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I began studying French during my
undergraduate studies in 2009 and earned a minor in French and Francophone
Studies in 2012. Over the course of this three-year period, I studied abroad
for 8 months, 4 of which were spent between 6 French-speaking countries
throughout West Africa, Senegal included. I also participated in a no-credit Wolof
class taught by my Senegalese French professor for one semester.
In 2013, I moved to Montreal, Canada in
preparation for working in Cameroon, a bilingual country speaking French and
English. In Montreal, I took an intensive French course for 8 weeks. In
addition to my schedule of 32 lessons a week, my experience was enhanced with an
Afro-Canadian homestay. While in Cameroon, I was able to attain working
proficiency in Pidgin English, a local language also known as Creole, after just
6 months of immersion. This was done through active listening, participation
and complete immersion.
Domestically, I will be attending 8 weeks of
French and Wolof. In French, I currently test as a 2+ and a 0 in Wolof
according to the ILR scale used by Boren. By the end of my time in Florida, my
overall goal is to reach ILR 3/3+ and ILR 1, respectively. In addition to
attending every class, I will focus on improving my pronunciation and my
vocabulary, specifically verbs and adjectives. I will insure this goal is
accomplished by using new vocabulary daily in my language classes and
conversations. The 2015 AFLI Summer Intensive Program Schedule shows a 3-hour
time slot for conversation, yet only 1 hour is required. I will take advantage
of this extra time by having additional conversations.
During my language study in Dakar I will be able
to use my new language skills full time. My first goal, which will be
accomplished on a day-to-day basis, is to remain an active listener at all
times. As mentioned previously, this skill proved highly valuable when learning
Pidgin English. In Senegal, I still have several friends from my visit in 2011
who will enable total immersion and active participation with both French and
Wolof. My other two daily goals will be speaking only in Wolof and
French to my host family and keeping a small notebook with me to write down new
words I hear throughout my day. By the end of this 4-month period I will be
confident and flowing in my French conversations, rarely hesitating to find
vocabulary, ILR 4. My Wolof conversations will have pauses and some errors, but
I will be able to hold conversations about topics I am familiar with, ILR 1+/2.
In my final months as a Boren Fellow, working
with Tostan and conducting research will enable me to achieve ILR 4+/5 in
French and ILR 2+/3 in Wolof. I will be able to conduct qualitative interviews
in French with very limited need of a translator.
After the fellowship is complete, I plan to use and improve my language skills during my federal service requirement and throughout my career with the US government. These language skills are ideal as an employee of USAID, Bureau of African Affairs or several other agencies that do work with French and Wolof speaking populations. In addition to the workplace, most mid-sized towns have French groups that meet for conversations and are easily found online. Because of my proficiency level, I will begin to read novels and scholarly journals in French. There are also online newspapers written in Wolof that will not only enable me to keep my proficiency but it will also encourage me to continue learning new vocabulary. Depending on my location, I may be able to locate native Wolof speakers to meet with as well.
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