Global Knowledge: Signature Event
June 2019
The last five weeks have been the most transformative and impactful weeks of my life — not only did I discover more of the world than I ever could have imagined, but I learned an immense amount about myself as well. Every day in Italy was an opportunity for me to grow as both a student and as a future educator. I faced challenges unlike any other than I had before. In my initial essay, I used the phrase “I feel like I am jumping out of a plane” in regards to studying abroad in Italy. I was so right. There was no safety net there to catch me, I was alone — well, I was with my roommate — in Milan, with no idea what to do.
Before the program started, my roommate and I traveled to Milan and Lake Como. I had organized everything leading up to the trip, so it felt as though I was a teacher leading a field trip to a foreign country. Challenge number one was the Milano Centrale train station — it was huge, and not to mention, all in Italian! I’d never felt so helpless and intimidated as I did standing in that massive train station with zero idea of where to go. But, by our last week in Italy, I had us hopping on and off trains, navigating the Italian train system with great ease — well let’s not get crazy, it was still stressful! Another significant challenge I faced right off the bat was the language barrier. At all of our group meetings, students and professors alike assured me that there was no need to learn Italian… well, I guess none of them had gone to Milan. The language barrier was so intimidating in Milan that it brought me to tears. That first night I cried… I called my mom, I wanted to go home. After that first night, I never looked back. The tears were gone and so was all the anxiety I had built up. From that moment forward, I never stopped smiling.
Despite this rocky start, I had an amazing time because I chose to use those stressful moments as a time to learn. I often found myself to be the one who organized lunch plans, study sessions, and fun activities in Florence. During our free-weekend, a group of eight of us traveled to Cinque Terre. I booked the Airbnb, the boat tour, train tickets, made restaurant reservations and was quickly coined the name of ‘mom.’ With this new name came a lot of responsibility — I’ve said it before, but I will say it again, I honestly felt like a teacher leading a field trip. I had screenshots of all our confirmations, I had written down addresses and contacts and I always pretended like I knew what was going on — even if I didn’t. This experience has better prepared me to be a teacher and act as a leader within the College of Education over the next three years.
Italy challenged me in a way that no class could have. I now have a growing sense of self-confidence, I discovered a new side to my leadership skills, and I have memories that will last a lifetime. Now, I feel more prepared to teach students with unique cultural backgrounds. I also feel that I will be able to relate to students who lack confidence in the classroom. Additionally, having experienced being a student in an Italian classroom, I now have new ideas for things to incorporate into my classroom. Almost every day of class, we took a field trip to a museum, a chapel, or a park — and although I know this is not entirely feasible here in Wake County, I would love to find a way to make the world my classroom and to extend the learning process beyond my physical classroom. I can’t wait to share my experience with peers within the College of Education and with my future students!
Check out my post on the NCSU Study Abroad website:
