Allen Oxana
Main achievement
Russian Language Instructor and Lecturer of Mathematics at Colorado Mesa University
About
Allen was born and raised in Moldova, formerly the Soviet Union. After graduating from high school, he wanted to continue his studies and went to Ukraine, where he earned a master's degree in education. Allen taught English and Russian as a foreign language in Moldova and Ukraine and speaks four languages: Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, and English. Allen immigrated to the U.S. in 2000. He moved to California and then to Grand Junction four years ago to take classes at CMU. Allen taught algebra at Caprock Academy last year and decided to become a teacher because she enjoys working with older students. Allen's first course is Russian Beginners I and will begin next fall semester. It is hoped that the spring semester will also bring Russian Beginners II. Allen strongly believes in interactive learning. She wants to focus more on in-class activities such as drills, games, and dialogues, and less on homework. She wants most of the things her students learn to be learned in class. In addition to language learning, Allen plans to introduce students to different aspects of Russian culture, traditions, and food. Allen plans to make blini with the class as a fun in-class activity. Although Allen doesn't promise fluency in two semesters, she still says students should be able to travel to Russian-speaking countries or read documents in Russian and understand enough of what's going on to get by. While many people think more of Spanish or French when they consider studying a foreign language, Russian is much more widespread than many people think. Russian is a Slavic language and ranks sixth on the list of most used languages, after Chinese, Hindi, English, and Spanish. The Russian for beginners course will be held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, between 1:00 PM and 1:50 PM, in Houston Hall. Outside of teaching, Allen loves doing activities with her four children, such as tennis, volleyball, and basketball. She has learned a lot about construction and enjoys doing projects around the house. She takes her children on many outdoor adventures. Anything involving the beach and ocean is their favorite. Hunting, fishing, hiking, and mushroom picking are also enjoyed activities. Allen hopes to one day learn to play the guitar and speak Spanish and French.
