Faculty Excellence at UMUC

Interviewer:

Please tell us about yourself—what made you decide to teach at UMUC? What kind of work do you do when you are not teaching at UMUC? Are there any life experiences that have influenced your teaching at UMUC? If so, please share one story.

Molly Affleck

I was always interested – even in high school - in  languages, German in particular. That was one of the reasons that, after  studying  for two years at Whitman College, I went overseas to study abroad for my junior  year in Munich, Germany. During that time I decided  to continue my university studies in Germany  and to major in German literature at the Ludwig  Maximillians University  in Munich. As a  student in Munich in the 1970s, I heard about  the University of Maryland in Europe. Its  Munich Campus was situated in the southern part of the city from 1950 to 1992. After graduating from the Ludwig  Maximillians University  in Munich, I applied for a teaching position at  the University of Maryland and over 31 years ago started teaching my  first class in Hanau, Germany in Pioneer Kaserne. I  remember the class vividly, mainly because it was very rewarding. It is still a  great experience to teach German in Germany,  since students realize that this is an extraordinary opportunity to learn  German while living in Germany.  The absolutely best language lab right outside the door is the German-speaking  world. In addition, UMUC-Europe is the only institution that has years of  experience developing the German language program tailored to Americans living  and stationed in Europe, and it is important to keep this tradition alive.
       
I teach many courses at UMUC – onsite in Mannheim  and Wiesbaden,  and I am presently teaching an upper-level distance education German language  course. Teaching a distance education language course requires time, commitment,  and dedication. It is definitely a challenge which I like, but it does not  leave any extra time for other work. This suits me well because I really do enjoy  my work with UMUC.

Interviewer:

How would you describe your teaching style or philosophy? What experiences or person(s) have influenced your style or philosophy?

Molly Affleck

My teaching style reflects my teaching philosophy. Learning  a foreign language is a skill. In addition to requiring this skill, students  have to be able to understand that they augment and improve their insight into  something as complex as a foreign language. I enjoy teaching and I think that my  students can sense this.
       
My high school teachers and university professors have influenced my style of  teaching. They are the ones who initially sparked my interest in the language.  Teaching a foreign language focuses above all on meaningful communication.  ‘Meaningful communication’ sounds simple and easy. It is not. It is very  important to realize that we deal with adults who have developed a sizeable  vocabulary and ways to express themselves in their native language. Students  have an inherent internal need to express themselves in German in a similar  complex and correct way with respect to the grammar and vocabulary, and this  internal need has to be channeled into a feeling of success when mastering a  realistic situation with a limited but expanding vocabulary and language  skills. Associated with this is the second important objective in teaching a  language, which is to introduce the students to contemporary life and culture  of the foreign country and to make the students aware of the interaction  between language, culture, and history. This way, students realize that there  are many interesting and interlaced layers in the language. Since correlations,  coherency, and links can be comprehended and memorized easier and faster as for  instance vocabulary exercises, this creates a sense of achievement and, thus,  enhances the motivation of the students.  Along this line, I am happy that I succeed in motivating numerous  students to continue their studies of the German language. I do work hard to  keep students motivated and also very much enjoy seeing the students’ progress  within a short amount of time.

Interviewer:

What do you think it is about your teaching style that appeals to students?

Molly Affleck

Teaching a foreign language  can be a truly rewarding experience. I try to motivate and encourage all  students to reach their goals in learning a new language. In a short amount of  time I can see remarkable strides not only in the students' competence but, even  more importantly, in the students' awareness of language and culture. In my  onsite courses, I set up frequent paired-activities to enhance the class, and  this gives students more practice in the classroom. Student-to-student interaction  is vital for a successful foreign language course. In my distance education  German courses, I set up weekly discussion groups with well-defined modus operandi which fosters lively interaction in class.

Interviewer:

Do you teach face-to-face, online, or both? Do you have a preference between teaching face-to-face and online? If so, please explain.

Molly Affleck

I teach both face-to-face and online. I prefer teaching  face-to-face. I really enjoy seeing the excitement and the learning in the  classroom. At the same time, I am absolutely amazed at what can be done in a distance  education language course. Students tend to be focused and can check their work  carefully before submitting it. They are also able to concentrate on their pronunciation  by practicing with audio software.

Interviewer:

Please tell us about your chosen discipline-i.e., what made you interested in the area initially? What do you do to stay current in your discipline? What do you like best about teaching in your discipline?

Molly Affleck

When I first started learning German in high school, I  found language learning fascinating. In addition, it made me more aware of my  own language. It was very interesting for me to read German literature in the  original language. That was the initial reason for me to study German language and literature at the University of Munich,  Germany.

I am a member of the AATG (Association of American Teachers  of German) European Chapter and attend the annual meetings regularly. An  article of mine was published in Teaching Ideas Volume 7: Affleck, M. (2009).  Teaching German Sayings. In R. Morewedge (Ed.), Teaching Ideas: A Collection  of Successful Classroom Strategies, Volume VII  (p. 1). 1. Cherry Hill, N.J.
       
Generally speaking, it is simply interesting to stay current in my discipline. Language  and literature are dynamical processes that do not develop deterministically  but follow diffuse, stochastic, and circuitous paths.  Information technology makes it easier to  stay current in developments both in professional journals as well as with the  day-to-day changes of the spoken and written language. Additionally, with  respect to IT, there was and still is a very new linguistic development: the  widespread use of information technology triggered a silent and mostly  unnoticed progress in practically all languages. Decades ago, when computing  was the playground of a relatively small group of experts, English was  practically the only language used for it. Nowadays, the computer-lingua-franca  still exists, but the popularity of personal computing produced a quantum leap  in languages by rapidly introducing (instantaneously - on a human language timescale)  new vocabulary and means of communication with respect to IT.

What I enjoy most about teaching is watching and furthering  students’ progress during the course.  It  is amazing to see how much and how fast students can learn and progress from  day one.

Interviewer:

What is the most challenging to you in teaching in this area? What teaching strategy do you use when you encounter the challenge? Are  there any special challenges in teaching this subject matter online?  If yes, please explain what could be done to  meet the challenges.

Molly Affleck

The most challenging aspect in teaching a foreign language  is keeping everyone on track. As I mentioned previously, learning a foreign  language is a skill and people develop and fine-tune this skill at different  paces. It is a challenge to find the perfect pace that fits all students in a  particular group. For instance, on a rare occasion a student might say that he  would like to just sit in the back of the room and learn the language by just listening  (and not participating). In a case like this, I discuss with the student how  important it is to speak and interact with the other students and with me in  class. I explain that it is quite simple: you learn by doing, and “doing” means  communicating in the language, and it is impossible to communicate by sitting  silently in the back of the room. After placing the student in a small group of  two or three students for a group activity, the student finds himself in a  stress-free environment (this is important), and before long the student is  actively participating in class.

One challenge is to keep all students motivated. I find  that it is very important in distance education courses to post weekly  checklists of the assignments at the beginning of the week and to require that  students start the discussions early. A structured class with checklists, due  dates, and clear instructions help students know exactly what they need to do.  This helps distance education students stay focused and on task. Occasionally a  distance education student does not realize that it is important to log in and  participate in class frequently. With clear guidelines, checklists, and graded  work in his portfolio, a student can easily keep track of what he has  accomplished and what he still needs to do.

Interviewer:

What suggestion would you give to students who are interested in majoring or working in your discipline?

Molly Affleck

I recommend to my students learning German that they read  German newspapers and magazines and, of course, get out into the community and  speak German. Students here in Germany  have the opportunity to experience the language and culture first hand. Many of  my students go out on the weekends to festivals, concerts or other cultural  events in nearby cities and towns and have the chance to speak and practice  what they have learned in the classroom. Even my beginning students are  proficient enough to read German websites and understand information about the  local cultural events.

Interviewer:

In your opinion, what makes UMUC the college of choice for students?

Molly Affleck

In Europe, students have  the opportunity to learn foreign languages in the countries in which they are  living and/or stationed. In my discipline, UMUC-Europe is situated in the best  language lab— right outside the door is the German-speaking world. This  provides a great opportunity for students to learn the language while living  overseas. Many students become proficient and earn the UMUC German Area Studies  Certificate and then continue their studies and attain the Associate of Arts  degree in German Area Studies. Some students receive the Bachelor of Science/  German Area Studies degree within the General Studies Major.

Interviewer:

In your opinion, what makes UMUC the employer of choice for future faculty members?

Molly Affleck

UMUC is situated around the world, and this is a great  opportunity to see people and countries in a different perspective; there is a  profound difference between ‘visiting a country’ and ‘living and working in a  country.’

Interviewer:

What suggestion would you give to new faculty who are interested in teaching in your discipline at UMUC?

Molly Affleck

A concrete suggestion to new faculty would be to attend the  AATG (Association of American Teachers of German) European Chapter annual  meetings. It is an opportunity to stay current in the discipline, discuss ways  to improve teaching skills and ways to make the learning experience positive  and rewarding for our students. It is quite important for new faculty to  realize from the very beginning that they will be dealing with adults, who have  developed a sizeable vocabulary and ways to express themselves in their native  language. Students have, thus, an inherent internal need to express themselves  in German in a similar complex and correct way. This internal need has to be  channeled into a feeling of success and accomplishment when mastering realistic  situations with limited but expanding vocabulary and language skills.