Daliborka Crnković: ePortfolio

Prologue

_        In 2008, I told my family and friends that I was going to the United States to pursue a Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics. I expected they would look at me in the usual way that says, “You and your dreams!” But surprisingly, all they said was, “We always knew you would do that. You have all our support.” On certain days they would believe in my dream coming true even more than I did. After all, I was almost 40 years old, and I was leaving a stable long-term career in the IT field. My feet were set to travel across the ocean and enter a field where I was almost a beginner. Making dreams come true requires a big spoonful of luck, but it requires hard work as well. I knew I could provide hard work, and luck also decided to be on my side.
        I was accepted into the M.A. in Applied Linguistics at Old Dominion University (ODU). The following two years were filled with working on exciting projects with my classmates and with learning from professors in the ODU's English Department, whose expertise has been invaluable. In addition, I had the good fortune to work as a tutor for ODU’s Writing Center (WC). Studying in the Applied Linguistics program and tutoring at WC built my theoretical knowledge and enhanced my teaching skills through workshops and lectures. After graduating, I was hired as an adjunct instructor at ODU. I am currently teaching two First Year Composition courses and a junior-level English Grammar course. This website is a result of the ePortfolio Project that we're working on with my students in Composition classes.