3 - The Day I Said I Was from California

I came to Spain 6 years ago to study my Master’s Degree in Emotional Intelligence and Coaching, and as soon as I got here, I got a job at an English Academy. I taught a class a day to preschool kids. Similar to how I started teaching. 

Something interesting came up during the hiring process. I had to pretend I only spoke English. Neither my students nor their parents could know that I spoke Spanish too. That I’m bilingual. And, as you may imagine, I also had to pretend that I was a native English Speaker. 

I accept that made me feel a bit uncomfortable, but also excited, so I just went with it. My coordinator told me:

“In case someone asks, you just say that you are American”

I guess because of my accent, that’s more on the American side.

And I just agreed. “Ok, in case someone asks, I’ll say I’m a Cali girl”

The thing is - I suck at lying. I’m terrible. When I try to say a lie, you know it is a lie immediately. My face gets red and hot, and I have a weird look, and I start like to overjustify details. So, yeah, I suck at it. 

And it was the second day of classes. Parents were coming to pick up their kids, and a parent asked me, in English:

“Excuse me, where are you from?”.

He didn’t even ask my name. He didn’t want to know me. He just wanted to know where I was from. Like if your nationality gives you a title or something that you’re a good teacher or not. 

But, at that moment, guess what I did: Did I take the high road? 

“I’m American” I said.

Technically, I wasn’t lying. I am from the continent of America. So, that was not a lie. In case you don’t know, I’m from Honduras, in Central America. 

So, yeah, I said that I was American (misleading but not lying) and he insisted:

“What part”?

I immediately said:

“California”

"Ohh Ok" he said. And left.

He didn’t say anything. He didn’t say “bye”. He just left. 

Days later, I told my big brother the story, and to this day, he teases me about being a Cali girl. And for some time, I reminded this with humour. Me being able to lie.

I guess he believed it. He didn’t say anything else. I guess he felt that I was good enough to be his son English teacher. Just for my nationality. 

But if you think this through, it’s embarrasing. And I’ll be tough here. It’s embarrasing, to this day, to believe that an English teacher can only be good enough if it’s a native speaker. 

I’ve studied English.

I’ve experienced what it is to learn a second language.

I’ve studied how to teach that language.

I’ve got a Master’s Degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Another one in Emotional Intelligence and how to create a safe learning environment for my students. I’ve become a Neurolanguage Coach.

But I don’t know if all of this would be enough for this parent to consider me a good teacher for his son.

So, after identifying how I really felt about this situation, I made a promise to myself:

I will never hide who I truly am to my students. 

I don’t need to lie. 

I am Honduran.

I’ve never lived in an English speaking country. I’ve been to the US a few times, I’ve traveled using English to communicate, and I’ve worked in English environments since I was 23.

But I am a non-native English speaker. 

I’m proud of that actually.

That’s part of my identity. 

And of course, there are very good native teachers. That’s not the parameter to say if they’re good or not.

You know what I think it’s a good parameter to know if a teacher is good or not? 

If a teacher cares for their students. 

Because if they care, they do their best.

They prepare.

They ask what the students need. 

And you’ll never hear me say “I want to speak like a native"

That’s the promise a lot of English courses and academies give you.

My goal with English is always to communicate my ideas clearly to connect with other people. That’s my goal. That’s my own definition of fluency. My focus is on sounding clear for others to understand me. 

You don’t need to deny a part of who you are to be a successful speaker. 

Now, if you really need to master a specific dialect or accent, it’s OK! That can be your goal. But either way, you don’t need to pretend. You can embrace who you really are, and still communicate effectively. 

So, my promise - not hiding who I am. I truly think a teacher-student relationship or a coach / coachee relationship needs to be built on trust. That’s how you create a safe learning environment. 

So, from me, you’ll always get transparency. 

Let’s build this relationship on trust. 

Let’s forget about bias and prejudice, and let’s leave the “native is better” myth behind. 

Caring for others is better.

Being authentic is better.

Being yourself is way better.