1. As some of you know based on the survey I have sent out, I have a very large presentation coming up in my course "Techniques de Vente" (Selling techniques) which is going to act as my final exam for the course. The subject is interesting and I also appreciate being presented with a testing alternative, but I have never before in my life been asked to give an hour-long presentation. That is basically a lecture! And oh-by-the-way, let's not forget that that hour is not in my first language! Actually I am really excited about giving the presentation because not only will I feel accomplished (I feel that is a great way to sum up a year abroad in a foreign country linguistically) but I am fairly sure that something like that can squeeze its way into a resumé somehow. However, the preparation for an hour's worth of speaking is quite difficult because actually I do not notice that many differences in the commercial technique between the US and France. Therefore I am going to have to be a little creative with my material. Also, PowerPoints always take longer to prepare than you feel they should, so I don't even want to know how long it will take me to represent 1 hour!! Of course I am not going to have everything on my PowerPoint, because with a presentation that long I think it better to actually do something at some point to change the pace, re-grab attention, and then continue. But we will see how that all works out. The bigger problem for me right now, is that this presentation is due the 17th of April, which is a Tuesday right after my week-long break from school which I am celebrating with my Mom and David in Marseille, Arles, and around Chambéry, and I DO NOT want to be working on or worrying about my presentation the whole time. That basically means that I have two weeks to whip it into shape so that it is out of the way. Again, we'll see how successful I am at not procrastinating.
2. I have officially bought the final tickets for all the trips included in the Mom-David-Ellen Spring Break vacation. WOOHOO! I successfully got that item off of the checklist a little less than an hour ago, and it feels great to know that this vacation I don't have to worry about buying tickets as I am on vacation. They are all purchased, some at really great prices, and are ready to go.
3. I have also finally recuperated my notes from last semester. After I had taken my exams last semester, I allowed my friend Tam (who you probably remember from my previous semester's blog posts) to borrow my notes because in his own words "mine were better than his" and he thought that would help verify his comprehension. It is important to bear in mind that in a foreign country, "bad notes" do not necessarily represent a lazy note-taker, but possibly just a lower level of language comprehension. I figured no problem, since I really didn't need them until I was back in the States, and I let him borrow them, and gave him the address to where to post them after he was done. Well, he studied and took his exams, just one small problem, he left my notes in Scotland. Therefore he had to have his family find them and send them to him, then he packaged them up and sent them to me. I received them on Tuesday, and I can now finish preparing all my course descriptions, aka "syllabuses", for back at Miami. AHHH so much Miami homework looming over me. I am currently looking at:
- Syllabus creation for each courses taken abroad for which I want to receive credit
- Pre-return contact with each department chair to inform them of my plans and hear their perspectives on my propositions
- Actually receiving my transcripts and getting all my credits transferred...
- An essay for the Summer Tuition Waiver that I will be awarded this upcoming summer term, in which I need to talk about study abroad impacts on my character etc
- TWO essays for receiving Honors Credit based on my study abroad experience. (These are hard to write because I already wrote one for the first semester and I have to talk about the impact of a new culture on me, the change in my worldview, my interaction with those around me and my ongoing reflection during the experience, to give you an idea of some of the topics that I will have to discuss, for a 2nd and 3rd time...)
- A follow-up essay for the Gilman Scholarship that I received for study abroad
- 2 summer courses at Miami
- Preparation for Student Teaching in the Fall
- And probably something else that I simply can't think of right now.
4. Finally, on a slightly more "current events" note, I didn't have class today (because my classes are so sporadic) and I was able to attend the picnic in David's French class and even attend his class afterward. It was really a fun time and I got a great activity idea for something I can replicate in a French classroom back home. I talked to the professor about it and she was flattered that I was so interested in her activity.
Well I think that pretty much sums up my very busy life right now! Oh, except that we are having AWESOME weather almost everyday. Yay for living in Chambéry this semester!!
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