Fraternity-Testvériség, 2009 (87. évfolyam, 1-3. szám)
2009-01-01 / 1. szám
MEMBER PROFILE PROFILE OF A NEW HRFA MEMBER One of our newest HRFA members has a unique connection with Hungary and a commitment to the Federation that he'd like to share with our readers. James Ferrebee (28) of Silver Spring, MD not only taught English in Hungary for two years, but returned to the US with his beloved and attractive Hungarian wife to work here in the states. James grew up in Fredericksburg, VA and after high school, he enrolled at Virginia's prestigious VMI. Prior to his overseas teaching experience, he had had no real connection with Hungary, but since then, his life has dramatically changed, and he's become a real "American cheerleader" for HRFA, Hungary, its culture and its people. He is a Production Coordinator in market research where he manages online surveys and writes reports dealing with people's feelings about brands in the consumer financial services industry. Although his job keeps him busy, James recently sat down with me to talk about his decision to become part of the HRFA family. Q. James, tell us a little about yourself and how you came to teach English in Hungary. A. My college - The Virginia Military Institute - has a relationship with Zrínyi Miklós National Defense University in Budapest where every year, students and teachers from each school spend a year overseas at the other school. As I was nearing graduation, I applied for and was offered the job of teaching English in Budapest, a job which was actually in pretty high demand amongst graduating seniors because Budapest is so well-known throughout the world. I basically just wanted the opportunity to live and work in a European capital city. Q. During your two years there, what experiences most endeared you to the country and its people? A. Their acceptance of me as their 22-year-old teacher. I was teaching Hungarian military officers, and some were more than twice my age. The subsequent hospitality that they showed to me was remarkable. Almost every night of my time in Budapest, I was invited to a student's room for food and drinks, or to a home for dinner, or out to a restaurant or bar. These experiences outside of the classroom allowed me to really learn about life in Hungary and to get answers to all sorts of questions that I had about Hungarian life. I wanted to be engaged in Hungarian society so I was quick to jump at any opportunity to travel within Hungary or to go to holiday By Kathy A. Megyeri festivals or pig killings. Q. I've taught English overseas and my husband holds a certificate in ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages), so both of us are aware of the difficulties in transmitting not only a language filled with idioms and slang but a youth culture that is many times at odds with Hungary's traditions and cultural norms. How does a typical Hungarian classroom and the students compare to an American classroom experience? Do you have a particular memory of a teaching experience you'd like to share that you will long remember? A. I didn't find any particular difference - there are always going to be students who want to learn and students who would rather not be in the classroom. I will say that I found the young military officers particularly motivated to speak fluent English as that skill would further their opportunities for overseas assignments - and that's a great thing. My best memories of my classes usually involved students asking random questions after hearing an English language song or watching an American movie. I once had a male Hungarian military officer tell me that, "Tonight, I will have a party and I will be 'the Dancing Queen'." Q. You taught at Zrínyi Miklós University, a well-known school that even Hungarian astronaut, Bertalan Farkas, attended. What makes that institution one of the best in Hungary and how are the students different from others? A. I would say the motivation of the students. These students needed to speak fluent English and they needed to know what was going on in the world in order to work in overseas assignments - whether in Brussels or Afghanistan. That almost always allowed me to have very engaging and informative conversations with my classes where I could learn a lot about the world from a non-American perspective. Particularly at a time when US foreign policy was very heavy handed, it was 22 SPRING 2009
