So the past two weeks have been more exhausting than I had originally thought they would be. I started my internship at the Gymnasium (20 minutes from my dorm including walking and subway time) last tuesday. It's been pretty great so far actually. The first day was a bit of a mess because a few of the classes I was supposed to sit in on had substitute teachers and so the student's didn't do much else other than watch movies and individual work.
Most of my internship has just been sitting in the back of the room and observing the different methods teachers use in the classroom. So far I haven't seen much difference between high school here and high school in the US. The only real differences are that Gymnasium, as they call high school over here, is from 5th grade to 12th grade (it used to be until 13th grade). So a high school here is pretty much just an American middle school and high school put together. Teachers have to teach two subjects though and they teach all different grades, which is completely different from what my high school teachers had to do. Most of my high school teachers had one or two grades they taught and just one subject.
Other than that though 7th graders are 7th graders no matter where you live. They are so incredibly talkative and don't really pay attention in class at all and are more preoccupied with social life than their academics. So far my favorite grades have been 6th grade and 11th grade (mostly because they seem to be the most respectful and attentive. They also seem to participate the most).
I've had 4 offers from 4 different teachers asking me if I wanted to teach a class some time and I'm actually currently preparing to teach an 8th grade English Class two Tuesdays from now. I'm a bit nervous because I was in that class most of the day today and there are a lot of troublemakers. They didn't really listen to the teacher at all and they talked through the entire class. I think it will hopefully be ok though because we are just going to be talking about American Sports, and I can use their textbook which has some exercises in it already -- I just need to get them interested and to participate.
Other than my Internship there really hasn't been much going on in my life. I wake up at 6:30 every morning to be able to get to the school in time and so that means I'm pretty much going to bed at the latest 10 but preferably 9, because I am now officially an old lady. I love my sleep I really do. I don't really know how I ever got up consistently that early in high school after going to bed so late (at around 2am) also consistently.
Anyways, it's interesting to see how high school is taught here and makes me really think whether or not I want to be a teacher. Right now I'm leaning towards yes, but I'm still not positive. The Munich Program through LC though is really awesome because if you want to do an internship it's pretty much a given that you will get one. All you have to do is submit a short 5 page proposal with specific places in Munich where you may want to do your internship (which includes a resume and a letter of intent etc.) I have another friend on the program who is doing an internship working with horses, which is pretty awesome. Apparently she has been present as some foals have been born.
As always let me know if you have any questions or just want to talk. My email is drussosavage@lclark.edu
Most of my internship has just been sitting in the back of the room and observing the different methods teachers use in the classroom. So far I haven't seen much difference between high school here and high school in the US. The only real differences are that Gymnasium, as they call high school over here, is from 5th grade to 12th grade (it used to be until 13th grade). So a high school here is pretty much just an American middle school and high school put together. Teachers have to teach two subjects though and they teach all different grades, which is completely different from what my high school teachers had to do. Most of my high school teachers had one or two grades they taught and just one subject.
Other than that though 7th graders are 7th graders no matter where you live. They are so incredibly talkative and don't really pay attention in class at all and are more preoccupied with social life than their academics. So far my favorite grades have been 6th grade and 11th grade (mostly because they seem to be the most respectful and attentive. They also seem to participate the most).
I've had 4 offers from 4 different teachers asking me if I wanted to teach a class some time and I'm actually currently preparing to teach an 8th grade English Class two Tuesdays from now. I'm a bit nervous because I was in that class most of the day today and there are a lot of troublemakers. They didn't really listen to the teacher at all and they talked through the entire class. I think it will hopefully be ok though because we are just going to be talking about American Sports, and I can use their textbook which has some exercises in it already -- I just need to get them interested and to participate.
Other than my Internship there really hasn't been much going on in my life. I wake up at 6:30 every morning to be able to get to the school in time and so that means I'm pretty much going to bed at the latest 10 but preferably 9, because I am now officially an old lady. I love my sleep I really do. I don't really know how I ever got up consistently that early in high school after going to bed so late (at around 2am) also consistently.
Anyways, it's interesting to see how high school is taught here and makes me really think whether or not I want to be a teacher. Right now I'm leaning towards yes, but I'm still not positive. The Munich Program through LC though is really awesome because if you want to do an internship it's pretty much a given that you will get one. All you have to do is submit a short 5 page proposal with specific places in Munich where you may want to do your internship (which includes a resume and a letter of intent etc.) I have another friend on the program who is doing an internship working with horses, which is pretty awesome. Apparently she has been present as some foals have been born.
As always let me know if you have any questions or just want to talk. My email is drussosavage@lclark.edu