Recollection of the Spain Placement

It has been manic since returning.  Thinking back, I am so glad to get an opportunity to go to Spain, I think I have had just a taster of what the Valenciano is like and I do want to go there again.  With the placement, it has been an unexpected experience and I do not know what the arrangement was with the school so I cannot realistically describe too much.  

I would like to focus on the positives.  In terms of achievements I can now say I have adapted myself to the requirements of a Spanish school with large class sizes, have taught directly from the textbook, become more confident and assured in front of a big class and with help from others I’ve successfully used a classroom management system based on ‘pineapple pen’.  I put in a lot of effort when I got the chance to teach.  Some things I planned worked well and some things perhaps didn’t.  Surprisingly, I found the children quite well behaved, but they do often talk amongst themselves. 

I am gutted I didn’t improve on my very basic Spanish, especially when compared to my flatmates.  There was a friendly, sociable male teacher with very little English who always used to talk to me.  Through gesturing (or guessing from context) I worked out bits of what he was saying, unfortunately a lot of times it went over my head. 

I think living in Gandia was great, we were near to the main high street with plenty of independent retailers and cafes.  We had two supermarkets close by and a stationer just around the corner.  It’s unfortunate that I didn’t explore this unique place more.  It was great living with fellow teachers who were happy to provide moral support.  There were a number of problems we encountered at times; like a faulty boiler therefore no hot water, a leaky water pipe, no water at all, no heating – things like this tested our resolve, but we soldered on with our bulldog spirit.  We will always the dog poo incident towards the end of our stay, hilarious!

We all had the opportunity to experience real-life EFL by preparing a formal lesson plan for a class which was observed by their teacher and UKLC staff member.  I took a risk (with a large class) and tried things that they wouldn’t have experienced before, like moving students to work in groups.  Overall, I thought the students were engaged and it went well. 

My advice to Erasmus teachers going to Spain is firstly, having confidence in front of a class and in your own teaching really helps.  I would advise speaking loudly to get their attention, give praise when students do well, have a contingency plan if possible.  Also (if not on your timetable), do try to get involved or observe a Primaria class, it’s a rewarding experience! 

Right, I just need to try to get a good teaching job.  Wish me luck.