How the Spanish Culture is Reflected in the School

The Spanish culture is reflected in the school through numerous ways, which include class subjects, classroom layout, class schedules, and lesson plans. To begin, the class subjects offered at my school in Madrid, Spain are influenced by the fact that Spain is surrounded by a multitude of other countries that speak a different language. Thus, there is a necessity for speaking language besides Spanish in a way that is different than the emphasis placed on foreign languages in secondary and elementary schools in the United States. In my school, San Rafael, students have English language c classes everyday as well as French classes. In addition, the school is preparing to teach the subject of history in English in the near future, which shows how the geographical culture of Spain demands knowledge and an emphasis on foreign languages.

Furthermore, the classroom design in my Spanish school reflects the more laidback atmosphere and attitude of teachers in Spain. My school has students from infancy until when they graduate the American equivalent of high school. The kids younger than approximately 7^th grade and the students older than freshmen in school sit in rows in the classroom. Those students in the middle grades sit in groups of threes or fours because they are part of an experimental learning technique called cooperative learning, according to my cooperative teacher.

Moreover, the schedule of classes is built around when the Spanish people eat in their culture. For example, in Spain breakfast generally consists of coffee and bread. The main meal of the day is lunch or “la comida”, which can occur anytime between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Then, dinner is a smaller meal that occurs at 10:00 p.m. or 11:00 p.m. This focus on lunch as the main mean is part of the culture and reflected in the class schedule because school starts at 9:00 a.m. and there is a break in classes for breakfast at around 11:00 a.m. After this break the students go back to class until 2:30 p.m. when they all go home for “la comida”.

So far I have also noticed that lesson plans and class activities are less structured than they are in schools in the United States. There is an expression in Spain, “mañana” meaning tomorrow. This expression describes the general Spanish attitude. There is not an intense value placed on the end result of “grades” and assessments. For this reason, teachers are not as receptive to individual students. I have also noticed this general attitude in my professors at the university I attend in Madrid. This trait of the Spanish school reflects the attitude of the Spanish culture, which is less focused on results and is more laidback. In essence, success is defined in a different way. The Spanish schools are not as focused on results-based success and do not place the same emphasis on test scores and grades and what colleges students get into as the United States does. Spanish students take public examinations in the last year of their secondary education to determine what they are best at and go to university for what they want to study. The less intense emphasis on what school students get into or what they grades they get seems to influence them positively as they all the students I have encountered in my class are interested in learning just for the sake of learning. In conclusion, many aspects of my Spanish school are infused with elements of the Spanish culture whether it is in terms of geography, eating schedule, or societal attitudes.

English Class

There are a number of ways in which my teacher organized the classroom schedule to maximize time for student learning. She worked hard to ensure that students would be able to learn a large amount of information and for them to also have a solid grasp of this information before they left the classroom. On some days, she asked them to complete homework assignments concerning the grammar exercises involved with English. Every two weeks represented a new topic for the students. My teacher would first explain the topic to them, and then have them do exercises that would help them practice this new concept both at home and in the classroom. My CT collaborated with the other English teachers in the school and discussed new exercises that were more appealing for the students. Many of the children in my class were reading short stories that introduced advanced vocabulary about the human body, the solar system, the sea and the rain forest.

Often during the short 45-minute classroom periods my teacher would ask the students to read these different stories aloud. She would then ask them comprehensive questions that they were to explain in English. From the students’ answers from both portions, she could have an understanding of whether or not the students felt confident with material that was being presented to them.

     My CT was extremely creative with the students. She liked to play games with the students that would be enjoyable for them, but also would help to further their understanding. One of the most creative exercises I believe she executed was a game that the was entitled “hot chair.” The students would beg my teacher to play this game every class. The game began with a student who sat in the front of the whole classroom, unable to look at the chalkboard. My teacher would pick a student for the chair and then write a particularly challenging vocabulary word from that week’s lesson on the board. After this was finished, the other students in the classroom would have to explain or describe different definitions for the word written on the board until the student in the chair was able to guess the word. My teacher also liked to play different “chants” based on the different topics that were presented to the students. At one point in my teaching, I created my own rap about Space; describing the elements of the solar system for the students to learn! The students would sing along to the rap while learning the vocabulary words. My teacher also occasionally played The Beatles songs for the students to sing along to in order to better pronounce their vowels. The song “Ob la di Ob la da” was a particular favorite! She would also create a test for each topic they completed. The same test would be administered to the students with different teachers. These would represent a more formal assessment of each student’s progress. 

Classroom Management in Greece

     The classroom management techniques that my teacher used in her classroom were very similar to those I have experienced in my pre-practicums in the US. The fourth and fifth grade classrooms were much like those in the US, containing children of an age that is full of energy! My teacher had quite a challenge keeping the children inside the classroom as they were very rambunctious. My teacher didn’t believe in a very strict discipline with the students, as she was very good hearted. However, she had a wonderful way of managing the classroom so that the students would show her a large amount of respect. She had a strike system—at the beginning of each class she wrote “3 strikes” on the board. If a student misbehaved, talking out or was disruptive in the classroom, she would write the students name under the strikes with a number next to the student’s name. If the student received 3 strikes then they would have to stay in for recess and have a talk with the gym instructor. The school’s gym teacher was a very intimidating and tough teacher in the school. Many of the students were affected positively by this system. They made sure to behave in order to not lose their recess, a time which they cherished and also to avoid the gym teacher’s scolding.

            My CT would also offer different rewards to the students if they completed assignments well, or if they were being particularly well behaved in the classroom for the day. A long-term reward for the students was giving them an opportunity to have a pizza party at the end of the year. She applied the strike system to the entire classroom. If the classroom misbehaved they got a strike, if they got 3 strikes as a class they wouldn’t be allowed to have the pizza party. My teacher also had a large bucket of candy that she kept behind her desk. She would often give it to the students if they answered a question correctly, or won one of the games that we played in the classroom. I think a large portion of my teacher’s management skills were do to the fact that she treated all of the students in the classroom with respect. She was always optimistic and caring with each of the students in the classroom and it was very evident that the students in the classroom internalized this and so were respectful to her in return.

A typical day teaching in Greece

The English classes that I volunteered in met each day for 45 minutes. I would usually go to teach during gaps in my own class schedule. The two classes that I was part of the most in my experience at Anatolia were a fourth and fifth grade classroom. Each class had about 20 students in it. Each grade within the school had two different classes of students. All of the students that I was able to interact with were perhaps the most enthusiastic students that I have ever had the opportunity to work with. I’m not sure if it was because I have never had experience working with 4^th and 5^th graders in America or if it was because of the differences in culture, but this group of students had the most energy I have ever seen! They were all particularly thrilled with learning the English language, and also seemed eager to learn in general.

            A normal day would begin at about 8 am and end at 2:30 pm. The fourth and fifth grade students at the school usually have their normal academic classes such as Math, Greek (equivalent to American students’ language arts classes) History, French (the students were learning to speak French fluently along with English), and finally an English class. The class schedule varied each day. Instead of having long breaks such as lunch and recess breaks that we have in the American school system, the Greek students have breaks for about 15 minutes four times a day. It gives them the opportunity to go outside in between lessons and play. During their break time, the students would frequently play “football.” The students were particularly engrossed with this sport, called Soccer in America. “Football” is an extremely popular sport in Greece and so the students are very competitive with one another when they play. The elementary school scheduled games for the students to play in tournaments against other classes. One day, classes were cancelled because a “football” game was being held!

            This is very much an example of the Greek culture in the schools. It is very different from American school systems in that the schedules were determined on a daily basis. Sometimes classes would be cancelled because of different events or sometimes the teachers wouldn’t know if classes would be happening. One of my favorite aspects of the Greek culture is the importance of community and celebration of their own culture in the schools.

            Everyday my teacher would change student activities in order to make learning more exciting for them. On Fridays, the students were given the opportunity to pick a topic that was of interest to them and present this topic to the classroom. One Friday I was able to observe this presentation, and watched one of my fourth grade students present his topic on the deep sea. I have never seen a student so interested and excited to share his knowledge about a particular topic. It was an extremely rewarding experience to be a part of.

Teaching in Greece!

Hello! My name is Hannah I am a student in the Lynch School and have created this blog to track my teaching experience abroad! I am teaching in Thessaloniki, Greece at the Anatolia Elementary School. The school's predominant language is Greek, because I do not speak Greek I have been placed in an English learning classroom. The following reflect some of my experiences! 

       The classroom that I volunteer in for student teaching is one based solely on educating Greek students about the English language. Through my experience teaching in this school I learned many factors about the English language that I had never known before. There are many different versions of the English language outside of the United States that I had never considered to be learned by others. There is the American English, the British English, the Irish English and many many others. The curriculum for this department was based on teaching the students both the American English and also the British English. Since the school that I student teach in is a private school, it is very important for the students in this school to learn English and to become fluent in English before they graduate and enter into the high school.

            In the 6^th grade, students are required to take an intensive exam that they must pass in order to be accepted into the higher grades and most importantly the high school. A large portion of this test is focused on the writing and understanding of the English language. This is why the English department within the elementary school is of much importance to the school. The students in my classroom because they are older are quite fluent. They are able to carry on conversations and understand the English language very well. It was interesting for me to help instruct in this environment as many of the sentences and phrases that we use grammatically in America are different in each country. Phrases that involve “have got” are stated differently. In American English for example: “Bobby got a new bike”, and in British English: “Bobby have gotten a new bike.” It certainly took some getting used to in order to help the students in their understanding.

            At first, it was also challenging for me to socialize with the students because they were not familiar with the “American slang” that we sometimes take for granted in the English language of our country. There were a few times when I would enter the classroom and ask the students “How’s it going?” or say “Hi guys, what’s up?” my questions would be met with a blank stare. Even though they were very familiar with the English language they only knew the formal statements for conversations. Throughout my time teaching at the school I was able to become more comfortable with the students and learn more about their lives.

            This year the school is implementing a new program for teaching English. For many years teaching English was based on lectures and written examinations. This year, under a new English program coordinator, the school worked with a program that proved to be much more hands on. It provided students with workbooks that had practice exercises, a series of storybooks about science and history, and finally computerized “chants” that provided the students with a musical basis for learning. It was a great experience for me to be a part of this change, as the teachers were just getting used to this new program and also were working to adjust the students to this new program.