Conclusion

So I have been home for a couple of days now and have had to sit back and think over my time away in Sweden. I have been away from family and friends a couple of times before being that slight bit older than people in my year I have had other opportunities to travel for longer periods of time. However this is the first time I had been away when it was for a proper reason. I wasn’t just going away for a wee holiday I was going to have to study, be responsible and make sure this time didn’t upset my education.

 I can honestly say it was amazing and that I truly loved the challenge of studying abroad. Personally I don’t understand why more people are not jumping down the throats of our lecturers in Stranmillis to let them go. I think people think it will be a disadvantage when it comes to getting a job, but I don’t see how being able to teach in a different country for 6 weeks would be a disadvantage, if anything it is an advantage surly.

I was able to keep on track of my essays and class work, have an amazing placement and still visit 3 countries that I had never been both. All this broadens your resources for the classroom and just yourself as an individual.

I think people sometimes are too comfortable to take that wee leap of faith into the unknown and let opportunities like this pass them by. I am just happy to say that I didn’t and it has been one of the best decisions I’ve made. I think people should take the risks because the positives far outweigh the negatives, if it doesn’t work its only 4 months and you will have learnt something.

Sweden you have been amazing thank you for the time, experience and the people I met. I shall see you again soon.

Many thanks

                          Michael

The Finale........Personal

My final week in Vaxjo, this is my last couple of days in Sweden and I decided to go and visit some family relatives. They live on the west coast of Sweden in a small town called Lysekil. It is a beautiful part of Sweden filled with fishing villages and seafood. I had to get the train from Vaxjo to Gothenburg. I have really enjoyed getting the trains around Sweden I believe it is the best way to get around. Gives you time to sit back and enjoy the countryside.

I was staying with them for 3days before I would start my journey home through London. It was a beautiful small town with and old town and new town. I was able to go and see where my dad’s partner grew up. I was just there to spend time with family so I didn’t do an awful lot of traveling, which was perfect after my 4 and a bit months of none stop traveling.

I was taken to a small little tourist fishing village called Smogen. It was absolutely stunning with a wooden board walk going around the whole villages. I was glad I was able to relax and not have any worries and be able to have time to think over my time away and what I had learnt both educational and personally. I think it’s important like we tell our class to self-evaluate about the good things and bad things I have experienced over my 4 and bit months away. I just wonder how it will affect my teaching in the years to come.

Until next time Hej då

My 6A class.....Professional

13/05/2012

It’s my final week in school and I have to say I have loved absolutely every minute of this placement. The children have been great at making me feel welcome and not being scared of using their English. My teacher Lasse has been wonderful at how much freedom he has given us with our lessons. We have taught everyday which I was over the moon about as I wasn’t sure if that was going to be possible to have one every day. Even though most lessons were either English or PE I feel it has taught me a lot.

Me and my buddy Andy

My teacher asked if another girl and I would take their national tests for them. I feel this has been one of my best learning experiences with in a classroom. I had to take the English oral exams by getting the children to talk on a topic either family, their house or what they did in their spare time. I was so impressed by the standard of the English and had good fun marking it. I then had to take there listen exams, which I felt was quite long maybe 25 minutes. The children all preformed at very high standard. I found it a challenge to mark the work as I knew the importance of it and that I had to really take my time and make it sure I didn’t make a mistake. Finally I had to mark their written exam where the children had to write a short story on what the world would be like in 2112. The stories made me laugh a lot and I really enjoyed getting to see the creative side of the children.

The velcro wall...Gothenburg

Me and Lasse spoke after and told us how great it was too have us in the class as the children could have no better experience with English. I have to say I felt very proud of the job I down and I can’t wait to come back and visit Lasse again. We are going to keep in contact by email.

Vaxjo

I had a lot of fun with the class but it was the learning experience that I really enjoyed and I appreciate Lasse a lot for letting take the exams as it’s not really something I get to do when I am home.

Until next time Hej då 

Gothenburg....Culture

07/05/2012

I’ve had my traveling shoes on again and this time Niall, Mary, Dean and I went to Gothenburg. It started a bit frantic as my alarm failed to wake me up, making me miss my bus and having to get a taxi into town to the station just in time for the train. I love traveling by train as you get to see so much of the country side and the surrounding areas. It was only me and Niall traveling down in the morning and Mary and Dean were going to meet us later that night.

Niall and I under the heat camera

We arrived in Gothenburg which is a beautiful city, I think I preferred it to Stockholm but I think the weather didn’t help Stockholm so I will have visit it again sometime. Niall and I made it to the hostel which looked great and left our bags off and set out to explore the city. We saw some bike stands and decided it would be the cheapest and probable the more fun option of traveling around the city, for three days for 10Kr (one pound) we couldn’t go wrong.

With our bikes

We decided to cycle to the Universeum which is a kind of W5 centre. It was so much fun they had a full jungle area with wild birds and monkeys running around. I was able to coax a parrot onto my arm so that was a lot of fun. They had a underwater shark tunnel which was amazing to see. Being able to get so close to the sharks was really cool. We decided after that to go and cycle around the town in search of an Irish pub to watch the Ulster rugby match. Not long after that Mary and Dean arrived so we grabbed some food and called it a day as we were going to have a busy second day.

The parrot

We woke up early and went for a walk in the nearby park which had moose and other animals in it so we walked around and enjoyed the lovely weather looking at the native Swedish animals. We decided we want to go to Liseberg which is a theme park. We arrived and tried to coax Mary to go on her first ever rollercoaster, we finally managed. By the end we found it more difficult to get here away from them. We went on the log flume and got totally soaked which made a good few people laugh a most people were pretty dry coming of it. I really enjoyed Gothenburg and would have loved to have stayed longer.

Us all soaked

Until next time Hej då 

Change… Professional

30/04/2012

 In Sweden at this moment are working with a new curriculum, so it has been great to see this working within the classroom over the last couple of weeks.

Our curriculum seems to never stop changing back home. But I feel that the current curriculum is on the right lines. As it still has some focus on the main subjects but now with a more student centred approach. In Sweden they do not seem to have PDMU as a subject but more as just a way of life in the classroom, if one of the students wants to talk about something they are not happy about they talk about it and sometimes as a whole class approach. My teacher Lasse says he always tells the children not to say ‘not’ and so far they don’t. They never seem to moan about the work they have to do they just seem to get on with it.

Also a thing I have noticed within my classroom, I cannot say about the whole school, but there seems to be no bullying everyone helps everyone. My teacher told me that at the start when he first had the class that he makes them do different exercises to show that some people are better at different things than others but that they all have their individual strengths. I think this is something that I feel very strongly towards as I hate when a child thinks they are bad at something or insecure about themselves because others have made them feel like that. I feel it’s our jobs as teachers to enforce that each child is an individual and that they can do and be what they want. As a child’s happiness within the classroom is essential if they are going to learn.

There are only 16 students in my class and you can see the different groups of friends within that class but everyone gets on. I noticed it most when I had to pick pairs for some group work and no one complained about who they were with. This is something I always notice back home when there is paired work some of the children complain who they are working with and that is not nice for anyone to feel unwanted. So I have really come to see how passionate I am about the actually happiness of the children within my classroom and for each of them to feel and have a vital part within that. Pastoral care could be the module I will pick next year.

Until next time Hej då

Adjö..... professional

25/04/2012

So I am finally back on school placement again after having quite sometime of and having to orgainse it myself, but I am just glad to be back in the classroom.

Since i have been in the classroom a bit longer now i have started to see a few more differences with in the Swedish school system and the Northern Irish school sysytem. One of the largest differences i have noticed with in the class is that phyical contact with the children is alot less strict. So far i can see the reasons behind it and the reasons for doing it and so do the children which i feel is good.

I mostly notice this when it comes to Fridays within my classroom. On Fridays my teacher wears a tie (usually it is just normal clothes) and he ask me why he did this, he told me its to let the chldren know its hugging day. So every Friday they hug before they go home. The children seem to enjoy the close rapor they have with their teacher. Futhermore on Fridays the children give each other back rubs. The teacher says they do this to help bring postitive feelings towards each other in the classroom and helps to reduce bullying withn the classroom and school as it lets the children have contact in a non violent way.

I think that in Northern Ireland we have taken no contact with children to the extreme, that of a child gets hurt or is upset we can really do anything to comfort them. I feel that children are going to start growing up with issues of contact as from a young age in school if they fall or are upset they have to deal with it themselves. I also am a bit confused as the Northern Ireland makes us as teachers teach PDMU, which is about feeling and difficult issues, but at the same time don’t let children react they feel is normal when they are hurt especially at Foundation stage and Key 1. I understand that it is for our own protection as teachers but I think we miss the point sometimes. 

Maybe Sweden is too comfortable but I think they have a better idea about it than us in the United Kingdom. 

Until next time Hej då

Vaxjo spring...Personal

19/04/2012

Spring has arrived in Växjӧ and the weather has begun to get warmer….finally. This week the weather was particularly warm with the temperature rising to 20°C. So people were out in numbers with their shorts and t-shirts on ready for a BBQ. Our friends decided that we would all chip in and buy a proper BBQ together rather than keep spending the money on the disposable ones.

During the day before the BBQ we decided that we would go down and enjoy the sunshine beside the lake. I had told my friends previously that I would love to swim in the lake and jump of the bridge into it, so I decided that today would be the day. We enjoyed the sun for a while and I change and went for a swim in the lake. The water was so cold but so nice at the same time, really refreshing with lots of fish around me. I decided that I would head round to the bridge to see if I could jump in as I wasn’t sure if it was going to be deep enough. I got back in the water and swam out to the middle and tested the depth, but it wasn’t deep enough and I didn’t want to risk anything stupid.

Me and the BBQ

It’s great when the sun comes out over here as you just start to realise how many Swedish students there are as every grass area is just filled with people sunbathing, barbequing and playing games. It starts to bring that community feeling around campus that I have missed from home.

Vasa Stockholm

We have enjoyed some of the spring night by having camp fires down by the lake. I have to say I love making camp fires; I always do it at home so it was nice to have one over here. My friends at home make fun of me for being a bit of a fire bug and it didn’t take long for my friends over here to pick up on that.

Campus is beautiful at the minute with the beautiful weather, just hope it stays.

Until next time Hej då

Seeing Sweden....cultural

12/04/2012

Since I finished some of my classes early on I had a bit of spare time before starting my placement so I decided to travel and see Stockholm the capital of Sweden.

The white boat is our hostel

Stockholm is a beautiful city with lots of beautiful architecture, shops and history. I was only going to be there for the weekend so I wanted to make the most and see as many of the different sites as I could. So I got up early the next day to go watch the changing of the guards. I have been to London and seen the changing of the guards there so I was kind of expecting the same. When it was nearing the time for it to star we could see some of the guards starting to gather. I was taken back a bit when I see some of them smoking and chatting with each other joking. I thought because of it being something to do with the Royal Family that it would have been more serious. However this seems to be the running trait within Swedish culture, laid back and relaxed not taking things to serious apart from themselves.

Changing of the Guard

I got a guided tour around the Royal Palace; it was beautiful inside and was great to hear a bit more about Sweden’s history. The next day I went to the Vasa museum; which is the history of a boat that was built to big and on its maiden voyage sank in the harbour. It was just amazing to see and how the boat had been preserved in the water by the silt.

Stockholm

I really enjoyed my time in Stockholm walking around seeing the sites; I wish it had been a bit warmer as it was bitterly cold. It is a great city but it is so expensive so I would not want to stay too much longer, I still find the price of things difficult and don’t understand how the Swedish don’t realise how expensive things are but I suppose if it’s your culture and what you are used to you do not see it as expensive.

Until next time Hej då

Money, Money, Money....Personal

03/04/2012

So I have been in Sweden a good while now and been living the Swedish life and I have to say it’s a fairly expensive lifestyle. At the start I didn’t really notice it too much but after being here a while I have started to realise things that I would normally buy back home have become luxuries over here. Simple things like meat and coffee, but it’s not that they are really bad just enough to put me of buying. There just is no point in lifting out 10 pounds in Sweden as it hardly lasts. It’s a thing I have found difficult and at times annoying because I do have to look after my money more, and be more disciplined with it.

However on the good side it has made me more disciplined with my money. My mum always told me money burns a hole in my pocket, which was probably true to a certain extent but it wasn’t always spent on me. I have just had to be more careful with it, being able to budget for that week and especially when I am on trips somewhere for the weekend, as I found it was too easy to just buy lunch and dinner. So I am glad I have come across this problem as this is meant to be a learning experience both positive and negative and I am happy to learn both.

Another thing I have found difficult is living with someone in such close proximities. I live with a guy called Javiar who is really nice but he is just so quite compared to me so he only talks to me if I ask him how he has been or what he has been at. They are usually just a couple of word answers. I am a really outgoing guy and easy to get on with, but I still need my own space at times and I don’t get that at all unless I leave the room. Simple things like talking on Skype with my family and girlfriend has to be done in front of him if he is in which is just a bit annoying at times. Again this is something I have had to get used to over the last few months, and I have to say it is something I looked forward to having when I get home.

Until next time Hej då

Having an international time...Professional

27/03/2012

Being part of an international class has many positive benefits. For students, especially those training to teach, it is an enjoyable learning experience to study alongside students from different and contrasting backgrounds. For western students in particular it is beneficial to learn from Asian students who don’t live and learn in a western centred way. It can be very easy for western students to believe that their way of doing things is best or even superior, so it is very beneficial for them to be confronted with a different culture that does things differently.

For many international students English is not their first language and they rarely get the chance to speak English, so as a student with English as a second language you must try to speak and understand the lecturer and other students. This is a steep learning curve for international students and it can be challenging and at times even stressful. Writing academically in can be very difficult for some students. Whilst most students in international classes can speak English to a reasonable level, writing in English is another challenge in itself and a lot of time can be spent translating. When a student has another course as well as an international class it can add to the pressure of academic writing. Many international students in Sweden also take on additional Swedish language classes and studying to be teachers will be under pressure to learn basic Swedish as well as improve their English.

Language competence is a big issue in an intercultural class but it not necessarily a problem. Using English has both positive and negative benefits for an intercultural class. Such is the power of the English language that it is now a second language for many students and often a pre requisite for going on and international exchange.  It is a huge advantage for students from 12 different countries to be able to communicate in one language. The most obvious barrier between people from different countries is language and eliminating that barrier also means many others can be broken down as well. For example, this means that students can learn about each other’s country and culture first hand and not rely on clichés and stereotypes that may exist. Sharing a language provides the opportunity for students to learn what other countries are really like. Sharing a language means students are able to ask probing questions and satisfy the curiosity they may have about other cultures and countries.

It can beneficial for students to see how the learning of language in different cultures and how education is organised in different countries has an effect on the behaviour of students. Margaret Akinyi Obondo believes that there are two distinct methods of learning a language that is dependent on where you are from. There is the ‘child centred’ approach which is Western, middle class and involves the mother and other adults interacting with the child.  The other method is ‘situation centred’ and exists in non western backgrounds. This generally takes place in extended families and the child primarily learns language from listening and observing members of the family.  This is evident in the international class with western students being more outspoken and willing to challenge points made by the teachers. At western universities students are often encouraged to deliberately adopt a contrary point of view for the purpose of debate and discussion. In non western backgrounds it seems to be the case that students will listen and observe but rarely challenge the teacher or a fellow student. This can be a bit of an intellectual adjustment for such students but a positive experience in the end. 

In an intercultural classroom there are so many different types of people representing their own identity and what they stand for. When we look at different identities from an outside perspective we only see a small part of it and usually the cliché side of the identity too. However in the classroom we get a chance to represent our identity by the means of making points, asking questions or talking in presentations.  Conversely we have to make sure that we don’t always force our opinion as the fact as this may not be the case for so many other countries within the class. We have to make sure that we take time to listen to others and be more open to taking in others opinions on topics remembering not to be narrow minded, for example, how children should be taught in primary school/secondary school. We as an identity (whatever identity that may be) don’t want to make others feel intimidated by being too out spoken or being forceful with our opinions. 

Tak så myket for reading.

Until next time Hej då

Work makes one free…Cultural

19/03/2012

Poland has come and gone…my time away is going so quickly I always have to remind myself not just to sit back and nearly wish it away but to make the most out of every opportunity. So this is why I decided to go to Poland with a class to see the Auschwitz death camps.

The trip started with a group of 10 exchange student friends traveling down to the south of Sweden on a luxury coach (it was amazing). We had two seats to ourselves which was great as we were going to be on this bus a long time. We pick up the rest of the people traveling with us; they were teachers of all kinds and ages. So it was great time for us to practice our Swedish. We got on the overnight ferry to Poland, I was sharing a room with Niall but felt more like a walrus the way he snored. So we arrived in Poland the next day early morning and travelled all day until we arrived at Krakow. It has been my favourite place I have visited, absolutely beautiful.

Gas chamber

We went to Auschwitz 1 the next day and I have to say I wasn’t really looking forward to it as I was worried how it may affect me. We arrived at the gates which said ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ which stands for work makes one free, but this was never the case. The camp was big with large warehouses where prisoners slept, roughly 1000 in each one. It was just so difficult for me to think t that this was not that long ago only 68 years. We went into one of the houses which had different rooms filled with different items to help make you realise the numbers. They showed us 2 tonne of hair which was originally 7 but got destroyed by the Germans. They would have used this to make clothes to send back to Germany. They camp just had a weird feeling about it, it made me feel uneasy. I really found going into the gas chamber difficult, I just needed to get out as quick as possible.

The camp Auschwitz Birkenau was massive; it was like a town or a small city. This is the more famous one as it can be seen in films like Schindler's list. I found this day just as hard but in a different way. It was such a beautiful day with the warm air, green grass, rabbits and butterflies everywhere I felt my brain was trying to make me forget that 3 million people had died horribly there. I don’t think I have ever been on such an emotional rollercoaster. We could still see pieces of human bone in the ground and try to get of feel of what it would have smelt and been like with 150,000 people there at the one time.

It wasn’t a nice time but it was a time I am definitely thankful to have experienced. There is always a quote seen at Auschwitz and it is.

Me at Auschwitz Birkenau

                 “The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again”

Tak så myket for reading.  (more pics will be up soon)

Until next time Hej då 

Finally in a school… Professional

07/03/2012

So this week I finally got to see the inside of a Swedish school and experience it first hand, and I have to honestly say I loved it.

The classroom was very basic which I was kind of surprised at; the classrooms back home are fairly large with easily enough space for 30 or so children and are decorated with lots of children’s work. However in Sweden the classrooms are small with just enough room for 20 children, there was no carpet reading area or in classroom library which is very common back in Northern Ireland.  But even with all this I loved every minute of it.

Childrens work on Irish sports

I was with a class of 16 students aged 12-13 so they would be year 9 back home. It was interesting for me to try and reflect on what the children at home would be studying compared to these children that are still in Primary school. I really enjoyed the freedom within the class and how the teacher Lasse went about teaching. He let the children move where the liked when they liked. He also gave them the freedom to eat whenever they were hungry during class.

William drawing the Northern Irish flag for his work.

Me making a copper dish in the work shop.

The children standard in English was amazing I was so impressed with how willing they were to give it ago. I just couldn’t help think when I was that age in secondary school and how much I disliked learning German and French, I feel that a lot of our student back home in the UK are just too lazy and ignorant to speak and but English and I feel this is something that we as teachers have to change from an early age. So I am looking forward to French being brought into primary schools more often as it will become normal for the children to at least try and be willing to learn a language. Especially at a younger age the mouth hasn’t full formed the muscles so the children are able to adapt and learnt the different movements need for other languages. In Sweden they roll the R’s and I just find it so difficult but I have given my buddy a good few laughs with me trying to do it anyway. In addition I feel that is the main point we should give to our students is that you may not be good at but at least be willing to give it ago.

The children in my class had to give presentations on Ireland and Turkey. They could pick different areas within that, for example, Irish food, and Turkish music. They then had to present this to the class using English.

My time there was short but full of learning experiences. Hopefully I get to go back before I leave to see them again.

Me and Lasse the teacher.

This is the class website the teacher set up.

http://www.freewebs.com/ljungfalle/

The Swedish life... Cultural

27/02/2012

As time has gone on I have been able to delve a little deeper into the way of life here in Sweden by the help of my buddy Andy Bång and my friend family.

My friend family took me to a glass blowing factory about 20Km outside of Växjӧ. I will lay down a bit of history for this area as it had one of the largest glass blowing industries.

In the mid-18th century, with forestry in decline, this south-eastern district of Sweden needed to find a new industry to support its people. The glass works industry was born in Kosta, using firewood from the immense surrounding forests and water from the lakes. As the glass industry boomed and its wares distributed all over the world, the district soon came to be known as the Kingdom of Crystal. Sadly there are 3 factories in this area now as not many people can afford blown glass.

I visited one of the last remaining factories called Bergdala; its famous at it is the only glass factory in Sweden that still a wooden floor in the work shop.  It was awesome to see, how they came from just the sand to amazing pieces of art. The skill that it took to makes these grand pieces of art was so impressive. The men working in the factory (all 6 of them) made it look so easy.  My friend family knew the owner of the factory so was given a private tour of the different areas. It was great to see the different stages and the patience’s needed for it, I feel they could teach teachers a thing or two about that.

Amazingly I was given the chance to blow some glass and made myself a glass made of blue glass cover in clear glass. I got to try the different techniques but it is very difficult but I loved the challenge of it and I also love working with my hands so I think I would have taken to it quickly if given another chance.  It’s ugly as sin but because I made it, it’s special. I choose the blue glass as it is special for this factory, they don’t tell anyone the recipe of how to make the cobalt blue glass.

My Swedish has come on, let’s say a bit. I find it unbelievably difficult to grasp just the sounds they make are very difficult for me to make. But my buddy has been great at helping me learn some more and helping me with my oral for the exam. I have never liked learning languages and it’s not because of being ignorant thinking everyone should learn English. Having hearing problems, speech therapy and dyslexia have made learning any language hard, even my own….ha-ha. But I still feel it is incredibly important for us to at least try and give it ago, if you get it wrong big deal. I know from my own experiences that if you at least try and talk the native tongue people will appreciate the effort and also it’s how you learn best.

Sorry there are no pictures this time either, I lost my phone and have no camera so have to wait to steal some friend’s pictures.

Tak så myket for reading.  (more pics will be up soon)

Until next time Hej då 

It's been a month... Personal

19/02/2012

I feel that I have fully found my feet now I’ve been here for a month. It hasn’t been the easiest time but it has been a great time, a time of learning about what I can deal with and that’s important to have in your life every now and again. I have found it quite difficult to get on with some of the Sweds as they just aren’t as open as us Northern Irish but I shouldn’t expect that.

I went to an ice hockey game this week and that was truly brill. If we think the Belfast Giants are good then these guys would make them look like children. It was an amazing experience, I went with a group of friends and our tickets were for the standing area. This was a great choice at it seemed to be where the hard core fans where, with the chants and drums so really got us into the atmosphere and game. The Växjӧ Lakers won in extra time in a penalty shootout, which was really cool to see.

I went to my friend family’s house for dinner this week, I had to travel by bus to Braås and they picked me up from there as the live on a farm a bit further out from town. That was just great and felt so nice to be in a home environment again with a home cooked meal and fire in the living room. They were so welcoming and friendly so it made chat easy. We talked about over family and what things we liked to do. As I said previously I share my friend family with a guy called Ravi from India, so was great to actually have a proper conversation with him and to find out what life is like in India. He is here for three years; I don’t if I could be away from my family and girlfriend that long.

So me and Niall have decided to either do a 10km run or half marathon in May so I will start doing my ankle stretches again to make sure it’s strong enough for it (Broke and tore ligaments during Belfast marathon training last year). Also I may need to get a move on with losing that Christmas weight that’s been there for the last couple of years. Hopefully it will help me get ready for the summer months.

I also have decided to go on a trip in the middle of March to Poland with one of the lecturers. We go to Krakow and have a tour around the old town but the bit I am most interested in seeing is Auschwitz. I don’t think it will be a nice trip but just to see the history of it and to be there will be so interesting.

Tak så myket for reading.  (more pics will be up soon)

Until next time Hej då 

Brrr its cold in here….Professional

10/02/2012

Niall's 30th

So it’s been yet another great week here in Växjӧ....but the cold has come, it’s dropped to -20 so my face goes numb after a couple of seconds. Then again as they say in Sweden ‘there is no such thing as bad weather just stupid clothes’ and I have found this to be true. 

Strannies at welcome dinner

          The Strannies had to do a presentation on our country in front of the class. It was great fun to show what Ireland has to give. I really enjoyed listening to the other presentations as well, just to hear things and see things that I don’t usually get to.

One of the main reasons I wanted to go to Sweden was for their standard in education and their abstract ways of teaching. This pretty true to what I’ve seen/heard so far. I was reading an article (http://www.businessinsider.com/a-group-of-schools-in-sweden-is-abandoning-classrooms-entirely-2012-1) about some schools in Stockholm getting rid of the classroom and using more open spaces to work in to help with children creativity. The students also don’t always work with the same age they work with their level. I feel this is maybe not the best way as it could bring a lot of focus to older children that are struggling with certain subjects and they could get bullied or picked on for this.  It’s really interesting to see that Sweden isn’t afraid to take a chance or a risk at trying something knew with education, I feel that they take the risk because at the end of the day they can always revert back to the older style if it doesn’t work but we can progress if we don’t take risks. That is how I kind of feel about going away also, I have nothing to lose in this experience but everything to gain.

We went to visit a high school today one that is more focused on vocational subjects rather than the normal main stream subjects. People in Sweden don’t have to pay for school or many of the things around it like transport to school, books, lunch etc. This may sound like the perfect system but I feel that is loses on a lot as well especially when I focus on the primary sector. I remember when I was in primary school I loved going on schools trips to the zoo, W5 or places like that and the children would pay a small sum of money to go. In Sweden like I said everything is paid for so if they want to go on a school trip the school pays. Sounds pretty good but it’s not as the school gets very little funding for these type of trips so the children rarely go on any. The school also cannot ask the child to pay anything or they would lose other funding. I feel if I was a parent I would not mind paying for my child to have a fun and educational visit to somewhere.

But this is only the tip of the iceberg to things I have seen and heard this week but I will leave that for another day.

Tak så myket for reading.

Until next time Hej då

Finding my feet.... Cultural

05/02/2012

I cannot believe how quick the time is going already, but as that saying goes ‘time flies when you’re having fun’ and this week truly has been great.

Well it was birthday at the start of the week and I turned 24. That was a brilliant night, I invited over some of the friends I have made over here so far for dinner. So Mary and I cooked for 17 people. It was a bit crazy at times but the food was great if I do say so myself. We made spaghetti bolognaise and chicken tikka masala. It was just lovely to all sit together and chat and get to learn and hear about other people’s lives and culture, what they are finding difficult and new that I may see as fairly normal. But it was a great place to turn 24 and I will always remember it.

My 24th

Old church in Vaxjo

I also got to meet my friend family this week. The friend family group is organised by a lady within the university, it’s organised to help students meet real Swedish people and really get to see what Swedish life is like. This is one of the main reasons I done it as I felt I could get to see things that maybe tourists may not. Also its helps I have more people to practice my Swedish on because at the minute I am shocking so hopefully the more I practice the better I’ll get. Well that’s the plan anyway. My family seemed really nice; they are an older retired couple who live on a farm 35 kilometres outside Växjӧ. Furthermore I get to share this experience with another exchange student; he is called Ravie and is from India. I just think it’s amazing that in a few short weeks I have met so many people from all over the world.

Me on the frozen lake.

Like I said this has been a really great but busy week. I got to meet up with my buddy for the first time. His name is Andreas Bång and he is from a town not too far from Gothenburg and studies international marketing. We met up for fika (coffee and chat) and that was great and not at all awkward we talked none stop so decided to grab some food with one of his mates and his buddy. The food was awesome and at a great price as well which is always a bonus. I think we are meeting up sometime again this week before he goes on a weeklong trip so looking forward to that.

Hopefully visiting a high school this week but I shall tell you all about that experience next time.

Tak så myket for reading.

Until next time Hej då

So it begins....Personal

28/01/2012

At Christmas it was only 3 weeks away, but it felt like a blink and I was sitting on the train from Copenhagen to Växjӧ. Sadly this experience was at night as I wanted to see the bridge over the sea but I am sure I will get to see this at some point during my time here. It wasn’t long until I was standing on the train platform in Växjӧ with all my luggage and my fellow Strannies Mary and Niall.

It was cold but not freezing temperatures that I had expected so I had my fingers crossed that there would be snow soon. We all soon realised that no one was there to pick us up even after exchanging numerous emails about our arrival, but we didn’t care we were in Sweden safe and sound ready for this adventure. We jumped in a taxi were the driver show us some of the main areas in town but we couldn’t really make it out as it was in the middle of the night. We soon arrived at our ‘hotel’ were we had to wake up the landlady and get our rooms sorted for the night.

We got up early the next day and headed to Linnaeus University or Linnéuniversitetet, straight away i could see what i had been told about Sweden was true. The campus is stunning with large scandanavian style buildings, large open spaces which are naturally lit with large window walls making this campus a treat to walk through.

I am living in a shared apartment with a Mexician guy called Javiar. He’s pretty cool and we have been getting on great so far being able to talk about our homes and what they are like and the differences between them.

I went for a walk along the lakes the other night having never seen lakes fully frozen i was pretty excited and had a wee walk on one of them it was scary but im glad ive done it now, maybe next time i’ll bring the skates. the campus is beautiful with lots of surrounding forest and lakes, it even has its own castle. Ive made friends with a group of Americans and Australians, so on the 26th we celebrated Australia Day which was great fun. Got to try some Australian food which was different (Vegemite not so good) but i think its hard to beat a good old spud.

It’ll be my birthday in a couple of days so well be excited to celebrate that in a new place with new friends. Its been a crazy first couple of days but i can feel it will only get better.

 

Tak så myket for reading.

 Until next time Hej då