More than a year ago, 25-year-old Bianca Macena came to the U from Brazil in a foreign exchange program to improve the U's Portuguese program for the department of languages and literature.
Still adjusting to the language, Macena was thrown into graduate-level courses in teaching methodology and course planning.
"People ask me, 'How did you learn English, and how do you speak it so well? You even know the slang,'" she said.
This compliment is "bittersweet," Macena said, because she taught English in Brazil for six years.
But while English in a social setting comes naturally, mastering it in an academic setting is not as easy.
"It was a great challenge for her," said Johanna Watzinger-Tharp, a professor in the department who works closely with Macena. "But she worked on her academic writing, and now she is in the linguistics master's program. She is willing to do whatever it takes."
Part of the difficulty was in teaching itself, Macena said. She had never taught Portuguese, nor had she designed an entire academic program.
"As a child, I was always interested in things that were beyond my level and in things that would challenge me," she said.
Macena now teaches and advises the program she created, which includes four new lower-division and two upper-division courses.
While designing the courses, she had to use examples from the Spanish program and from other disciplines to format the syllabuses and find an overall structure.
Besides not understanding the American academic system, Macena also found the task difficult "because there are not a lot of available materials for teaching Portuguese, and the books are not bilingual," she said.
Despite the challenges, Macena said the task was within her capabilities.
"I like to compare myself to a hurricane," she said. "I'm very fast and in the moment. I am intense and destructive, but in the good sense."
Macena has had some help this year. Eduardo Da Silva, another graduate student from Brazil, has been working closely with Macena.
"We share the work," Da Silva said. He also enjoys sharing the culture. "There is no communication barrier."
Watzinger-Tharp said Macena's success is due to her willingness to share her cultural background.
"She is young, but she is also very experienced," Watzinger-Tharp said. "She does a great job integrating language and culture."
Macena said talking about the culture is crucial.
"It's not (only) about the language, but also about how you can teach and differentiate between what is traditional and the changes in contexts from place to place," she said.
Macena said she considers herself lucky to be at the U on scholarship and to be pursuing a master's degree.
After receiving her degree, Macena said she plans to return to Brazil and continue teaching.
"I want to learn all I can and take it back to Brazil," she said. "(But) teaching jobs are not well paid in Brazil, unless you're at the master's level."
Continuing to study while getting teaching experience is probably something she could not have done in Brazil, she said.
In addition to teaching and studying, Macena stays busy on campus in various ways. "I go to a lot of lectures and workshops and to whatever is going on (around campus) and is somewhat related to my academic life," she said.
Macena is the treasurer of the International Student Council, is an orientation leader for the International Center, has participated in volunteer projects with the Bennion Center and is involved in the Cross Culture Club.
Macena attributes all her drive to her parents.
"They encouraged me to do everything they didn't get to do, primarily in education," she said.
m.murguia@chronicle.utah.edu
