Recently I spent one week in Sunyani, Ghana doing service learning as a part of UA in Ghana. Being a French major, my service learning placement was shadowing a French teacher at a local Montessori school where I observed her teach the language while interacting with students and speaking French with them! The teacher and I then would evaluate the different classrooms, discussing ways to encourage students to learn French and truly enjoy learning a foreign language.
At the end of the week, I observed “Open Day”, which is essentially parent-teacher conference day. It was so special meeting the parents of the students I’d been working with, and I even made an amazing connection with one woman who studied at the University in Akron in Ohio, which is the state I’m from! We exchanged contacts, and I had the opportunity to discuss education in the United States compared to Ghana with her, which was a pretty amazing conversation to have.
Overall, the service learning in Sunyani has been one of the most impactful experiences I’ve had in my life. It was truly special to share my passion for the French language with students, and hopefully instill that same love for language in them. Furthermore, I found that I learned so much more about French from being in the classroom and seeing it taught to younger students on a more basic level. All in all, this week was a truly unforgettable experience that I never would have had if I didn’t choose to study abroad in Ghana!
