Hungarian Teacher and Cultural Ambassador in American High School

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Abstract (max. 250 words):
“Increasing mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries through the exchange of persons, knowledge, and skills” is the main goal of the Fulbright Programs.
As a grantee of the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange program teaching English Literature at an American high school this academic year, it is also my mission to be a cultural ambassador of Hungary. Meeting rigorous high school curriculum requirements, raising teenagers’ interests to the “world out there”, and discovering the best ways to share my home culture present me with a real, but rewarding challenge. It involves leaving room for questions, finding the right times and venues to tell about national holidays, celebrations, and cultural treasures; discovering parallels between Greek mythology, Shakespeare, contemporary American writers and Hungarian literature, and presenting all these in ways that add to the learning experience, and ultimately to the life of American teenagers. My goal is to show students that the world is far bigger than they know it, and they have a chance to get to know more of it. I wish to do this through the culture and literature of my home country, in ways that are relevant to the students, and could last longer than preparing for a test. Being an exchange teacher, I have the outstanding opportunity to do all these in a setting that allows American students and teachers to connect with Hungarian students and teachers, both on- and off-line.

Equipment needed: projector (power point)


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Orsolya Szili graduated in 2004 as MA in English Literature and Linguistics at Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem in Budapest, and has a postgraduate degree in Translation and Interpretation from the University of Pécs. Since 2004, she has been teaching English as a foreign language in Veres Pálné Gimnázium in Downtown Budapest, worked as a temporary instructor for the Translation Program of ELTE, teaching “Literary Translation Criticism” and “Interpretation” courses, and translated four books. She is one of 28 teachers participating in the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange Program in 2013-14, and teaches English at Great Valley High School in Malvern, Pennsylvania.