Christophe Grall
Graduate Program: Preliminary Single-Subject Credential
Although Christophe Grall holds a Master in English from a university in Tours, France and a Master in French from the University of North Texas, he still didn’t feel fully prepared to take on responsibility for his own classroom, though that’s exactly what he was anxious to do.
An international student from Lyon, France, Christophe wanted his teaching credential, yes. But he really wanted to learn to teach. Close friends told him about California Lutheran University; they happened to live in Thousand Oaks. Wherever he went, Cal Lutheran kept coming up as a “very good” university for aspiring teachers. After serious evaluation, he enrolled in 2013 to earn his Preliminary Single-Subject Credential in French with an option for his Master in Education in Teacher Leadership for spring 2016.
Under the guidance of Dr. Michael Cosenza, Chair of the Learning and Teaching Department in the Graduate School of Education, Christophe ramped up rapidly and began student teaching. “Dr. Cosenza takes time to talk. He’s very professional and helped me a lot to fully integrate on campus, no small feat for an international student not used to the American educational system,” he says.
Christophe explains he was a bit disappointed with his French graduate education compared to his American experience. The French system is built on theory with little or no practical application. Cal Lutheran is known for its intensive, hands-on teaching programs, particularly in the training and preparation of future educators.
Thrilled, he’s learning theory and practice at Cal Lutheran: he claims he now understands what it is to be a teacher; how to teach; how to accommodate student learning styles; how to design lesson plans; how to set up classrooms for optimal learning; how to master time management, and more.
