Life-long learning is always my goal. I believe that continued learning is the key to become a successful teacher. Therefore, I devoted three weeks of my summer time to the University of Virginia (UVa) for professional development.

Before I attended the program at UVa, I’d heard that its Chinese-teacher training program was intensive. I did not believe it. In my bag, I packed a lot of personal belongings such as CDs and VCDs and I planned to watch these during my leisure time at UVa.

I was totally wrong. During my residency at UVa, I barely had time to sleep not to mention watch those videos. Every day, I had to work on assignments and had to participate in discussions. I was stressed, but I continued to work in order to meet the program requirements. I thought about leaving the program, but I did not do so. I tried my very best to complete my assignments and worked with program participants. Because of frequent discussions among us, I have developed more creative and fresh teaching ideas, which I look forward to using in my own teaching program. This no doubt was a huge benefit for me.

I was glad that I did not quit when I felt overwhelmed at UVa. I also feel that my teaching knowledge has been broadened, thanks to the intensive training at UVa. My residency at UVa was worthwhile and fulfilling.