Celebrating Others’ Success in 2015

2015 was a year of great successes for language learners and teachers. Here are some of those successes just from people in my circles, shared so that you can join in the joy! Why not add your own or others’ joys and successes in the Comments section or on social media using hashtag #joysuccess ?

• B.M. started learning Spanish from her colleagues on their lunch break.
• D.N. added Twitter to her ways of finding teaching ideas and of sharing her experience teaching Mandarin Chinese.
• B.P. and a number of others received grants to create classroom libraries for Free Voluntary Reading.
• R.A. and M.P. published their first language-learner novella through their own publishing company.
• C.B. and L.P. added French to the list of languages they teach.
• E.Z. became the first Latin teacher to be named ACTFL National Teacher of the Year.
• P.C. hit a breakthrough in her Extensive Reading practices.
• E.N. overcame her fears about joining an expat language group and was rewarded with new friends and increased opportunities for interacting in German.
• N.L. and J.K. were flown to South Africa to share teaching practices with students, teachers, and professors from around the continent.
• E.A. and T.D. started a blog where they share what they’re learning in the early stages of research-informed language teaching.
• K.B. and co. expanded their card game for language learners to six languages.
• C.R. received a grant to learn about the habits and experiences of some of the best Latin learners and speakers on the planet.
• G.B. was named Language Teacher of the Year in his state.
• S.-E.C., K.T., A.F., J.S.B., and E.G. produced the first ten videos of a reinvented podcast for language teachers.
• J.S. took the risk of moving to a new state, where his talent and inventiveness were promptly recognized by local language organizations.
• G.C. was named “Resource Contributor of the Year” by TES (formerly the Times Educational Supplement) for his language teaching blog.
• E.H. received a grant to hire a consultant to observe her already impressive classes.
• A.K., W.H., and B.VP. founded, funded, and broadcast the first nine episodes of a call-in show about instructed second language acquisition.
• S.S. presented for the first time at a regional language conference.
• K.K. received a grant to host a workshop for 40 teachers at a major university.
• J.B. organized a workshop on research-informed language teaching for her colleagues.
• N.M. successfully hosted her first Latin lock-in for high school students.
• B.P. completed and published his first language-learner novella.

That’s a lot to celebrate. Let’s savor these successes even as we get excited for a joyful, successful 2016!