Нестерчук Анна Александровна
When one learns a new language, these discoveries become possible. I am as passionate about learning foreign languages as I am about foreign language teaching. Making sure that students in my foreign language classes are excited about the subject, comfortable interacting with a teacher and other students, as well as adequately challenged by a variety of activities, forms of learning, and assessment types is the essence of my pedagogy.
I firmly believe that a good rapport with students is a significant part of a successful learning process; having that rapport enables an instructor to create a safe and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their highest potential. As a teacher and as a person I am genuinely interested in an individual and collective success of my students, and I believe that eclectic approach to teaching allows me to create a dynamic, engaged classroom as well as to address different learning styles.
I also believe in creating a context, whether it is for a test, a grammar exercise or a speaking activity, that is relevant to students’ lives and interests. I want their knowledge to be practical and authentic, so I always ask myself, “Where, when and how would students use this in a real life?” and then create or modify activities to make them more meaningful.
I strongly believe that language and culture are intertwined, and incorporating culture into a foreign language classroom is of paramount importance. I am an advocate for using authentic materials on all levels of instruction, incorporating pragmatics into curriculum, as well as for encouraging students to explore the culture of the country of a target language through film and literature, art and proverbs, history and etiquette norms.
Finally, it has always been clear to me that no knowledge, skill or experience is final and sufficient. Teaching for me is an infinite learning process: I learn with my students, I learn from my colleagues, I experiment and adapt, I incorporate new technology and methodology, but most importantly I constantly reflect on my practice and students’ experiences and learn from our failure and success.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education from Yaroslavl State Pedagogical University, master’s degree in Linguistics and now I’m pursuing my second graduate degree in Curriculum and Instruction (World Language Education) from UW Madison. I am a certified Russian as a Foreign Language Instructor (Moscow State University).