Acquiring a second or foreign language is truly a journey and process that ceases to end that greatly depends upon

the determination and passion on behalf of the learner; as well as the effective instruction that is given. When reflecting back on my language journey, or biography, the first memorable feelings were that of curiosity and reverence. My best friend and I were listening to a Spanish song that Cristina Aguilera was signing and I was amazed! I wanted to know what she was saying and amazed how beautiful it sounded. Since that initial spark I had with Spanish I would classify my language biography in three vital chapters which include: secondary education, studying abroad, and teaching. When I reflect on the first chapter of my second language acquisition in high school, I was both inspired by an effective Spanish educator whose personality and teaching style I admired immensely. This particular educator was able to spark my interest in the Spanish language by making learning enjoyable. Often she would share stories that related to culture or share her time living in Spain. In addition, I faced challenges in terms of overcoming an educator who was sarcastic and unmotivated to provide a positive learning environment for myself and fellow classmates. That being said, there was without a doubt an immense desire within myself that I felt when conducting an interview with a native Spanish speaker which in turn gave me the self-confidence to pursue Spanish education in college. The second crucial chapter I consider part of my second language acquisition journey took place during my undergraduate studies at Illinois State University. After my freshman year, I declared teaching secondary education as my major and also decided to pursue teaching foreign language of Spanish. Thanks to the encouragement and support of Dr. Pao, one of many professors, I applied for the study abroad placement in Spain and that decision was one of the best decisions of my life. Prior to the study abroad trip, I still struggled in my speaking abilities and tended to be a bit anxious before speaking. Illinois State gave me the opportunity of a lifetime to live and study abroad in Madrid, Spain. I had the privilege to be

an international student at La Universidad Complutense de Madrid and experienced Spanish culture firsthand when living with my Spanish host family. All four courses that I enrolled in at la Universidad Complutense de Madrid shared commonalities in terms of the activities and teaching styles of the professors that I feel help my second language acquisition inside the classroom. The vast majority of activities/classroom tasks were interpretive, interpersonal, or presentational modes of communication. I remember in my Conversation course, I would often participate in many role-play scenarios with classmates which were both enjoyable and effective. Due to the fact that I studied abroad for half of a year, I had to take placement tests prior to starting any classes. After the completion of the first three months I was astonished to see how much I had improved since I arrived in Spain. I credit the dedicated Spanish professors and also my self-determination as the reason for my overall progress. It is immensely difficult to articulate in words how the study abroad immersion program vastly enhanced my overall sense of global citizenship. The third chapter in my language biography has been and still currently is in progress; which is how I implement effective teaching strategies and techniques to my students as an educator. In the fall of 2008 I began my third chapter of my language journey, my teaching experience, when I accepted a teaching position at Joliet West High School which is located in a suburb of Chicago, IL. Since then, I have completed six years of teaching experience and will starting my seventh year this upcoming fall. While this chapter is yet still open and ongoing, my current graduate school studies is both a commitment to myself and to my students that I push myself to develop as an educator. Since my enrollment in the graduate program at Southern Mississippi University last spring, I have felt empowered in my own content knowledge; as well as various language pedagogies and methods. Constantly, I am looking to improve upon what I provide to my students second language acquisition. I understand that this chapter in my personal journey of second language acquisition will be a

continuous process and Ill never know it all or have it all figured out. The key element is being self-aware that knowledge is power and that while I am exposing students to effective instruction, there is always room for improvement! Lastly, I have reflected significantly on how I best learned the second language of Spanish and also how my own learning has in turned impacted my students. There are inevitable challenges that face second language learners that are pursuing to acquire a second language that can feel both intimidating and overwhelming. However, as I reflect on how I was successful in my language journey it can be attributed to: self-determination, effective SLA instruction, immersion experience, and the continual use of Spanish. The ability to speak Spanish has not only allowed me to communicate with Spanish speaking students and their families, but it has given me an outlook on other cultures that I fully believe I would not have if I only was monolingual.