Lauren Doll, French Teacher, Granville High School

I began my journey as a language teacher somewhat aimlessly, late in my freshman year of college in 2021. I was a social studies education “dropout” who didn’t enjoy the heated discussions of political science classes. I felt my journey in the classroom wasn’t over; however, I wasn’t sure what I could teach. Science and math were definite no’s. My childhood dream of teaching art was out of the question. English didn’t feel right either. As I pondered, I remembered I had enjoyed French in high school. I thought, “Why not give this a try?”

A week later, I was connected with the woman who would become my new advisor, favorite professor, and mentor: Dr. Martha Castañeda, or “Dr. C.” While battling cancer, she called me from her hospital room, excited to tell me about how to start my journey and what a rewarding career it was. Surprised by the emotion and genuine interest from a stranger, I was convinced, and I never looked back.

I was certain I was about to learn to become a replica of my beloved high school French teacher. What I expected to be the core of my teaching toolbox—vocabulary quizzes, grammar à gogo, and limitless conjugation of irregular verbs—was strangely never mentioned. Instead, Dr. C told me about something called communicative language teaching. She talked about contextualized grammar instruction, comprehensible input, negotiation of meaning, target-language use, and authentic resources.

Through years of study of theory and application, I slowly learned how to teach a language rather than teach about it. I found that my love for French grew deeper than I knew possible.

When I became a substitute teacher and entered student teaching, I quickly discovered that I wouldn’t be met with a classroom full of students burning with desire to learn French, as I had thought. Instead, I saw just how much my students needed a guiding hand in growing up, becoming themselves, and learning to be independent learners. To this day, nearly all of my students come into the classroom with a loud lack of confidence. Rather than seeing themselves as developing bilinguals, they struggle with feelings of unworthiness, telling me endless lists of what they can’t do.

Thanks to those experiences and Dr. C, I found that we as language teachers don’t just teach about culture, connections, and community; we teach through them.

I have spent nearly every day of my two years in the classroom telling students to focus on what they do know. Mistakes don’t matter as long as you learn from them. I encourage them to make each task meaningful. I am quick to remind them I am new to this too and am learning as much from every activity as they are. We are on the same team. Little by little, mistakes that I wasn’t sure they would overcome became steps up on the proficiency scale. They also began developing skills not only in language ability but also in what my school calls “A Portrait of a Graduate”: responsibility, empathy, resilience, adaptability, and critical thinking. How does that happen to our students? Through our passion and dedication as language teachers.

For me, nothing reinforces that passion more than when I see students’ reactions after telling them France’s tooth fairy is a mouse, or my AP students trying to get to the bottom of what laïcité really means. Seeing the students hunger for extra knowledge, gain their voices, and search for ways to be and prove themselves reminds me that what I am doing is what I have always wanted: helping students develop. Sure, many of them may never use French in their lifetimes after this, but I want them to look back on this experience and see a teacher who cared for them and helped them become compassionate, creative, critically thinking, persevering individuals. I believe no other subject can achieve all four of those characteristics to the extent that ours can.

As I reflect on my journey to becoming a French teacher, I realize the passion I thought was unique to Dr. C is really what defines us as language educators. We are advocates for our students, willing to go the extra mile to make them laugh, build an irreplicable classroom culture, be truly original teachers, and see the possibility in our students. That is what makes us us, and I am proud to be a part of such a meaningful and positive profession.

Despite the fact that all of us (myself included) at times question our abilities to connect with this generation, be effective teachers, or hold students’ attention for more than a minute, we make an impact in the same way students learn a language: gradually and unforgettably… Okay, maybe the second part isn’t true, but as the saying goes, our students may forget what we say, but they won’t forget how we made them feel. Just as I remember and cherish my own high school French teacher, our students will remember us as teachers who inspired them to grow not only as language learners but also as culturally conscious, critically thinking, independent learners.

Through years of teaching classes from hospital rooms, powering through treatments and struggles I can’t begin to imagine, Dr. C was always available for her students and never complained. She was dedicated to making us the best teachers and humans we could be. Dr. C had the commitment, care, and creativity of an educator that I can only hope to achieve one day. I am blessed to have had such an incredible example of an educator, a professional, and a person.

I hope this article encourages you to remember that wherever you are, your journey is important. You have touched the lives of many. Keep going. The world needs you. Your students need you. We’ve got this.

In loving memory of Martha Castañeda: mother, wife, educator, and advocate for all.