Alumna Ashton Sanders shares how pursuing a BEd in French Second Language Education after completing a BA in French Studies helped her land her dream career in the field of French Education.
Source: Unsplash / @thisisengineering
Name: Ashton Sanders
Career: Learning Specialist, SelfDesign Learning Foundation
Education:
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in French Studies, 2016
Bachelor of Education (BEd) in French Second Language Education, 2017 – Secondary, Core French, International Baccalaureate
Education
“This close-knit community feeling was something I found once again in the French program at UBC.”
I was in the French Immersion program from K-12 and loved the close-knit community of students and teachers we had. This close-knit community feeling was something I found once again in the French program at UBC. I was fortunate to take classes from the same professors more than once and to be able to create strong relationships and connections with them. This was my favourite thing about my experience!
I am still very close friends with many of the students who were in my BA and BEd programs. My teacher mentor is still someone I speak to regularly and reach out to when I am in search of advice.
Career
“Be willing to take risks and try new things; you never know what you may discover or what path it may lead to!”
First career after graduating: I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. The best decision I made was pushing myself to try new things and take risks, like applying for the International Baccalaureate (IB) program option through the BEd program. It led me to land my dream job right after graduation as a Core French and IB Middle Years Program (MYP)/Diploma Program (DP) Languages teacher.
Career evolution: Since graduating, I have changed career paths, but am still focused on education. After a year of teaching high school, an opportunity to work for an online independent school in BC landed at my feet and I took it! I started as a French language teacher, then moved to French course development. Now I am the project development lead for a brand new online school! One of the biggest challenges I faced when launching my career was finding the right position that fit my educational values and goals. However, with patience and hard work, I was able to find the perfect job.
Favourite aspects: The best part of my current job as a Learning Specialist at SelfDesign Learning Foundation is that I get to be creative and come up with solutions to solve problems related to online education and learning. The skills I learned from both my BA in French Studies and BEd in French have taught me the ability to think critically, solve problems and work with a team.
Value of a BEd in French: The biggest value of having a BEd specialization in French is the incredible job opportunities available all across BC, Canada and the globe. This specialization has opened many doors for me, and I believe will continue to do so throughout my career.
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Ashton Sanders has donated her prize for best LLED alumni profile to the One To One Children’s Literacy Program.
