol that could be climbed (one of them being 143 feet tall and DID I MENTION THAT I'M SCARED OF HEIGHTS?!) and I jumped off a cliff into the water at Big Rock Falls on Friday. I then went spelunking at the ATM Caves and swam and basically free climbed all sorts of rocks I have no idea how much during the almost three hours we were inside the Cave on Saturday. I also went to Guatemala for the day on Sunday and went Ziplining (for the first time ever in my life-Again, I AM SCARED OF HEIGHTS) AND I climbed all of the Ruins you could climb at the Mayan Ruins in Tikal (the tallest one being 212 feet tall). Once more as a reminder...I AM SO SCARED OF HEIGHTS. & Honestly...It was kind of weird but I didn't really feel that scared at all when I was doing any of these Excursions and usually I'm always so scared to do anything. I mean I'm not going to lie. I had moments where I was a little nervous or apprehensive at various points throughout the weekend but they were VERY BRIEF and didn't last long. I didn't let them get in the way of me getting the most out of my experiences and there was no way I was going to. I really pushed myself to not let my fears get the best of me and it worked to my benefit. Our Trip Inland was DEFINITELY one of MY FAVORITE things about our time here in Belize. It was such an incredible weekend. I challenged myself so much in ways I never have before and it was just one of those experiences that I can't even completely put into words if you know what I mean. I felt like I was a completely different person and honestly wasn't even sure who I was because I NEVER do anything like what I did in just three days that we were Inland. Our Trip Inland was truly incredible and really allowed me to push my boundaries. It allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and I had the time of my life while doing so. There's a quote that says: "Take a chance, you just might surprise yourself" and it couldn't be more true. I feel like in life I tend to doubt myself and my ability to do a variety of things but I believe my confidence in myself has grown some while I've been here in Belize. We really never know what we're capable of until we take a risk and just go for it which is exactly what I did. I can honestly day that I didn't think twice about anything during any of our excursions during our Trip Inland. I just went for it as best as I could and have so many wonderful memories that came from it that I will never forget for as long as I live because I did that.
The second prompt is: What is one thing you would do differently in your classroom in the US that you learned here?
- One thing that I will do differently in my classroom in the US is to incorporate more Sign Language in it. For as long as I could remember I knew I wanted to learn American Sign Language ever since I was little. I always had American Sign Language Books but was never able to teach myself any Sign Language. I was thankfully one of the lucky ones who was able to take American Sign Language as my Foreign Language Requirement at UNCW (it's a really hard class to get into here since it fills up so fast) and have really fallen in love with the language. My passion for it only continues to grow the more I'm able to use it. The fact that it is possible to communicate using our hands just amazes me. Since I've started learning American Sign Language I have seen it in each of my Field Placements during my Course Work at UNCW and I've also been attending Silent Events in town as an opportunity to practice my American Sign Language. I chose to take American Sign Language for multiple reasons (one being that I took Spanish in High School and knew that I wold NOT place in the Spanish Class that I would need to take at UNCW so I knew that I was better off to start over learning a new language) but one of the MAIN reasons I wanted to take it is because as a Special Education Teacher I will most likely have nonverbal students who can use Sign Language to communicate. During my time in Belize I have used Sign Language a lot more than what I realized I would do. I actually honestly didn't think I would use Sign Language here at all but it has been a skill that has come in handy while being here. When I went to visit Stella Maris (the Special Needs School in Belize City) during my first week here I was able to communicate with some of the students and a teacher there who are all Deaf. During my time at Isla Bonita I've been able to use and teach Sign Language to a student in the Standard One Classroom who is Deaf. The more I've used Sign Language here in Belize I am reminded of how during my Internship (what I completed in the States before coming to Belize) I only used Sign Language throughout the songs during my Morning Meeting. I had a perfect opportunity to use Sign Language in my Internship Placement (especially considering most of my Students were nonverbal) and one of the suggestions my Supervisor actually gave me at our Last Meeting was for me to use more Sign Language during Instruction. I've seen Sign Language in many places since I started learning it but it wasn't until I came to Belize when I realized how critical and important it is and can be for people to use. I have finally connected all of the dots and realized that I want to encourage the use of Sign Language with my future students whether they're verbal or not. If it wasn't for my time here in Belize I may not have come to this realization as soon as I have. I'm not exactly sure how I will incorporate Sign Language in my future classroom in the U.S. yet but I do know that I plan to do so and I am really excited about it! It was already something I knew I wanted to do but thanks to Belize I am more serious about actually doing it than ever before.
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