My Views On The United States

Moving to America, was a difficult transition for me. I had come to the realization that I wasn’t going to see my friends any time soon back in Iran and that was hard to overcome at a young age. I was alone as a child because my siblings are a lot older than me, and my parents’ had the challenge of starting over because they had left everything behind in Iran. However, that wasn’t going to get in the way of me succeeding in school. I have always been a fast learner, by the age of eight I had already learned four languages. Also, I was voted most improved by my classmate every year I was in Elementary School. This might not seem like a big achievement, but as a young student in a new country it was a huge motivation boost for me to improve every

Arriving in a new country was exciting and discomforting. America is a wonderful place to live, which is full of adventure and challenges. I was attracted by the Western culture. Meanwhile, different languages also troubled me. Although I began to learn English in elementary school from ABC, my listening and oral abilities tend not to be adequate. I have to study hard to improve my English, so that I can understand what the people said.

Firstly, I was really poor at speaking English. When I go through the gate for foreigners in airport in USA, the officer said to me "Do you have food in your suitcase?". Of course, now I can see his point but then I couldn't understand what he said and I was confused. So it took a half hour to get the gate since I landed in the USA. And fortunately, I finally reached the International English School, FLS but I couldn't follow their class. That's why I study a lot more than other students. Nevertheless, I couldn't feel my English was getting better. I was struggling with the situation. If I would love to communicate with other students or native teachers,

The first and second year after moving from China to the United States, I was afraid to talk to strangers because my English was not quite well. I had to depend on my husband to deal with my personal business, such as making a doctor’s appointment, calling to the bank, or questioning the DMV officers. Douglass says, “being a slave for life began to bear heavily upon my heart” (62). Being a dependent and helpless adult is a shame for me. In addition, I did not have extra money to go to school to improve my English skills. Thus, I stayed home all the time to avoid the embarrassment that happened when I did not understand strangers’ conversation. Meanwhile, being silent at home leaded worries to my future. I realized that I had to improve my oral English to gain self-confidence. I spent time reading various articles on the internet, and I watched English dialogues’ videos on YouTube. As a non-English speaking immigrant living in the U.S., I challenged myself to overcome difficulties to integrate myself into a new

After so many incidents, I was determined to learn this foreign language and prove to people that I wasn’t not lost in this country. Every day afterschool I would ask my family to help me with my English. One year later, I was able to understand what people around me were saying, and I could do basic communications with people. School came to me as an enjoying part of my day, something I looked forward to when going to bed, and an opportunity, a gift for me to learn the language of this new country.

Ever since I was a little girl I didn't like reading, doing homework or taking exams. I only enjoyed lunch time, gym time and after school programs. I was always in the top classes because of my mother's connection with teachers in the school until I got into the third grade. That's when you start to take a state exam test and if you failed you either get left back or get put in a class based on your grade score. That's when I went from being in top classes to the bottom classes and realized I had to get it together in school because I didn't want to look like a fool or be a fool. That all changed in middle school, I was always put in programs that helped students who wasn't on top of their work and I started to see my name on the honor roll

The day I stepped off the plane and landed in America, I knew that I’d have to face a great challenge. Being a first generation immigrant from Vietnam, I would have to learn English as quickly as possible. Although I’ve arduously prepared for this transition by learning basic vocabulary and grammar in my native country, I quickly realized that my practical aspect of using the language such as listening, conversing, pronunciation to be insufficient. By immersing myself in an English-speaking world, I finally addressed my lingual deficiency within a year.

After arriving in the United States, things weren’t as wonderful as we had planned for. Coming to such a unique place in the world was a blessing, but it brought many obstacles to me and my family. It was truly one of the greatest obstacles I had to face learning a new language and getting used to the American life. Getting placed into the ELL program made me feel like I had to work harder than everyone else just to get simple things done. I was made fun of due to the lack of my abilities in speaking English. This only pushed me to work harder and become the best that I can be in everything I do. One thing that stayed the same was the level of support my family members here in the U.S. were able to provide me with to help me get through the

Coming from a foreign country where english is a second language, I didn’t know how to communicate. How was I going understand the information in school? How will I create new friendships without speaking? All these questions plagued me. As I sat quietly everyday trying to avoid making a sound, hoping not to get called on to answer a question or speak out loud in the class, I was trying to make clear of what these people were saying. I realized that just sitting there and listening wouldn't help me better speak English; I had begun trying to speak english with my father so I can become more fluent. After months of dedication, I was understanding and speaking a language completely different to mine. That was by far the most difficult

I lacked critical thinking skills and I believed everything teachers told me with no questions asked. I never questioned why a certain concept was true. Nor have I asked a teacher to prove to me why we use this method over the next, so I never fully understood the concepts as well as I thought I knew them. Time management was impossible for me. I was involved in so much and I never made enough time for my studies.Cramming concept after concept on the day before an exam and pulling all nighters day after day was not enough for me. Something had to give. My grades weren’t improving and my knowledge in each course wasn’t up to par.

September 28th, 2004 came by all too quickly. That is the day I landed in the United States of America at SeaTac airport. I remember growing up in Kenya and my dad used to call me and my sisters “American ladies”. He would constantly say that if he doesn't get a chance to come here he would make sure that my sisters and I would come here for a more suitable education. Growing up in Seattle life never came easy for me unlike my sisters. I barely knew how to speak English let alone my own language, Kiswahili. Juggling between the American and the Kenyan accent was a tedious task. furthermore, not being able to communicate with others turned me into an awfully reserved individual and practically branded me an outcast. Likewise, at home my supposed “safe place” also felt like I was in isolation from the other members of my family. At the moment I wasn’t at the top of my parents priority list but to some extent my parents feared for how I would be able to assimilate in the culture without being able to speak the language. Two months after our arrival I was enrolled to John Stanford Elementary, an alternative school, specifically to learn English. Going to an alternative

In my view, the United States is the land of opportunity where everyone can succeed in this society if they work hard. Furthermore, there are many good schools here are also a powerful force for students entering an amazing career. Honestly, I like to live here and set up educational goals for my life. Therefore, seventy-four credit hours of college are my treasure which makes me proud of that for studying hard, evolving things, and resolving problems with any conditions to survive in school and life. Also, I have changed from things have ever happened to me, and realizing that every different stage has every different circumstance for dealing with, and obstacles or conflicts in life cannot stop me reaching to become a math professor. Moreover, my exceptional hardships and opportunities have just shaped my abilities better. It is not easy to describe how I can get through my obstacles in which have made me today. However, I will do my best to inform readers some of my personal information that I want considered as a part of my admissions application of the University of Texas at Austin.

Contrary to what many people thing, the dramatic event that happened in New York on

After the first couple of months, improvements in my school work were beginning to show, and I liked it. My vocabulary abilities were revealing themselves as well. For example, when I would read homework in other classes the words that would sometimes confuse me began to make sense. I would also listen to other people’s conversations on the street and it seemed as if the vocabulary words that I had just studied the week before, could be heard. It was the weirdest thing. Likewise, my grammar was developing nicely. For instance, when I would read books I could see the different ways sentences were portrayed. Things that I never picked up before were coming to me so much easier. This class that

In junior High School, things started to turn around for me. Although I was still placed in lower level classes, I developed a love for learning. In the years to come from Junior High to High School, I had a strong urge to make up for lost time. One class I started to excel in was the one I used to have the most trouble with, Mathematics. It seemed as though the once boring and complex equations now seemed meaningful and simple. As I progressed into 8th grade, I was able to advance to normal classes. I felt that the hard work I put in was finally paying of. At this point, I felt that I could handle a higher level. At the end of 8th grade, I took the necessary procedures and tests to try and get into honor - level courses in 9th grade. After taking a summer course of Algebra 1 and several tests I was able to succeed and take the classes. The experience was great. I felt that I was finally going the right direction