教师特征:博士. 杰西卡·米勒，威斯康星州年度最佳语言教师

Dr. 杰西卡·米勒, 他是威斯康星大学欧克莱尔分校的法语教授, has been named the 2024 Teacher of the Year by the Wisconsin Association For Language Teachers.

语言系法语部主任, Miller has been teaching all levels of French at UW-Eau Claire since 2006 and has been a nationally certified language proficiency tester since 2015. She received the Wisconsin-American Association of Teachers of French (AATF) Award of Recognition 为 professional dedication in 2016. 在她的领导下, the UW-Eau Claire French section has been recognized twice as a National AATF Exemplary Program (2017 and 2020).

米勒获得了博士学位.D. 伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校的法语语言学教授. Her professional interests include second language acquisition, phonetics and oral proficiency.

“Receiving the title of Wisconsin Language Teacher of the Year is an immense honor. 在11月初的年会上, my peers recognized me as someone who makes a positive impact in the field of language teaching,米勒说。.

“这是一个令人惊叹的时刻，原因有二. 第一个, to be in a room with colleagues at all different stages of their careers was both humbling and uplifting. 我觉得我真的是一个致力于教育的支持性团队的一员. 其次，我感到精力充沛，因为我还有很多东西要向这个团队学习. 这个奖项肯定了我对教学职业的长期承诺.”

We met up with Miller to congratulate her on this recognition and to learn more about her career path and about being part of this campus and community.

是什么让你从事教学工作的? 告诉我们你的道路.

我在法国斯特拉斯堡长大，一直对语言很感兴趣. 到我上高中的时候，我已经学会了德语、英语和西班牙语. In college, I majored in English and started a part-time job teaching English to children. It was a rough learning curve, as I had never taught be为e and received little training. 那时候，我觉得教书这个职业不适合我. 我在斯特拉斯堡大学的第二年, 我申请去美国留学一年.S. 我被录取了，我一直住在美国.S. 自从. I was able to complete my English degree with my hometown’s university while in the U.S. and started grad school with an assistantship right away at Saint Louis University. 我成为了一名助教，从此开始了我的教学生涯. 获得硕士学位后，我继续攻读博士学位.D. 在伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校. 在那里, 我的教学职责增加了, 我在第二语言习得方面的训练也是如此, 还有我对语言教育的兴趣. 学生们似乎觉得我的课很有帮助，也很愉快, and I found motivation in creating effective lesson plans that incorporated my home culture.

What’s one thing you want every student coming into your classes to know about you? 

我想让他们知道我曾经面对过, 继续面对, 他们作为语言学习者所面临的挑战是一样的. Speaking a language that is not your native language is difficult and intimidating. 你永远无法完全控制自己说的话, 你的话会被怎样解释, 听众会如何看待你. 我也犯过尴尬的错误! I want my students to know that I understand firsthand this fear of making mistakes, 我想帮助他们克服这一障碍. 

What is something you’ve worked on at UW-Eau Claire that you’re especially passionate about?

I’ve been very interested in universal design 为 learning lately and have done my best to apply the principles of this framework to my teaching. My goal is to create inclusive and accessible learning experiences to address the needs of all students. 例如, I pay attention to how I present in为mation in class and on Canvas so that students have easy access to everything they need to succeed. 因为我是第一代, low-income college student myself and did not always understand unwritten rules of higher education, 我对在每个人都能接触到的课堂上取得成功充满热情.

作为威斯康星大学欧克莱尔分校社区的一员，你最喜欢的是什么?

威斯康星大学欧克莱尔分校的社区规模似乎刚刚好. Not too big 为 someone to get lost in a crowd, but not too small to get bored. 我喜欢在校内外偶遇熟悉的面孔, and I admit I cannot stop myself from speaking French to my students when I spot them “in the wild”! The size of our community makes it friendly, but so do our campus’ ef为ts toward inclusivity. I enjoy meeting students with varied backgrounds, vibrant identities and aspirations of all kinds.

你觉得语言教学最独特的方面是什么? 什么能给你的工作带来最大的回报? 

Something I believe is distinctive about teaching language is the way we get to know our students from the start of working together in class. Learning a language is all about communication and meeting the learners where they are in acquiring that language. 它从初学者开始，沟通是澳门葡京网赌送彩金自我的. 我们首先学会用最基本的术语谈论自己. 然后是中级水平, 内容的泡沫扩大到不仅仅包括自我, 还有家庭和社区. At the highest levels, language learners can use their skills to exchange much more abstract ideas. 从我们交往的开始, 我们在个人层面上相互了解, 我认为并非所有学科都是如此. 

如果你没有成为一名教师，你会做什么来谋生?

我上大学的时候, I considered becoming a translator and was especially interested in film subtitles because I loved British cinema. My hometown is also one of the three European capitals and home of the European Parliament, 哪里有大约700名翻译工作, 这是另一种选择.

当你不在校园的时候，你最喜欢去欧克莱尔的哪个地方?

I love the parks and trails around Eau Claire and enjoy biking and walking around town. I live on the Eastside Hill where I help maintain the prairie at Boyd Park with a small group of dedicated nature enthusiasts. 我们主要种植本地植物，清除外来物种. 在大草原后面有一片树林，那是我最喜欢的地方之一. 一条狭窄的小径蜿蜒流过欧克莱尔河. 它是如此的宁静和美丽. The atmosphere changes through the seasons, each one bringing new visual interest.

你在学术阅读之外读的最后一本书是什么? 你能推荐一下吗??

Manon Desveaux和Lou Lubie的《澳门葡京网赌送彩金》, 是一本澳门葡京网赌送彩金两个年轻女人通过电子邮件成为朋友的法国漫画小说. 一个住在加拿大，另一个住在法国. They both must make life-changing decisions and help each other out despite the distance. I recommend it not only because the story is engaging and the illustrations beautiful, 尤其是因为它强调合作的力量. 两位作者分别描绘了一个不同的人物. 结果，两种不同的绘画风格最终和谐地融合在一起. 这让我想起了法语老师. We can feel isolated at times because we can’t easily cooperate with colleagues on campus since we teach in French. This book reminded me of my successful collaborations with other language teachers in and outside of Wisconsin, 远至韩国.