About The Teacher

NAME: Ms. Marianna Pierri

SCHOOL: Wayne Hills High School

CLASS: Italian I &V Espanol Uno

SCHOOL PHONE: (973) 317 2000 x2687

About The Teacher

Montclair State University
Upper Montclair, New Jersey
Bachelor degree: Italian/Spanish Certification in Education

My Philosophy of Teaching In the Foreign Language Classroom.

An enviornment that articulates effective teaching and productive learing 
can only develop when teachers and students show a mutural amount of respect 
for one another within the classroom.  After spending a few years in 
classrooms of all levels, I have determined that students learn many skills, 
build character, and correct errors as a direct result by interacting with 
one another.  Additionally, I feel that my professional career is built by 
relying on much of what I learn from my students personally and academically.

Italian I,V and Espanol I provide a substantial opening into language and 
culture, where students will be able to communicate and comprehend basic 
phrases and dialog through listening, writing and reading.  Italian I 
students: this the first step they are taking to hopefully master this 
elegant language beyond your high school years.  Learning a foreign language 
is not easy, but worth the struggle.  Students should consider this language 
learning experience not just as a high school language requirement to 
fulfill, but rather the opportunity to elaborate and enhance their skills 
for their future and prepare themselves for the competitive job market we 
live in.  
Embrace the culture, speech, and dialog as a whole.  Don’t be afraid to make 
mistakes, we (your classmates and I) are there to correct you…it's part of 
the learning process. 
With your cooperation and enthusiasm towards this school year, your first, 
third, or fifth course of Italian language learning will be enjoyable. 
Students will complete the course with the understanding that language is 
not just memorizing verb conjugations and grammar.  At the end of the course 
they will have embraced the culture, speech, and dialog as a whole.  My goal 
is not only to give information but to help students find information 
themselves and increase their curiosity of Italian Society and all its 
subcultures they are yet not aware of.
	Note: There are currently more that 30 dialects spoken in Italy.

          Teaching Italian Through Film: An Alternative Perspective
   Quoted from ITALICA (The Journal of the American Association of Teachers  
of Italian; Volume 83 Number 1).
"Probably the strongest practical visualization technique a language 
instructor can bring to his class is the motion picture...Motion picture 
research indicates that learning takes place most definitely when viewers 
are emotionally involved."
"The teacher's purpose may be to teach language, but the purpose of film in 
the language classroom should be to tell a story, so that students can begin 
to use and explore language in a meaningful way-is the first step."

Why Italian?
A knowledge of Italian is important for people in business, the arts, 
technology and many professions. It also is useful for high school and 
college students planning careers in art,fashion, history, music, 
linguistics, education and international relations.

Students preparing for the SATs who have studied Italian tend to score 
higher on vocabulary and grammar. The reason is simple: Italian developed 
from Latin and an estimated 60 percent of the English vocabulary also comes 
from Latin.

Italian is the fourth foreign language most spoken in U.S. homes, according 
to the U.S. Census Bureau. It also is spoken in Switzerland, parts of 
Africa, the Balkans, and the island of Malta.

Italy is one of the top five economies and is a leading member of the G8 
Group of the wealthiest democracies in the world.

An estimated 7,500 American companies do business with Italy, and more than 
1,000 U.S. firms have offices in Italy including IBM, General Electric, 
Motorola, Citibank and Price Waterhouse.

Italy is a world leader in machine tool manufacturing, with advanced 
technologies in robotics, electro mechanical machinery, shipbuilding, space 
engineering, construction machinery, and transportation equipment. Many of 
these firms have offices in the United States.

Italy's economy is changing: state-owned companies are becoming pubblicly 
held, opening up the Italian market to American investement.

Italy is a world leader in the culinary arts, interior design, fashion, 
graphic design, furniture design, etc. Those planning careers in such fields 
benefit greatly from knowing Italian. 

Italy has long been a magnet for the tourism industry: in the Jubilee Year 
2000, Rome alone hosted over 30 million visitors.

Young Americans who want to become physicians, dentists, and veterinarians, 
but who cannot afford the tuition at American schools can study at Italian 
universities for a fraction of the cost. Their degrees are valid in the U.S.

Art historians need Italian. According to UNESCO (the cultural and 
educational agency of the United Nations), over 60 percent of the world's 
art treasures are found in Italy.