基本情况：冯同学，安徽师范大学+东北师范大学，英语+语言学，GPA3.01，TOEFL 100，GRE 313 

录取学校：University of Florida Ph.D. program in Curriculum & Instruction with an emphasis in English Education 

The importance of the word “diversity” is evident in my fondness for travel, which has taken me to nearly all over China. In particular, I have developed an affinity for cultural monuments, appreciated the exhibits, and learned about history in museums. Such diverse influences permeate my entire being. Moreover, my enthusiasm for education and teaching was inspired by Anhui Normal University (ANU), which is renowned for teacher training. ANU trained me to be a meticulous scholar and motivated me to pursue Northeast Normal University’s Master’s in Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics program. 

After completing my graduate study, I was employed as a high school teacher in Northeast Yucai School in Shenyang City, where I have taught English for five years and encountered numerous challenges and accomplished substantially. As a teacher, I realized that China’s secondary school system faces such problems as stagnant teaching methods, outdated teaching materials, and lack of scientific management. Hence, I am optimistic that I will be sufficiently trained to participate in implementing reforms, particularly those related to English teaching methods. My current school is renowned for its internationalization initiative, thereby motivating me to further pursue a career in English teaching in international standards and further manage international high schools. Accordingly, I aspire to go to the US to obtain a Ph.D. to improve my English teaching skills and learn popular teaching methods. Thereafter, I will perform a comparative study of Chinese and American secondary school systems to substantially improve high school teaching in China. Eventually, my optimism in developing into a competent educator and decision-maker in education rests on obtaining a Ph.D. in Curriculum & Instruction program with a concentration in English Education from the University of Florida that will facilitate the achievement of my goals. 

Meanwhile, my Ph.D. study will enable me to focus on pedagogics, research methods and other innovative English teaching methods. As a high school English teacher, I have implemented the situational teaching method to develop language teaching activities. Through constant reflection on the outcomes of these processes, I will endeavor to enhance such teaching methods to make language classes effective and fun. I hope to study the process of combining emotional or imaginative thinking with abstract thinking in the context of the situational teaching method, thereby promoting student cognition and achieving optimal results. Hence, I will systematically study research methods, second language acquisition and teaching, adolescent psychology, and cognitive linguistics. Moreover, I intend to study different teaching methods, specifically for Chinese students, to learn the different facets of English. 

For Chinese students, English teaching will inevitably use bilingual teaching methods, thereby enabling me to focus on bilingual education in graduate school. My academic background and professional experience have provided me with a wealth of bilingual teaching experience, given that I was a French minor. As a native Chinese speaker, I am determined to make theoretical and practical improvements in bilingual teaching through non-native language learning. 

Despite my extensive academic and practical training in English teaching, the associated theories in this field are still limited. Therefore, I will exert effort to study the teaching of adolescent English literature to guide students to read and write and enrich the requirements of basic education in research-based learning. This endeavor will facilitate the improvement of the connection between basic and higher education for young people in China and develop their critical and logical thinking skills. However, one issue that I intend to explore is enabling teachers establish English literature teaching courses to make adolescent students interested in and gradually accomplish the goal of literature teaching. Accordingly, I need a systematic study of research, second language teaching, and reading and writing teaching methods to develop effective teaching strategies.

Apart from my theoretical knowledge, my practical skills have been substantially enhanced through effective engagements in actual teaching and research. I have been engaged in academic research since I was a graduate student, in which I assisted the instructor in preparing teaching materials and translation questions for TEM-8. My outstanding achievements enabled me to receive an internship opportunity in the Middle School Attached to Northeast Normal University and assisted the instructor to implement his project in middle school. This two-year internship deepened my teaching and research aspirations and enabled me to obtain practical understanding of the curriculum setting and research, school and student management, and student association activities in domestic secondary schools. 

In Northeast Yucai School, I continuously cultivated my passion for education and improved my teaching and research skills. I learned that most Chinese high school students have difficulties, even fear, in learning English as a second language, thereby resulting in challenges in my teaching. However, I engaged in various undertakings and realized the importance of nurturing student awareness in learning. Moreover, the need to understand the application of flexible teaching methods led me to test various techniques to enhance my teaching and enhance student initiative. To illustrate, I designed a course on reading original English novels called the “English Reading Hub,” which drew lessons from Oxford’s reading activities, to cultivate interest in reading. In the weekly reading presentations, the students shared their opinions and ideas, thereby immensely improving their confidence and passion for reading English. Accordingly, the students’ progress eventually expanded this course’s influence and attracted new teachers and students across grades to adopt the method. My effort was rewarded when I won multiple provincial and national teaching competitions. Meanwhile, I insisted on cultivating student service and responsibility to society by supervising various volunteer activities. 

My achievements in teaching provided me with the opportunity to host a national research project sponsored by the Chinese Education Society. Research on the Enforcement of the Chinese Advanced Placement (CAP) General Academic English Courses began in 2014 and aimed to provide outstanding students with access to college English courses. We focused on methods to enhance student acceptance of CAP courses and guide them in maximizing the benefits of these courses. I used various teaching practices to design and systematize the Trinity CAP General Academic English System that combines curriculum, evaluation, and teaching systems. Our curriculum includes four reading and writing sections, namely, argumentative essays, research papers, English descriptive text, and literature review. My reading training methods involved the use of text comprehension and language focus, while my writing training methods concentrated on combining student writing skills alongside topical discussions. Meanwhile, I exerted effort to use group presentation and class discussion to familiarize students with writing methods and prepare them for writing classes. One year of learning enabled students to master English writing styles and literature review skills, thereby strengthening their foundation for writing English speech papers. 

Overall, my curiosity toward the unknown and the world has enhanced my global vision, multi-dimensional thinking, and acute logic. Hence, I am confident of my capability in completing your Ph.D. program and eventually enable me to share my specialized knowledge and skills to teachers and students. Moreover, I will continuously exert effort to develop into an outstanding educator and immerse in the promotion of education.