Ola is one of our Erasmus+ students, completing an internship at OUIEA Language Academy. She has come to Seville from Red Ochre, one of our partner organisations in the UK. Ola is completing her internship as a teaching assistant, and in this blog post she tells us all about her placement and what she likes to do in her spare time here in Seville!
Question: Hello Ola, are you finding your work placement rewarding? If so, why?
Answer: I love my placement as a teaching assistant and I can’t believe it’ll be over so soon! At the beginning of the placement I was assisting the teachers in the classroom, and after a few weeks I started taking two students each day to teach them the session separately. This both gives the students chance to have a lesson that is tailored to them and reduces the number of students in the classroom. I love it a lot! Thanks to the small number of people, I can also improve my teaching skills without the pressure that comes with teaching a full class.
Q: Do you feel well supported here? Have your expectations before arriving been met?
A: Yes, definitely! My colleagues here at OUIEA Idiomas are very nice, and the atmosphere in the academy is very friendly.
Q: Have you learned or improved any specific skills or knowledge?
A: I’ve learned a lot of new things whilst I’ve been working at OUIEA Idiomas and massively improved my teaching skills. I’ve learnt useful and fun games and techniques to make the classroom more interactive, and become familiar with the structure of important exams that are taken when learning English as a foreign language, such as the Cambridge English qualifications.
Q: Have you managed to practise much of the local language?
A: Yes! I’ve been able to speak some Spanish with the receptionist at OUIEA Idiomas (broken Spanish 😉), and I’ve met some Spanish people here too!
Q: What do you like to do in your spare time? Any recommendations?
A: I love experiencing Seville’s culture, and doing things such as visiting the museums and art galleries around the city. Luckily most of them are still open despite the restrictions, so that’s definitely something I’d recommend! I also LOVE going for tapas, doing activities on the river such as paddle boarding, and going on footbikes! 😊
Q: How do you think the Erasmus+ programme will benefit you in the future?
A: I’ve decided to stay in Seville after the internship is over, so everything I have experienced during my stay will be hugely beneficial. Now that I have more experience teaching in a real-life classroom, it will definitely be easier for me to get a job here.
Q: Would you recommend the Erasmus+ programme to others?
A: Yes, absolutely!
Q: What have you enjoyed most about the experience?
A: I really enjoyed being able to teach to a small number of people in the classroom, where I didn’t feel out of my depth. I felt this was really helpful in getting me used to teaching in person. Also, Seville! It is the most beautiful city I’ve ever been to or lived in.
There are less than one week left for our autumn/winter interns! It’s been great to hear their stories throughout their time in Seville. If you haven’t yet, you can check out our other interns’ stories by visiting our blog or if you want to stay in Sevilla as Ola after your time here read this! We’re looking forward to welcoming our next cohort of Erasmus+ interns to Seville in January – watch this space for more amazing stories!