Why Travel?

            If I sit back and think about it, this trip to Spain has been bizarre.  I picked up my life and left it on hold, traveled to an entirely new place that I had to get accustomed to, just to leave again and awkwardly re-enter the life I left behind.  Now don’t get me wrong, I was incredibly excited to take on this new life adventure, but pondering the scenario from how an outsider may see it leaves me puzzled.  Why travel?

            This question has been on my mind for these first couple weeks of the trip thanks to my students.  It all started in an introductory get-to-know-you lesson for my Primary 6 students. I had pulled up a Google map of Minnesota on the SMARTboard and showed my students where I was from. They proceeded to drill me with a series of questions ranging from what Minnesota winters are like, to if I liked American TV, to who I voted for in the last US presidential election.  I answered most questions without much trouble, but one in particular caught me off guard.  A boy in the front raised his hand patiently with a quizzical look on his face.  When I called on him, I could hear the bewilderment in his voice as he asked, “Why would you come to Spain to teach?” as if it were an odd thing to do.  Hesitantly, I replied something like “because I wanted to experience a different culture and gain experience in a different type of school” and moved on with the questioning quickly, avoiding further discussion on the topic.

            Now, upon further reflection, I still feel unsatisfied with my answer.  I had been caught off guard by the question and responded with a vague and meaningless answer.  It seemed odd to me that the 11-year old wasn’t keen on the idea of traveling and wasn’t familiar with the benefits associated with the different cultural experiences. But of course he didn’t know that!  It seems obvious, when living with six other Gustavus travelers and surrounded by teachers from all over the world, that traveling is a way to cultivate personal growth. But it turns out, not everyone sees it that way.  Realizing this, I would like to take another stab at his question using some insight I’ve gained from those around me…

I’ll start off with my fellow student teachers’ responses to “Why come to Spain to teach?”

I knew it would be so drastically different than what I was used to.  I wanted a challenge.  Also, it gives me the opportunity to learn more about the American school system by seeing something that it wasn’t.

I believe people learn the most when they are put into uncomfortable situations and have to think outside the box.  When you put yourself into a new culture, you have to think of things in a new way.  Coming to Spain allows me to grow as a teacher and a person.  You aren’t stuck on a one-way street of doing things like you’ve always experienced them; you have more experience to pull from, making you a better teacher.

To experience a new culture and see how things are different from what I’m used to in the United States. To see how education here is different, essentially.

Spain lets me experience a different culture in a very real way. We’re immersed in the culture here, and a new culture offers a very different type of school.  It teaches me a lot about thinking about teaching in a new way.  As teachers we need to continue learning about teaching so we don’t get complacent.

It’s something I wanted to do because it combined two of my loves: traveling and teaching.

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Aren’t my cohorts all so wise?!

Well, here’s what I have come up with.  I’m not sure my students would want my lengthy answer, but at least I can be satisfied with my answer now!

            “I would come to Spain to teach because of what it teaches me.  The new culture is a challenge to my way of thinking about the world, which affects how I interact with it.  Teaching in another culture allows me to see how educational systems are run elsewhere so that I may draw from this school, as well as be better able to understand American schools.  I can better understand theirs as well as my own, and be able to take the best of both for my own future classroom.

            I wanted to challenge myself and Spain is a challenge to me because I have to learn how to do so many new things everyday, helping me to be a more independent person and develop as an individual.  Teaching in Spain, like so many experiences, helps me to learn more about who I am as an individual and pushes me to grow daily.
            Additionally, coming to Spain to teach is a fun way to travel.  I get to experience this beautiful and unique country alongside a group of passionate and interesting peers.  What else could I possibly ask for?”

-Brittani Matzke