Week 7 - Professional

Power Point on English Shop Phrases

This week in Nijmegen was really a week of work, with teaching practise being on Monday and Tuesday as normal and then class the rest of this week. Teaching this week did go well as I took my first proper English lesson for the Dutch students, as they repeated phrases you would use in a shop, took part in role plays and then played a simple game of mix and match. The children did all seem to enjoy it and hopefully they have learned some new basic English (I will find out tomorrow or not when I do a recap… Fingers crossed!). This relates with our own Curriculum as it states:

“Literacy focuses on developing each child’s ability to understand and use language as an integral part of learning in all areas in order to interact effectively with the world around them…” Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007)

Cookstown at Christmas

On Tuesday then I continued with the theme of Northern Ireland as I taught the class a little bit about the different main holidays that we have. So I explained about Christmas, Easter, Halloween and the summer holidays of course. The children were amazed to find out we ate turkey at Christmas as they don’t eat it as much over here in the Netherlands. However, most things did seem similar like present giving (although they give most of theirs at the beginning of December) and Easter eggs etc.

Our poster on N.Ireland Education system

Class then this week was very interesting as we found out more about our trip to the Tour to the West coming up in the weeks ahead. We will be visiting the cities of Delft, The Hague and then Zaanse Schans. So this will be something else to look forward to - a wee weekend away!

On Friday then we got to delve into each countries educational system. We all had to make a poster on our educational system explaining the stages of schools, the ages and the different options you have once you get older. The main systems that shocked me were Finland and France. As we know with the PISA ranking system Finland is an aspiring country that all school systems want to follow.

“The results of PISA surveys conducted in the 2000s show that literacy, as well as skills in mathematics and natural sciences, among Finnish youth is among the best in the world.” University of Helsinki

Their education system really is basically the same through primary school and secondary, with the option of vocational college or university. The main difference that shocked me was that all people had to have a Master’s degree if they wanted to become a teacher. This came as a great surprise as back at home we do not have this problem … if we did have this ‘rule’ there would be a dramatic decrease in people who want to be teacher.

Education quote...

France then had a system that was similar to our Northern Irish one through primary school, only they start at 6 and then they go to college at 11 and then at 14 do an exam that lets them go into high school or a vocational college. After this they, like us, have exams to complete to get into university. However, the biggest shock that I got was that while our fees for university are over £3000, in France they pay €5 a year. This is crazy as we pay so much more over in Northern Ireland!

Me winning at bowling!

So this week really wasn’t too exciting I have to admit but it did let us see into other countries school systems and show us major differences and also makes you think why is there such a dramatic difference between each one? Especially when looking at the financial side of things… We did however also go bowling this week which to my surprise I did quite well in the last game. I do not know what came over me to make me good for once haha

French Flag

P.s. Top tip for this week, if you’re thinking about going to University go to France as you’ll save yourself thousands in student fees! So get learning your French - Au revoir!

References:

CCEA Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007).  Language and Literacy. Available: http://www.nicurriculum.org.uk/key_stages_1_and_2/areas_of_learning/language_and_literacy/. Last Accessed: 24/03/13

University of Helsini (2006). Department of Teacher Education. Available:

http://www.helsinki.fi/teachereducation/about/pisa.html. Last Accessed: 24/03/13

Week 6 - Cultural

On the move...

So this week was full of Dutch and Irish culture. The week really was the same as we took off for teaching practise on Monday and Tuesday, in which Tuesday I taught the children about our own culture in Northern Ireland. I let them see about the different flags, the royal family, St Patrick ’s Day and the 12^th of July. The children were also interested in the different sports that we have back home, for instance Gaelic football and hurling. Here the children loved watching the videos of the sport as it looked so fast and so dangerous.

Eindhoven

This weekend then we decided to go to Eindhoven as we hadn’t really travelled all that far in the Netherlands itself. Plus Sarah’s friend from home was coming over to visit and so we met her in Eindhoven to bring her back to Nijmegen for a few days. During the day though we got to look about Eindhoven and my first instinct was how modern it was compared to Nijmegen. We later found out this was because the city was only about seventy years old and therefore there were very few old buildings that existed in Eindhoven.

Saint Catherine's Church

We got to see the numerous shops and shopping centres as well as bars and churches. The one church that we did go in and visit was called St. Catherine’s, in which it was amazing. The beauty of the building oozed out with the incredible stain glass windows that throughout the church told the stories of the Bible. The church also had an area where you could light candles, which many people did and said prayers at. Really and truly this building had a humble sense to it and made you realise and think about what really was life about.

“When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator.” Mahatma Gandhi

Saint Patrick's Day celebrations in Eindhoven

We then walked around Eindhoven the rest of the day looking upon different monuments and buildings, with also the constant reminder of St. Patrick’s day being on Sunday. This was an instant reminder as some streets had green and white balloons hung up around some of the irish pubs. With this reminder of culture from home, it got us excited for the night to come as everyone had decided to celebrate our culture and head out while dressed in green. Never the less we took things to a new extreme as I was covered head to toe, quite literally, in green. With green hair, green face and clothes I was a walking green blob! Nevertheless everyone had a brilliant time and it showed us that maybe us Northern Irish Erasmus students had formed more great relationships than we had originally thought.

P.s. Top tip for this week… no matter how home sick you may feel or have, remember as you are missing old friends and family, realise you have many new friends that you will always stay close to or in contact with for the rest of your life, who will still be able to cheer you up.

Us all dressed up ready to go and celebrate Saint Patrick's Day!

“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”

John F. Kennedy

References:

Gandi, M. Brainy Quotes. Available: 

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_religion.html#MM1ZJP2owLOKmKi2.99. Last Accessed: 19/03/13

Kennedy, J.f. Brainy Quotes. Available:

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/culture.html#mIr73XsA7ZF5D49r.99. Last Accessed: 19/03/13

Week 5 - Professional

Our school...

As week 5 began here in the Netherlands, the mere aspect of starting school placement was upon us. To be honest I was nervous about the school because mainly of the language barrier between us and the children/teachers. Monday was our first day and due to our school being in Gendt, we had to get up at 6am and leave Vossenveld at 6.50am. To say the least I was not a happy guy at that time of the morning as I was steadily becoming used to the sleep in’s every day. Although, we all do cycle as a group in the morning to the train station which makes it a little better as we can all talk to each other and try to wake up a little – especially if it’s bitterly cold! Anyway, we got bus 33 to Gendt at 7.38 and we arrived at our school, Vonkenmorgen. The name of the school, as we found out later is a name that was an object or part of the old mills that used to function in The Netherlands. 

The school Souzy and I attend has groups 5 to 8 in it and the class that we have is Group 8b which contains 11 to 12 year olds. We met our class that morning and our teacher and everyone was so welcoming and eager to find out about us and where we were from. Even better our teacher is awesome at English and a few children are fluent which helps considerably! This is further highlighted when some children who are poor at English can ask the better speakers to translate for them! Plus they also used Google translate to ask us questions as they really were intrigued about us. We got to see around the school and the different rooms and it was clear the school was quite new and had plenty of resources.

Our classroom

It also was good to make comparisons with our Primary Schools back home. First thing I noticed was that no one called the teacher Mrs or Miss… we were all called by first names. Secondly, a huge difference was when the lunch bell rang the children just hopped onto their bikes and left to go home for lunch. This apparently is normal in the Netherlands – I still am not used to the school becoming a ‘ghost town’ at lunch. Furthermore, their lunch break lasts an hour and 15 minutes! However, the teacher explained we could also use this time if we had some work to do which helps the time fly by!

Cookstown main street... With no bikes!

The next day at school was even better than the first. The children were becoming used to our accents (which was a great surprise with mine!) and we were becoming used to some of the Dutch words. All the lessons are taught in Dutch so it does be hard and tiring trying to work out what the teacher is saying and what tasks the children have to do. We also got to teach the children about our homes on Tuesday, talking about the landscapes for example, the loughs, the mountains etc. The children found this fascinating! Especially at the fact that the picture of Cookstown and Belfast they seen no one using bikes! We also got to see that depending on their ability the children were moved to different seats for the different subjects, so this was one comparison that I could see from back home. This corresponds with what the National Education Association states:

“Practice allows teachers to tailor the pace and content of instruction much better to students' needs and, thus, improve student achievement.” NEA (2005)

Finally, the children seem to get a lot of time to be creative and express themselves, as they have art each day in the afternoon and then free time to go outside and play; in which I was dragged into playing football haha but I thoroughly enjoyed bonding with the children.  This relates to our Curriculum as Art lets them develop in numerous ways:

“Visual education should be planned to allow for the different ways pupils think, learn and develop.” CCEA Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007)

So teaching this week really was a blast and even though I do not look forward to the early mornings every week, the thought of attending the school is making it worthwhile! The other down side is the cost of travelling which is not fair when really we could be doing without it… but we have no other choice but to pay it so we can attend our placement. Again though I love my school, my mentor teacher and my children and I furthermore love on a Wednesday morning when I can have the day off, sleep in and recover from the previous days of work haha

Just remember...

P.s. Top tip for this week… If you’re nervous, it does not mean it’s a bad thing. You are nervous because you are starting something completely new and you are about to embark on a whole new adventure no matter what the outcome is. So just keep calm, keep smiling and keep your head high.

“If I'm nervous, it means I had to work hard to get there, whether it's playing in a tournament or speaking at an event. So I try to stop and be proud of getting to live in that moment.” Maria Sharapova

References:

CCEA Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007).  The Arts. Available: http://www.nicurriculum.org.uk/microsite/the_arts// Last Accessed: 09/03/13

National Education Association (2005). Research Spotlight on Academic Ability Grouping. Available: http://www.nea.org/tools/16899.htm. Last Accessed: 09/03/13

Sharapova (2009). Brainy Quotes. Available: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/mariashara433701.html#zOP6Cc6DFtQ63zL2.99. Last Accessed: 09/03/13

Week 4 - Personal

Erasmus Family forming...

As the weeks steadily start to fly in, really this week was mostly a lot of social activities between playing games with other Erasmus students and going out. Also as time goes on we start to form our own circle that really becomes our new family for the next few months and to be truthful the laughs still haven’t stopped!

Dutch Numbers

We also had class this week that generally was us all struggling at Dutch once again – although to be honest we didn’t do too badly at our Dutch homework - which was a great surprise! This week in the class we learned in Dutch the different days of the week and also the numbers (which I found easy as I had already learned them back at Stranmillis; I  felt smart in the class for once haha!). Furthermore on the Dutch language class, as much as I am enjoying trying to learn some basic language skills this may have been the last class that I can attend. This really is due to the schools for placement being released to us this week and my school is quite a distance from Vossenveld or from HAN University for that matter. So thinking practically, I may not be back on time from the school in order to attend the class. However, fingers crossed that I am as I thoroughly enjoy the class even though we do scrape our way through it haha. As Hickson is acclaimed for saying the famous quote of:

“If at first you don’t first succeed. Try, try, try again.”

In this case, I use this saying or phrase quite often in the Dutch language class… believe me!

Inspirational History quote by Eleanor Roosevelt

Classes continued with Dutch culture where we learned about the history of the country and then of the other students countries and the famous dates that they had picked out. As an avid history lover that I am, I loved finding out things that I really had no knowledge of – especially the more recent events! Plus in my opinion it’s crucial for everyone to realise the history of their own country as well as other countries so that we can see similar events occurring as well as the similar dates that the events did occur. Also, as many people do say history does have a habit of repeating itself, so maybe if more were aware of their history then they wouldn't let certain events happen once again.

“If you don't know history, then you don't know anything. You are a leaf that doesn't know it is part of a tree. ” Crichton

My Placement Partner Souzy!

Finally the tutoring class was non-existent this week as we only have it every other week so we all know what that means… another beautiful lie in which was definitely needed! This then leads into our schools being released and glad to my knowledge I am paired with my Greek friend Souzy however, the school is in Gendt, North of Nijmegen so we have to cycle to the train station every morning and get a bus from there. The bus lasts about thirty minutes so we will be up at dawn making sure that we are on time… so on Monday and Tuesday I will be full of the joys of spring! 

To be honest I am a little anxious of starting placement as I am going to be teaching eleven to twelve year old pupils which I am not used to as back home this age would be first year in high school . Again though, it is all an experience and I might ask any way to spend some time with the younger children for a more beneficial experience for myself. Furthermore, it will also set a more solid routine for us and after all we are here to teach so it’s all quite exciting too! Throughout teaching practise though I will have to remember to be age appropriate no matter what. This relates to competence twenty one of the GTCNI teaching competences:

“Employ strategies that motivate and meet the needs of all pupils…”

My short hair...

Finally this weekend maybe not so much a ‘cut’ above the rest, as I received my first haircut in The Netherlands (in my opinion it is more of a hair-shave than a haircut as my hair is very short!). This again shows how crucial it is to try and learn the Dutch language in situations like this – maybe then I wouldn't have such little hair left on my head! Oh well I will get used to it like everyone else and it will grow back – Thankfully!

Ps top tip for this week… when getting your haircut and you hear the shaver being turned on and you value your hair, immediately say Nee Nee Nee Nee! (No No No No!)

References:

Crichton, M and W.E.Hickson. Good Reads – Quotes about History. Available: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/history. Last Accessed 03/03/13.

GTCNI Competences (2008). Professional Competences. Available: http://www.gtcni.org.uk//index.cfm/area/information/page/ProfStandard. Last Accessed 23/02/13.

Week 3 - Professional

So as our school placement doesn't start until March at the moment from the professional side of things we have only experienced class. This week class once again began after the crazy antics of the Dutch Carnival and our own trip to Amsterdam. To be honest I was looking forward to classes starting again as it would enter in some routine into our Dutch lives, but I most certainly wasn't looking forward to the bike rides each morning as we would have to get up earlier just to be on time for class – Urgh! 

Our first class was on Tuesday which was our Dutch language lessons… well that was interesting to say the least! The whole lesson or most of it was in Dutch as the lecturer would only speak Dutch and not English. We struggled on and managed (eventually) to be able to say “Ik ben Darren” and “Ik kom uit Ireland”; which is really saying what your name is and where you are from. Another hugely important sentence that we learned was how to say I understand and I do not understand – clearly the latter being used more often! So…“Ik snap het “or “Ik snap het niet”. Clearly though this class will be useful and will force us to think about the Dutch language and what to say. Obviously, I had not been used to thinking and concentrating so much in a while as I was completely drained after our Dutch language class.to say the least I am extremely looking forward to the next class to find out more of this historical language.

“One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.”

Frank Smith

Homework’s also are starting to pile up which isn't a great thing but I suppose it gives us something else to do. The homework’s at the moment though don’t seem too strenuous because they really are making presentations on yourself and your own experiences. However, this will change as the weeks go on.

Dutch culture and society this week was a lot of people talking about their own countries through the representation of pictures. We got to delve into a lot of cultures and see what their country was about and what it meant to each individual. Again, it was interesting to see each student’s different perspective especially as I chose a more controversial picture for Northern Ireland with the reason of wanting to root out the stereotype placed against us as a country. However, I was severely glad to find out that other people’s perceptions were a lot different than expected! 

Finally, our class on Friday let us gain more knowledge into the professional side of teaching in The Netherlands concerning really our school placements. We were told that some placements might be outside the main centre of Nijmegen which did concern me but if I am placed there I’m sure I will be fine. We found out that we will have placement on a Monday and Tuesday of each week and depending on the class and teacher it is up to them how much involvement they want me to have. Though, we were told thankfully that if we want to do more we just have to ask! I see this as a brilliant opportunity and experience to be able to teach in a different country and so I am willing to do as much as possible. Furthermore, this will be a lot different to our own teaching practise and placement back in Northern Ireland as we have a block period compared to here, which has just the two days then class the rest of the week. Hopefully we will be able to see which process works better and that we prefer! Finally we also got to see lesson plans and got to see about how here they plan, assess and evaluate their lessons. This still corresponds with our curriculum as The Northern Ireland Curriculum states:

                                                 

“Schools will still assess pupils' progress in the key areas of Communication and Using Mathematics with reference to levels and report outcomes...”

N.Ireland Curriculum 2007 Assessment for Learning

This further relates with the GTCNI competences as Competence five states ““A knowledge and understanding of curriculum development processes, including planning, implementation and evaluation.”

Planning in The Netherlands seem a little different as the Dutch lesson plans seem to be a lot fuller of content compared to ours. Instead of our table format response the most of theirs seem to be more ‘question answer’ form, where you just have a for example learning goal and then space below to write in your goals. However, we were told if we wanted to use our lesson planners from back home we could, but I think I will truly experience the Dutch student teacher life and use their own planners.

So after week 3 we have nearly a month complete in Nijmegen and really it seems just so natural to be here now. Everything just seems normal, continuous skyping to family and friends, shopping, cleaning etc. Also, now that classes have begun and we are beginning to learn about teaching here and the schools, it really just feels like we are back home about to begin our own normal teaching practise. P.s. top tip for this week – get up earlier in the morning so you don’t have to cycle really fast just to be on time for class or this will result in sore legs and a sore bottom!

References

CCEA Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007). Assessment for Learning

GTCNI Competences (2008). Professional Competences. Available: http://www.gtcni.org.uk//index.cfm/area/information/page/ProfStandard. Last Accessed 23/02/13.

Week Two - Cultural

Okay so my week in Nijmegen was pretty short! This was because my sister had her second daughter and as the brilliant and aspiring uncle that I am I went home for a few days! (This worked out rather well as we were all off class this week as it is Dutch Carnival!). However, even though my time in The Netherlands this week was short I still did get to experience the culture of The Netherlands, mainly through the dreaded process of travelling!

As I had never travelled on my own before, the very thought scared the day lights out of me – “What if I miss the train? What happens if I do not get off at the correct stop? Is there more security to do? Where do I go? What the heck does that even mean?!... Oh how I wish I learned Dutch!” These were only a few example of what was running through my head. Never the less, I found out that with a generous smile and speaking clearly, you will be okay… mainly due to the Dutch people being so helpful and friendly! One example of this warm nature was experienced while being on the train. As the snow had caused the main route to Schiphol Station being cancelled, I had to get off at Utrecht. This man who generously explained where I had to go, what platform my train was at and even helped me find the platform made sure then that the young lost (and more than worried) traveller would make his plane on time. Whether or not this was due to the man showing the best Dutch generosity that I had experienced or maybe it was just the man feeling so sorry for me as my face easily showed that I did not have a clue where or what I was doing haha

To make matters worse, the airport soon showed me once again the helpful nature of the Dutch people as I did not know where my gate for departure was at and also where security was at. Again, I was eager in my mind that I was going to miss my flight in some way or form. However, you will all be glad to know that I made my flight on time and had an excellent few days with my beautiful baby niece!

When I returned to my ‘Welcome Back Party!’ at the flat I knew that the next few days were going to be crazy! To truly experience the Dutch culture we decided to go to the big city of Amsterdam and yes whatever you have heard about Amsterdam, I can reassure it is all true! Again, travelling proved a task on its own but when we got there first thought was – it’s so busy! When in Amsterdam we did a lot of walking about and absorbing everything that we could see! The hustle of the city was amazing seeing the numerous amounts of museums that we could experience as well as the many shops filled with souvenirs. The souvenirs contained mainly the tulips, clogs etc the usual Dutch things as well as more… let’s just say interesting things! Haha We also got to see the canals in Amsterdam and at night see the city light up! Then on the second day we started by going to the Anne Frank museum which was breath taking. Honestly, the tour was so sad and humbling to see that such a small girl could write in such a way as she did in her diary. Also, the tour showed pencil marks made on the wall of the height of Anne and for once in my life I was speechless. This was by far the best experience I had in Amsterdam. It let us all see that The Netherlands, like all countries has a dark history but has climbed to become a beautiful city in many ways.

So week 2 is over and I can see that we will all be fine even though we know so little Dutch… or any language for that matter! I can honestly say that I now know my time here will be awesome with many new friends and numerous trips across The Netherlands or maybe even Europe? Hmmm… now there is an idea! P.s. top tip for this week – if your train becomes cancelled and you have to get off and change train, just keep calm, smile and remember to always speak slowly!

Week One - Personal

On the plane ready to go!

Eimear, Sarah and I began our adventure on Thursday the 31^st of January. We set of from Belfast and an hour and a half later we were in The Netherlands! First thought… Wow it’ so flat - they have no hills! Second thought was how the heck are we going to find the right train to get to Nijmegen in this place? Thankfully we did very well… Surprisingly! Bar from a few incidents with Sarah on the escalators with her two suitcases we hopped onto the correct train. Again, an hour and half later we were finally in Nijmegen!

No Wifi - Just a cable!

Once driven from the train station, by taxi, to SSHN (just like our Stranmillis halls office) we signed on the dotted line and paid the cash... that was it, our new home for five months was Nijmegen. We were then taken by the two Erasmus buddies to our flat at Vossendijk. We then had to fend for ourselves and track down our correct floor and room, in which when we did there was no one else there at first. Also to my shock there was no wifi which left me feeling like I had lost a limb! Things started to look up though as we then met two Belgium Erasmus students who we were going to be living with – Brian and Deborah, who we instantly got on well with and ever since have had endless laughs and fun!

The next few days consisted off meeting new people and having to slow down our speech – which for us Northern Irish is quite difficult! We met two people who would be important in our stay in Nijmegen – Magda and Ben. Both of them were so friendly and made Eimear, Sarah and I feel at ease and welcome. Through them we met another two important people who would aid the fun in the next few months, as these two people were also Irish. The two girls were called Ciara and Michelle, who study in Dublin – finally we found people who could understand us talking fast haha! They were able to show us around town and the different places that would aid us in our Erasmus adventure.

Welcome!

Classes began on Monday when we found ourselves walking around trying to find the correct building. As Nijmegen is big we did get lost and ended up consequently late for class. Never the less we got there (good thing Dutch people can speak English and point us in the correct direction!) and we sat down and began our first class. Strange as it is, the class was enjoyable as it let us gain insight into other education systems and make comparisons to our own in Northern Ireland. Furthermore, we got to meet even more people through class which was now becoming more and more frequent each day. Only problem being… trying to remember everyone’s name!

Me and my machine of a bike!

Finally on Tuesday we purchased a tool that would be of great assistance in the next few days, weeks and months – our bikes! So many bikes with so many prices! Eventually we all purchased a bike on the Tuesday which was brilliant as we cycled our way home within twenty minutes! The only down side of cycling is the other Dutch cyclists who fly past and I am trying to steady my bike so I do not fall off! However, after a while I am sure I will be the one ‘flying by’.

So over all our first week has been awesome and if the weeks to follow are to be like this, I am guaranteed a brilliant time! 

P.s. top tip for this week - when cycling wrap up warm and wear gloves as your hands will be freezing by the time you get home!

Me and my flatmates!