Teaching Spanish at Appalachian State at Appalachian State in Boone, North Carolina--Navila Castro

Interview conducted by undergraduate student, Jasmine Uresti, from Dr. Katherine Ledford’s Appalachian Stories course, in the teacher’s lounge on the Language Department at Appalachian State University, for the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum, Blowing Rock, North Carolina, in conjunction with the Smithsonian's "The Way We Worked" exhibition.

Who are you, When and where were you born?
"I am Navila Castro I was born in Ventura, California."

What did your parents do for a living? Did you contribute to the family income or help parents in their work in any way?
"My parents are self-employed they have a construction company. I didn’t help contribute in that way but I’ve had jobs since high school, part time jobs."

What do you do for a living?
"I am an adjunct instructor in the language department." How long have to worked there? "I’ve worked here at Appalachian State for two years."

How did you decide on your career?
"I decided to work here because of classes I took and networking I developed while being a student."

How would you say the work has changed since you started?
"I wouldn’t say work has changed, I’ve transitioned from student to instructor but I’m very familiar with the material."

Describe a typical work day.
"I get to work, I open ASUlearn, I lesson plan, answer emails, I walk into class, my instruction time is 50 minutes. We do communicative skills using speaking, listening, writing and conversation in Spanish, and then I dismiss the class and go home."

What type of people do you work with?
"I work with adult learners, college age students."

What techniques and methods?
"Methodology, we stick to ACTFUL the association for foreign language teaching, you need people skills you need to be able to relate to your students and be accessible. You need to speak clearly."

Read the full transcript below.

Asset ID #7808