Language, society and culture. Reflection.

As future teachers, and future models as well, not only will we have to deal with a society that demands more and more from Teachers everyday, but also with uninterested students who go to school just because they have to. There has been a lot of discussion in the past months on how Education should be like from now on in Chile, how Teachers should teach, what contents the students should learn and so on, but, is it just our job as Teachers?

Quality has been one of the key concepts which have been in the spotlight ever since strikes took over our peaceful country some months ago and we, Pedagogy students, may have the answer. As a teacher-to-be I strongly believe that if we want an education of quality, it must be achieved working together, for the many, not for the few. We, all, are the elements that take part in the teaching process.

As English Teachers, we will be teaching a very powerful tool: language. It is a very strong gun if used correctly, it is, in a way, the first impression we make and a first impression is only made once. So, the better you are at it, the better you will do in life.

If we want our educational system heading to excellence, we should be the first ones on giving the first step as future educators by understanding that we all are important parts of this process and if we, as a society, understand that, strikes or marches would no longer be necessary. Sometimes, we are just to obsessed trying to learn the elements that make other cultures, such as the English Culture, unique because we are in the process of learning a language and inevitably, we will have to learn a bit of its culture. However, we are part of a very different society and it was while going through the document that I realized how little we, and specially English Teachers-to-be, cherish the marvelous and unique elements our society possess.

It is true, when you learn a new language, the process of getting in touch with its culture is almost impossible, in our case globalization, media mass or music have guided us, whether we like it or not, to pay attention to other processes, far away from us, taking for granted our own roots and attitudes as Chilean citizens.

I think this summary helped me to develop the capacity to analyze the values of a culture of English speaking people. This is one of the objectives of the British Culture Course. After realizing how much I try to know more and more about foreign cultures, I had forgotten that my students will not be as keen on knowing facts about the British culture. In the end, as a teacher-to-be, I will have to deal with all classes of students, some of them may like another cultures, some of them may not, but to all and to each, Chilean Culture will always be that common characteristics that unite us all.

Perhaps if we start caring less about foreign matters and start caring more about our own culture, educational problems will be a piece of cake in the future.