Cole Seward ’17 – The experience in urban education is second to none. After day one of teaching, I can say that all expectations have been met. It may have been cheating, but I made all my expectations after researching the school I was placed at. I assumed I would have primarily Hispanic students and a bilingual teacher. Something that did catch me off guard was the ease to interact with these students of a different culture. With each student, I tried to be as welcoming as possible and also answer any questions they may have had. Something I found funny was the students’ shocked expression when they realized I was a Spanish minor. I believe the last thing they expected was a student teacher from some small town in Indiana to know some Spanish and have a general sense of what the students or the teacher may be saying.
Teaching in an urban setting is fun. I feel very comfortable because I came from a public high school where the culture was somewhat diverse. The biggest thing about teaching in Chicago is that my class is primarily Hispanic, which is something I have not experienced. It is a learning experience and is actually a great opportunity for me to work a little on my Spanish. There are a few students in each of my classes that do not speak Spanish, but they willingly spend their own time learning the language or at least some key words.
My classroom was very open with a lot of discussion and focus on real world applications. I think my host teacher does a very good job of setting up a lesson plan for the day while keeping an open mind and tending to the needs of the students. That is where discussion can really be useful because the students can express their understanding of the topic and apply their own thinking to try and solve problems in different ways.
Even though the experience in the classroom is great, the overall experience of the city of Chicago is very awesome as well. Living in a hostel is not bad at all and I would just classify it as a really big dorm building. Living with seven guys to one room is neat because it gives you a chance to connect with people from Wabash that you do not normally get to see. Also, experiencing the different cultures of Chicago is really cool, especially the food. It is a great opportunity to try new stuff and really put yourself out there.
If you ever get the chance to take this class, take it in a heartbeat. It offers cultural diversity and experience that not many other courses at Wabash can offer. It also gives you a chance to get an expense paid trip to see the “not-so-touristy” spots of Chicago.
