I have begun my internship at Escola d’Adults La Verneda in Barcelona, Spain. That is the Catalan name for the school, but the Spanish name is Escuela de Personas Adultas La Verneda. As I am majoring in International Relations, this internship is a great opportunity for me to work with people from a different country and learn from them as well. I am thrilled to be working in this environment not only with people from different countries, but also with people who have a different culture, and speak a different language. This opportunity will help me in the future as I plan to attend graduate school, and I feel that it is important to gain experience so that I can use that knowledge and experience in my future coursework and career. Furthermore, this opportunity to be in Barcelona allows me to practice my Spanish language skills. Improving my Spanish skills is a personal goal, but I also feel that the ability to speak another language will greatly help me in the careers that I am interested in. I have studied Spanish for a few years now and am excited to be immersed in the culture and language to further my Spanish skills.
My internship at Escola d’Adults La Verneda has been a great way for me to practice my Spanish and gain experience in my major, International Relations. My role in the school mainly focuses on assisting the teachers with office work or classroom activities. Escola d’Adults La Verneda is an educational institution for adults that is run by Associació Àgora, a local non-profit organization. The school was created in 1978 because of the interest of the neighborhood residents who desired to learn and have access to education. Since then, the school has continued to teach many different classes. Escola d’Adults follows a democratic and pluralistic approach where the decision-making processes involve the participants in every aspect of the school, inside and outside of the classroom. The participants also partake in activities such as arranging meetings as well as being involved in committees and much more.
I have been in many classes including different levels of English and Spanish classes, literacy reading groups in both English and Spanish, music groups, and science groups. The classes do not take a traditional approach, but instead, the classes are extremely interactive where the participants are encouraged to participate and lead discussions. It is through this interactive approach that the participants learn and work together to understand topics and ideas. I thought this discussion-based approach was very interesting to see as my classes at Cornell College have also emphasized discussion and interactive learning, which I feel has greatly helped improve my education.
Throughout the first week of my internship, I noticed the participants working together to help each other solve problems and understand topics. It is through their discussions that participants who may have been struggling with certain things were able to learn and understand. For example, just the other day my supervisor and I were discussing with a couple of participants how they were a great example of interactive learning in their English class. In that particular situation, there was a difference in their English levels where one participant was at a slightly higher level of English. However, when the participants were completing a practice exam, they worked together on the problems, and the participant with a slightly higher level of English helped guide the other participant to find the answer. The interactive learning helped both participants, and it was extremely interesting for me to observe.
I am excited to continue to learn and gain experience throughout my internship that will be invaluable to me both personally and professionally.