Future Plans.

I figured I should probably also update my future plans, since a lot has happened in that department recently.

I have decided to go back to the States to get my Masters in education. I considered doing it in Germany but it would've involved a lot more jumping through hoops, would've taken a lot longer, and would not have offered me the same caliber of education in the specific field I want to study, namely, bilingual/bicultural education. This is not offered as a major subject of study in Germany, but rather as a sort of extra minor done in addition to whatever other subjects you're studying to be able to teach. It's really kind of sad because there's huge need to study and research this field and to prepare teachers for these kinds of classroom environments. Hopefully one day I'll be a part of helping German schools and universities become aware of the need for such programs. :)

Anyway, so that's the plan. I have currently been accepted to Masters programs at NYU and at the Monterey Institute, an affilitate of Middlebury College. I'm still waiting to hear from DePaul, and to find out what kind of scholarships they offer me. I have an idea of which one my first choice would be but I want to consider all the possibilities first.

Other future plans which are equally exciting but probably less "important" in the life-altering sense: I'm going to Turkey in April and I'm going to be in Amani's wedding in July. I'm super excited about both. The Turkey trip will be just shy of two weeks, and I'll spend about half of it in Istanbul and half of it in Ankara, hopefully with day trips between the two cities as I travel back and forth. I am so fortunate to have friends in both cities - the two Turkish TA's I had at Penn - and I really look forward to spending time with them, discovering more of Turkey and practicing my Turkish, which is not doing so well! :( I'm also really looking forward to Amani's wedding, being a bridesmaid for the first time (for an amazing friend, with some amazing friends!) and seeing Oregon for the first time. Only tricky part is ordering a dress and having it actually fit me when I get home less than a week before the wedding... Good thing my mom is a great seamstress!

In other news, I have started branching out a bit at school and trying to get more involved. I visited a 1st and 2nd grade class two weeks ago before our winter break, and next week I will go back again. (Most schools in Berlin are doing this thing where 1st and 2nd graders are mixed, and the older kids help the younger kids... Honestly I don't get it. Hopefully someone will explain it to me soon.) I also talked to one of the music teachers last week and I am going to start assisting in music class too, starting with 5b (my homeroom class) and then maybe also doing the other 5th grade classes. I'm very excited about it and the music teacher seems excited too.

Things at church are still a work in progress for me. I would appreciate prayers for that. Next weekend is a sort of retreat/lock-in for the preteen Bible class I help with. That should be fun but we need your prayers for that too!

Oh yes, and one other totally random story. The day of Obama's election, I got this random phone call at school. I called the guy back, and it was a TV station that wanted to interview me about the election and Obama's presidency. They needed Americans who could speak German well enough to be interviewed. It was a very interesting evening! First they were going to have me come to the studio, but then they sent me to a party that the station was covering - a party hosted by Democrats in Berlin and Republicans in Berlin or something like that. They ordered a cab for me and I got in free to this party at this pretty nice club-like place. The interview was short and I never actually saw it on TV, nor did the couple of friends who were watching for it. I have no idea if it actually aired. But it was nevertheless an interesting experience!

That's all the news I can think of for now.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone.
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