week 9

Week 9 | 29/02/16-06/03/16 

Cultural | Professional  

Following on from the Oscars party until early hours in the morning, we began our new week travelling from Ana's place to college. Our first class was with Aase, were we learned and discussed democracy in Denmark. We discussed with each other how democracy differs in our own countries and how it affects us in our everyday lives and also in settings such as nursery groups or schools. I felt this class was very beneficial as it gave us a better understanding of what to expect in our own placements in our upcoming placements in Aarhus. By understanding democracy and how to apply it, it will help me to become a better person personally and also I can show a good example to the children and colleagues I work with in the future.  

'Choosing our leaders is everyone's job. That's why lessons on the political process shouldn't be confined to the classroom. When political issues are discussed at home, it has a lasting impact on tomorrow's young voters.' 

On Wednesday, we had the exciting opportunity to visit a school in Aarhus. We met outside Aby Skole in the morning and we were welcomed by the head master who was very enthusiastic and gave us a brief idea of the plan for the day. We were split into two groups, one group for 7th graders and one group for 4th graders. I visited the class with the 7th graders. When we entered, my classmates and I had to introduce ourselves and do something in our language for the children to guess were we all from. It was easier for the children to guess Ireland as Anna and I speak English however the children took a bit longer to guess Slovenia and Iceland, for example. In return, some of the children did the same and we then had to guess. Lets just say, my language skills over all are not my strong point! The children were full of enthusiasm and answered any questions we had and also asked us questions. We talked a bit about democracy, which the children knew quite a lot about. It was very impressive. In Ireland, I don’t think children of their age would have as much knowledge about democracy and its importance. 

 

Another difference I noticed was the amount of freedom the children have. Children as young as four were outside in the play ground alone playing together. In comparison to schools at home, this would not happen as children always have a supervisor or a member of staff close by while they are playing.  

'Children should have enough freedom to be themselves - once they've learned the rules.' (Anna Quindlen) 

 On Thursday, we received the good news that our classes had been cancelled for the day and also for Friday. As we are students after all, we started planning our outings for our four day weekend. On Thursday evening, we went to a free jazz 'concert', which was a strange set up and something I had never experienced before. One of the acts consisted of two young men, one playing the drums and the other playing a saxophone. I'm not sure if they had rehearsed or if they were just making it up on stage, because at some points, they weren't even playing together, but rather just playing random notes.  

The Friday was also interesting, as we tried out a ping pong bar in the city. It had the usual set up of a normal bar - music, drink and a dance floor. However, towards the back of the bar, there was a ping pong table and around 12 people all running around the table each taking their turn. If you missed, you were then out and it eventually became two people. It was thrilling to watch and it also brought all different groups together, young and old, Danish and non Danish.  

'Individual cultures and ideologies have their appropriate uses but none of them erase or replace the universal experiences, like love and weeping and laughter, common to all human beings.' (Aberjhani)  

After the night was over, we then ventured around the city to find somewhere to eat, and we found a kebab shop. I was over-joyed and delighted as this was something I missed from home. I'm not really sure what it was, but the 'wrap' I was eating, was the best wrap I have ever tasted.  

References  

http://www.brainyquote.com/a/annaquindl425725.html  

http://www.goodreads.com/tag/cultural-differences / Aberjhani, Splendid Literarium: A Treasury of Stories, Aphorisms  

https://www.thechildrenstrust.org/index.php/parents/news/newsletters/626