Hello and Welcome to my E-portfolio!
Education has always been a great important part in my life. I have seen how education can change my life and people’s life in a better way. Most of my lifetime goes around schools and universities. Going to schools makes me feel like home. Working with children brings me joy, peace, and sweet surprises; thus, I chose teaching as my career.
I graduated from Hanoi National University of Education with a Master of Arts degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Linguistics and Literature. I worked as a lecturer at Hanoi Pedagogical University 2 in Vietnam for four years teaching students who would become primary teachers. I majored in Teaching Methodology and Teaching Vietnamese. I travelled across the North of Vietnam observing and supporting teachers to improve their teaching. I worked mostly with the primary teachers teaching students coming from minority ethnic groups in Vietnam which language and economic status became their main barriers. I realized that education brought better chances for ethnic students in Vietnam to choose their future jobs. This encouraged me as an educator to keep moving forward on the education path.
Education has brought me my characteristics and the opportunity to have the life I would love to have. I remember vividly how kind and patient my first-grade teacher was to me when I learned to write letters and numbers. She also built in me the joy and excitement of learning and being curious about new things in life. Interestingly, she always encouraged her students to travel to see the world and experience the diversity. I was inspired by that to go abroad. I came to Canada to pursue the PhD program in Linguistics at University of Manitoba and graduated in February 2021. From that, I have learnt the important role of primary teachers as they shape the identity and thinking of future citizens. This motivates me to become a primary teacher to create the same kinds of opportunities that I had to other kids.
For me, teaching does not mean simply passing knowledge to students but being a friend to listen to them and a guide to support them achieve academic and life skills. I have seen the students who came to school with their sad eyes could leave behind their sadness and engage actively in school activities thanks to their passionate and dedicate teachers. I strongly believe that those teachers could bring their students happiness, security, trust, and confidence to overcome their problems and later the students could create similar things to the world they live in. Those teachers also became the inspiring examples for me to follow their steps in teaching primary students.
As an immigrant, I have experienced being the minority in Canada, which taught me to be patient, persistent, and determined in studying and working. Enrolling in the Bachelor of Education program at University of Northern British Columbia has offered me a chance to fulfil my dream, becoming a primary teacher in Canada. I am excited to learn and teach, continuing pursue teaching as my lifelong career and bring differences to Northern BC schools. I would like to share my education journey with you through my E-portfolio.
All the best,
Trang Nguyen
