Teachers Expand Student Education by Giving Them the Opportunity to Travel

Teachers are approaching education in a different way by giving their students a worldly experience.

Instead of teaching the traditional way, teachers want to explore the outside world with their students and give them a hands on experience.

This upcoming summer, French teacher Amy Byrne and Spanish teacher Cecilia Remeta are planning a joint trip to France and Spain with both French and Spanish students to enhance their language skills.

While staying in France, Madame Byrne is planning on visiting Paris and small towns outside of Paris to learn more about the French culture.

“The trip is two weeks, the first week will be in France. We will start in Paris and take some day trips. We will go to the Palace of Versailles and take a train southwest where there is a lot of coast. From there we will make our way into Spain,” Byrne said.

To get a deeper understanding of France, Madame Byrne has multiple activities set up to teach students about the food and history of the country.

“We’re planning on taking walking and bus tours. We are going to go up the Eiffel Tower and see the Arc de Triomphe. We will visit the gardens at the Palace of Versailles and stop at multiple museums, such as the Louvre,” Byrne said.

“We will also be going to see Claude Monet’s house, who was the creator of the Impressionist art movement, and it’s where he painted some of his most famous paintings. There will also be a cooking class with a French chef, and will be making a full French meal.”

Not only will this trip give students a glimpse of what French life is like, but it will also give them the chance to practice their French and become more comfortable with the language.

“The students are going to be encouraged to use their language to order food and purchase items, I will be there to support them too,” Byrne said.

“Absolutely my goal is to open my student’s eyes to life in Europe and what it means to live abroad and in another culture.”

The second week in Spain will include a variety of activities that will incorporate the language and culture as well. The teachers are planning to take the students to visit the northern part of Spain, San Sebastian, Barcelona, and the capital Madrid.

“It’s a really great schedule of activities with a balance that involves excursions to famous places. We are going to see major museums, such as the Guggenheim in Bilbao and the Del Prado in Madrid,” said Remeta.

“We will also get the chance to eat a traditional dinner with tapas and learn the flamenco dance to get the whole cultural experience.”

Remeta hopes that this trip will inspire many students to continue practicing their language beyond high school, which will help them appreciate the French and Spanish culture even more.

“The most significant component of the trip is to hear the language in a real environment, not only that but with the people and the culture. Taking Spanish beyond a classroom setting [gives] students the opportunity to ignite their curiosity and maybe inspire them for some future travel,” said Remeta.  

Junior Caroline Pack encourages students to attend this trip since Spanish and French are both popular languages.

“I think being immersed in the culture and language you are learning is really beneficial for learning that language…you are forced to actually speak it with other people instead of using google translate or reading out of textbooks.”