Last semester, I took all of my classes at the University of Sevilla through a program for international students (which really just meant all Americans). I enjoyed my classes and got to meet a lot of people from around the U.S., but when I looked forward to my next semester in Spain, I realized I was ready for a different type of classroom experience. Thus, I decided to switch in to the "Integrated Studies" program, which allows you to take some or all of your classes with Spaniards.
When I arrived in Spain about two weeks ago, I had no idea about the two-weeks of crazy I was in for- and not the fun, stay out 'til 5 am crazy. Turns out, as I wrote in an earlier post, my study abroad program failed to mention that the classes with Spaniards did not start until the following week. So, I decided to try out a couple classes with Americans, because I knew I wanted to take either one or two of those classes. It turned out to be nice to have that time to get my Spanish back to where it was.
After a quick one-night trip to Granada last weekend and a very relaxing stay-inside-all-day-because-it's-rainy Sunday, I woke up last Monday ready to take on my first class with Spaniards. My first class was called "Anthropology of Social Organization," and went pretty well. However, the rest of the week did not go so well. I went to somewhere around seven different classes, while still attending my classes with Americans, as I was unsure how many classes with each program I would take in the end. I went to numerous history classes and literature classes. I found a decent class called "Spanish Literature of the 16th century." At that point, I had two down, but I had absolutely no idea where to go from there and I was getting extremely discouraged by how terrible most of the professors were.
Here begins my rant about Spanish vs. American higher education... I have had some degree of "culture shock" while attending classes with Spaniards. I thought my first semester would prepare me for the classroom differences, but it turns out the classes for American students are very "Americanized." The majority of classes I've gone to this week involved an older, male professor standing at the front of a classroom mumbling with no type of notes and no powerpoint, while a room full of 30-60 Spaniards scribble down every last word. The courses also have much more general topics, less choices overall, and the entire grade is often made up of just the final exam. The students usually only take classes in their major, and their schedules are made for them.
Don't get me wrong, I am very happy to be surrounded by Spanish and Spaniards as I take classes at one of the most prestigious universities in the country. I have just come to a whole new level of appreciation for the American higher education system. As much as we complain about gen-eds/core requirements, we are so lucky to be able to take classes of so many different disciplines, have double majors or minors, "hand-picking" each class we want to take along the way, and take classes from professors who are (usually) pretty engaging. I know our education system has flaws of its own, and I wouldn't trade my time here for the world, but this whole week has made me very thankful. -END RANT-
After spending at least 7 hours in class per day last week, I finally figured out my schedule. I went to a Latin American History class this morning at 9 a.m. I really didn't want to take 9 a.m. classes, but it was my last hope. It ended up being the best class I had gone to all week, so I found the courage to go up to the professor after class and ask him if he could meet, since I had missed the first 3 classes. He graciously invited me to meet with him in his office right then, so we trekked up to his office and talked about the course. As it turns out, he taught at the University of Chicago in the 80s, and has taught at Harvard and in England, as well! He was extremely welcoming, and I am excited to learn about the colonization era from a Spanish professor's perspective. (I'm a nerd...)
Despite the stress of the week, I think I ended up with some good classes and a balance I am happy with- 3 with Spaniards and 2 with Americans. My classes include:
- History of Latin America in the Era of Colonization (with Spaniards)
- Anthropology of Social Organization (with Spaniards)
- Spanish Literature of the 16th Century (with Spaniards)
- Contrastive Grammar (with Americans)
- History and Culture of Judaism in Spain (with Americans)
Well, I'm highly doubting most of you read all of that, but I'm happy to have this even just for myself to look back and laugh at how crazy stressed I was about my classes. But, hey, I figured it out (and calmed down) in the end!
My school... I am ONE. LUCKY. GIRL.
Looking forward to telling you all about my fun, Spanish weekend. Should be up on the blog tomorrow. :)
Hasta luego,
A
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