Class of 2008, Education and English Major

Q. What do you get when cross an education student with a stand-up comedian?
A. Jeremy Brown

Findlay native and aspiring stand-up comedian Jeremy Brown will graduate in May with a double major in adolescent-to-young-adult integrated language arts education and English with a teaching emphasis. In fall 2007, he completed a semester student teaching in a selective program in Nancy, France, gaining valuable teaching experience and plenty of material for his comedy routines.

Among many differences and challenges that come with teaching in a foreign country, the communication barrier and stereotyping were two that Jeremy experienced frequently. “When I first introduced myself to my students, many of them just stared at me blankly, and I thought they just weren’t that interested in my background,” he said. As it turns out, many of the students knew very little or no English, but they wanted to learn, and by the end of the semester, Jeremy was teaching them Macbeth.

Because Jeremy was the first American many of his students had ever met, he encountered several stereotypical mentalities. His students had developed their views of Americans through television shows such as “Prison Break” and “Desperate Housewives”; MTV; popular music; and movies like “American Pie.” French students asked questions about slang terms that are difficult to define in a foreign language and about American football, among other things.

Jeremy teaches a class in Nancy, France.

“They laughed when I tried to speak French – I’d mess up one word, and the sentence would have an entirely different meaning. I have a new appreciation for someone who comes to an entirely different country without understanding the culture and the language,” he said. To help bridge the culture gap, Jeremy planned a week of lesson plans focused on stereotypes, and both he and the students understood each other better.

Other, sometimes comical, differences Jeremy noticed between the French school system and the American system included MP3 players and cellular phones allowed in the halls; frequent public displays of affection that would be considered inappropriate in the U.S.; R-rated movies shown in the classroom; and smoking in front of the school. In addition, Jeremy was not able to teach five days of class due to transportation and student strikes. One day, only two students arrived at class, and some classes were canceled because all of the students were on strike.

Jeremy did have some time for sightseeing. Here, he poses in front of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

But, said Jeremy, the students made it fun to come to class. One student in particular inspired Jeremy to become a better teacher. “One of my students was discriminated against in his hometown because of his skin color. He wasn’t even allowed in certain places in his town. He still graduated at the top of his class and was preparing to continue his education and become a businessman. To see his dedication was one of the best things.”

Just  as he is serious about teaching, Jeremy is serious about pursuing a career in comedy. Days prior to his departure for France, Jeremy was a semifinalist in Ohio’s Funniest Amateur Comedian competition but withdrew in the last portion of the competition due to his student teaching assignment. So, while in France, Jeremy performed a comedy routine for a French audience. “My set got a lot of laughs,” he said. “I told a few jokes about French people and a few jokes about Americans, too. The set lasted about half an hour, and I did a Q-and-A afterwards. It was an interesting experience.”

Now back in the U.S. to finish his degree, Jeremy is working toward graduation and also working on building his career in comedy. He tries to do a show whenever he can and plans to take a cross-country open mike tour with friends this summer. “I need to see if my jokes that are funny in Ohio also are funny in other parts of the country,” he said.

Jeremy plans to incorporate comedy into in his career, regardless which path he takes. “Even if I don’t end up telling jokes for a living, doing shows helps me with public speaking and audience awareness. It’s the same thing in the classroom. If the classroom isn’t responding, you have to adapt on the fly.”

Whether he ends up in a classroom or on a stage, one thing is for sure – Jeremy embraced the opportunity to complete his student teaching in France and brought back memories and knowledge that will remain with him throughout his career.