Aspiration Statement, check!

As this blog is just as much a place for others to keep in touch with me as it is a way for me to keep track of this crazy journey, I am including my aspiration statement that I just submitted to the Peace Corps offices in Moldova. This writing sample will be seen by the Peace Corps officers, as well as the school and government administrators in Moldova. Again, I know I am long winded. Deal with it!


ASPIRATION STATEMENT
Erin Flynn
Moldova
June 11th, 2009



The professional attributes that you plan to use, and what aspirations you hope to fulfill during your Peace Corps service

The professional attributes I plan to use in this position are many. First, as a teacher of the English Language, I will need to draw on the skills I possess as an English speaker and then find an efficient way to pass this knowledge on to others. Second, I will use the training and experience I have gained as a teacher or volunteer in the past. In particular my time spent teaching English in Thailand has provided me with a firsthand understanding of what it is like to be in a foreign classroom setting. Although every experience is different, I think that this will help me possess the confidence I need to be a successful teacher. Aside from my experience as a teacher of the English language, I also possess many years of working experience in a professional business setting. These years of experience have taught me many lessons from how to manage my time and work load to how to manage professional relationships in the work place. I think this experience will come in handy in a team teaching setting.

As a Peace Corps volunteer my main objective is to fulfill the mission of the Peace Corps and to best serve the people of Moldova. Specifically the task that I have been assigned is to teach people how to speak English. I am very happy to be given this job because I believe that a profession in teaching is something that I may pursue upon my return. I come from a family full of teachers, and I have found in my experiences to date that I am very comfortable in a classroom. Therefore, one of my main aspirations is to become a successful teacher, and to provide my students and the community with the knowledge they need to achieve their goals and fulfill their dreams. Another side of my professional aspirations is to gain an extensive knowledge of the people and the culture of Moldova during my 27 months spent living in their country. This is part of the Peace Corps mission, but also a personal benefit in my view. I look forward to learning lessons on life by being exposed to a culture and community that is different from my own. I think that these lessons will be invaluable and hope to carry them with me for the rest of my life. I also look forward to the friendships and bonds that will be created both with the people of my community and school and with my fellow Peace Corps volunteers. If after 27 months living and working with the people of Moldova I can walk away saying that I have impacted their lives in as positive a way as they have mine, then my mission will be fulfilled.




Your strategies for working effectively with host country partners to meet expressed need

I think that when working with others in any professional setting, your first priority should always be mutual respect. Not only treating your coworkers with the upmost respect, but also conducting yourself in a way that commands respect from them. As I will be foreign to this situation in so many ways, I plan to lean on my host country partner as much as possible. He or she will be my primary source of knowledge about the way the school is operated and the way the classroom is set up for learning. Not only will he or she be a great resource and role model for me in the classroom, but I’m sure will also be a great source of knowledge on the ways of life in Moldova. It will be vital to have a person to go to with the many questions that I am sure will arise as I start to get the hang of things. I will do my best to impart any skills that I possess in return for their support, whether this means assistance with the English Language, or contributing some aspect of my professional experience that could be useful in the classroom.

I am actually very pleased that I will be working with a country partner during my service. I’m sure there will be some obstacles to overcome as we get to know each other, but it seems important to be able to form this kind of bond with one of the teachers in my school. I think it will be vital in my ultimate acceptance into the community of staff and administrators with in my school. The last time I worked in a school teaching English as a second language in Thailand I had a very difficult time with this. The foreign teachers had a separate staff room, ate at separate tables during lunch, and tended to separate themselves from the Thai teachers. I know that this experience is going to be very different from my last; I am not trying to compare the two. I am simply trying to express my favor this team teaching setup, and reiterate my commitment to make this partnership a success. My strategy to achieve this goal is to be kind, courteous, patient, and respectful of the person I will be placed with. I will work hard and do my best to contribute not only my share, but also everything that is within my reach to the classroom setting. I will keep an open mind, a light heart, and always apply a sense of humor to my dealings with others.

C. Your strategies for adapting to a new culture with respect to your own cultural
Background

No two people are the same just like no two cultures are the same. When I made the decision to apply to the Peace Corps, I knew that no matter where I was sent I would be dealing with a culture very different from my own. There was never any doubt that adjustments would need to be made on my part. Knowing this ahead of time, my strategy is to possess as little expectation and assumption of this experience as possible. After all, how is it possible to make assumptions about a place that I have never been? About a people I have never met? I know that there will be a million changes from the part of the world I leave when I get on that plane to the part that I discover when I arrive. I also know that no matter what I do to prepare for these changes, I could never be fully prepared. Therefore my strategy is to keep my mind as open as possible and just let the changes occur. The more open my mind is, the more room there is to absorb all of the changes around me. I will not judge, nor say this is different from home. Obviously it is different from home, it is not home. It was my decision to make this journey and to leave home behind; therefore I know that I am to expect a life very different from my home.

When I arrive and these changes begin to occur, I plan to smile, be polite, respectful, and aware, and as each day passes begin to fit in a little bit more and more to the new life I have begun. When times are difficult, or I start to feel lonely and far away from home, I will remember the reason why I left in the first place, and realize that if I look, a friend will never be too far away. I will do my best to take the life that I have lived up to this point, and while still keeping hold of the person that I am, find a way to fuse myself into a mixture of the old me and the new to come. I hope to become someone who can remember where she came from, but have the freedom and flexibility to adapt and develop into the person that she will become. This person will be largely affected by my experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer. Speaking more on a specific level, again I will keep my mind as open as possible to everything I should encounter. I will try new food, listen to new music, engage in new topics of conversation, and see what I have to offer the people of Moldova in return for everything that I am sure they will be offering to me.

The skills and knowledge you hope to gain during pre-service training to best serve your future community and project

I recognize that the pre service training is a very vital part of the Peace Corps service on many levels. It will be the first stop in this long journey and will serve so many purposes. First, it will be my first exposure to my new home, and will assist in my transition into daily life in Moldova. It will provide me with a system of support and a network of people that I will be able to count on during my time abroad. I believe that this will help make the transition a little bit easier and more comfortable. Also, within this group of new people I will be meeting I hope to form some friendships and start to build a foundation with my fellow Peace Corps volunteers and country officers. I will be meeting people and making friends and forming support systems on all levels. I will have a place to go and people to ask the million questions that I am sure will come to me when I arrive. I think that this first and foremost will be beneficial to my personal growth and transition into becoming a Peace Corps volunteer. It will provide a buffer between my life in America and my life in Moldova which will help diminish the shock of my new surroundings.

Secondly, I will rely on my pre service training to equip me with the skills I will need to perform my job to the best of my abilities. These skills will be wide-reaching on many levels, but I believe that they will be vital to my success once I reach my placement. Learning about the culture, customs, traditions and history of my new community will be integral to understanding its citizens and to finding a place for myself within this community. Without this vital training period, I think that I would have a much harder time adapting to the people and culture of Moldova. Personally, I know that I always feel a little bit nervous when I go to a foreign country that I have never been to before. I worry that I will do something offensive or strange to the people of that country to make a bad impression, and will not be accepted into the community. I feel fortunate to have the privilege of learning from the Peace Corps community which already exists in Moldova, as I am sure I will find their expertise and experiences invaluable. I believe that the pre service training will take a lot of stress and pressure off of me by teaching me about the culture and the customs and Moldova, so I don’t have to worry about finding out the hard way.

Thirdly and perhaps most importantly, are the obvious benefits that language training will provide me with. After all, if I can not communicate with the local people at my placement it will be very difficult to achieve my goals and perform my duties. I realize that the process of learning a new language is not an easy one. I am sure it will take time, and I will do my best to be patient and not become frustrated with my progress. That said, I will need to start somewhere and I think that the three months of pre service training will provide me with a solid foundation to feel comfortable enough to enter my community and have the skills and abilities to communicate with others. I am sure that my days will find a way to fill up very quickly once my service starts so I am glad to have the opportunity to devote a great portion of my attention and energy to learning as much of the language (whether it be Romanian, Russian, or both) as is possible.

How you think Peace Corps service will influence your personal and professional aspirations after your service ends.

This is a difficult question because I don’t think I will ever know the limit of the opportunities that will be opened up for me as a result of my Peace Corps service. I expect that I will be affected by this experience in some way for the rest of my life. In fact I know rpcv’s who are back from service for 40 years and are still involved in many ways in fulfilling the Peace Corps mission. Therefore, I believe the effects of this service will be continuously changing and growing throughout my lifetime.

That said, in the more immediate future, I have some ideas as to how this journey will affect the next steps of my life. First, I would like to apply for the master’s international program upon my return, and if all goes well gain a master’s degree in education. This program is a wonderful opportunity to go back to school at an affordable price, while working and having a positive effect on the community in which I am living. I realize that a lot of things may change over my 27 months spent in Moldova, and I believe that an experience like this teaches you a lot about yourself and what you want out of life. If after two years working as a teacher, I decide that this is not the right path for me, I have faith that my experiences in Moldova will open up a lot a lot of doors for me. These doors will be of both personal and professional in nature. On a personal level I hope that my experiences and accomplishments over the 27 months will lead me to gain an understanding of life in a way that I didn’t possess before. On a professional level, I believe that many jobs will see a term as a Peace Corps volunteer as a very positive life and work experience that will afford me with a competitive advantage when seeking out and applying for jobs.

Overall, no matter what my service is like, I believe that it will affect me so deeply and completely that the effects will be with me for the rest of my life. If I can immerse myself in my service, and take away the lessons that life will teach me over these 27 months, I know that the extent of what I can aspire to achieve will never end. I think that the skills, knowledge, and life experience I gain in the Peace Corps will shape the rest of my career. But not just my career - everything I do in life. If I can carry the lessons I learn and the qualities that I gain with me through out my life no matter what I am doing, I will be able to spread these gifts everywhere I go. To me, this is what being a Peace Corps volunteer is all about.