02- Harvard- MA in Education个人陈述

As one of the millions of Chinese high schoolers, most of my high school education was about the preparation of the college entrance examination. I was admitted to a university with one of the best electrical engineering and computer science(EECS)programs in China because science has been the most popular field in the Chinese education system and EESC is probably one of the most promising majors for a secure job in parents' view. I knew what it meant to have a high score in high school physics class, but I had no idea of what it meant to major in electronic physics, let alone to have a career in EECS.

With both uncertainty and curiosity, I started my four years in college. I still learned well in all my classes like in high school. However, I found myself resonated less and less with what I was learning as the study advanced into the core part of the major here was only one thing that I enjoyed: the English reading assignments. It was required to read a certain quantity of major-related articles and books as a supplement to the core courses. Commonly, students would skim the materials with a general understanding so they could spend more time in core courses. 

On the contrary, I found it very enjoyable to go through the readings in details since even the same physical theory was described in a different way in English than by my Chinese instructor.  I gradually tended to linger more on the language used by authors and contemplate how it would translate into Chinese. After many years, it occurs to me that this was probably because Physics and English were my strongest subjects in high school with the highest scores among all subjects in the college entrance exam. Even though I was still reading the English materials in Physics, I did not realize I already walked into the junction of the two. Neither that I changed my path from one to the other as it unfolded in the years to come

My unexpected appetite for the English language was further fed when I joined the translation team of the Michael Caleb Christian Church in Chengdu. This turned out to be the most rewarding and fun experience I had in my college years. I helped my American friends communicate with households when we went out to ask for donations, as well as local people when we gave out food and clothes. I also enjoyed a lot of the trips to collect trashes and protect the environment of the community. My oral English was greatly improved during these interactions. I even picked up a few English jokes from my colleagues. Most importantly, I began to feel the power of language of connecting people from diverse backgrounds. Even today, I am still in touch with some of my teammates and we often exchange thoughts on langue cultural differences.

Encouraged by the translation team, I decided to take on my new journey : help other Chinese students improve English. I started by tutoring my friends in college for free.But I received their appreciation which meant a lot to me. Moreover, the great amount of teaching practice strengthened my confidence and motivation to become a real English teacher. As China's economy develops and the access to studying abroad opens up , there are a rapidly increasing demand on TOEFL training for youngstudents in urban areas of China. Also as a student who grew up in the city of Chengdu, one of the largest cities in China, I witnessed many of my generation including myself limited by choices of education and a lack of education on making the choice, I decided to be a TOEFL teacher to help more students like me to have a better possibility of education, With obtaining full score in the reading section of the TOEFL test in my first trial, I was selected to teach TOEFL reading in the VIP Program by the New Oriental Education Technology Group. It was still a challenge because the clients were not my friends in college anymore and I was not from linguistics or English major. I reached out to my mentor, went through my plans before every lesson and asked for feedback. I also sat in his and many other senior instructors' classes to have a tangible sense of different teaching styles. In retrospect today, I deeply appreciate the guidance my mentor and other colleagues gave me at the beginning of my career.

The strong support and rich resources at New Oriental unleashed my passion forEnglish and English education. I have attended over 50 teacher training sessions, 60teaching workshops and taught over 100 classes with more than a thousand students. I also designed over 10 curriculums and teaching plans of different pilot programs together with my team. With my expertise in teaching TOEFL, reading, I developed a system of"Read to Learn"to improve the students' efficiency of reading in English. I want to take every chance of involving and improving myself in teaching English and reproducing knowledge to my students. It is a great fulfilment when my students tell me they have improved their scores of the test or that they would like me to explain beyond what they have learned in class because they find it helpful and want to know more. It is also a lot of fun to me when they find their instructor listen to the same type of music and watch similar shows after class, even though he is very focused in class with dark humor here and there.

During the 4 years of teaching TOEFL at New Oriental, I have always reminded myself: I am not teaching TOEFL for the sake of the test. Score will be history once the students arrive. But it is the skills they learn, the knowledge they build and the friends they make along their journey of learning English that will keep them company. Read to learn what is beyond the idea of an article, read to learn what is beyond the words of a person, read to learn what is beyond the world in front of you,is the ability that will carry us a long way.

However, how to teach"read to learn what is beyond or the analytical teaching as I term, is the most difficult in education. Not only does it take self-motivation, it also requires an environment of cultivation, as what my mentor did to me. It certainly cannot be achieved by one teacher or one student. The Teacher Education Program at Harvard provides the best environment for what I can learn and achieve. The diverse and abundant year-round activities offered in the program are the best resources to stay in touch with the latest studies and reevaluate my understanding in teaching and learning the English language. Over 50 active student organizations in the School of Education will provide such great dynamics in academic interactions across campus Catching a free lecture from the greatest educators or leaders in the world is a luxury of education. The in-class and out-of-class interactions with both the best faculty and peers will be a constantly learning process.

From bumping into a science university to settling down in the English teaching career, my life and my career have come to a second junction: go back to school. To start from the pedagogies, reflect what I did and did not do in my learning and teaching of the English language, break it down again with peers and mentors, and to be cultivated.