On January second, Monday, my bus left from my home city in Lithuania – Kaunas. It was the beginning of my journey. EDUCATE Slovakia: My World was my destination. I was going to Bratislava to participate in this project. My job would be to go to five schools and tell students about the culture, traditions and heritage of my country – Lithuania. The project would take place from the beginning of January till the middle of February. Fortunately, Vytautas Magnus University, where I study politics and English language, doesn’t have classes on January. So the timing was excellent for me. I came to Bratislava and from the moment I am working as a teacher. I have already visited one school. It was Gymnázium Jura Hronca. My students were mostly in elementary grade. Their age ranged from ten to fifteen years old. I must admit that I was really surprised by them, especially the ones in MYP or bilingual program. They were very active, curious and attentive during the lessons. So I had to put all my efforts in making my presentation worthwhile and interesting to them. It was a real challenge to my. However I believe that I managed to do my duty properly. Pupils were constantly asking questions about my country and striving for knowledge. I was particularly impressed by the level of their English language. It was very good, they were able to completely understand what I am saying and communicate with me. That made our discussions more compelling and interactive. On one occasion I even met a student who started speaking to me in fluent Lithuanian. It turned out that he is half Lithuanian and spent his childhood years in Vilnius, capital of my country. Meeting him made me realize that our countries have more similarities that one might guess. I am really happy that AIESEC Comenius University offered me this great opportunity to see Slovakia from within. I would also like to say some words of gratitude to all of the teachers who always helped us during this project. Their immense assistance made this project come to reality and cleared the way for knowledge and education. Thank you.
Now after the first week I am feeling more confident about myself and I know that this experience improved me both professionally and personally.
-Ramunas-