Here We Go! (02/09/16)

Hi, there. I’m Chloe and I’m from Leicester! Leicester is possibly the coolest city in England, didn’t you know? (I guess that I may be a bit biased...) Anyway, yesterday I hopped on a plane and arrived in Kalajoki and now I’m ready to contemplate my awesome first day here.

For the past year, I’ve been a bit of a city girl. Everything was non-stop busy, busy, busy. So imagine my utter delight to be living in such a beautiful, tranquil town in northern Finland.

Today I was driven around the area (Brit on tour!) to find that Kalajoki is home to countless lush green trees, fields upon fields, and one gorgeous beach. Back home, I’m nowhere near the sea so this is an absolute treat!

Now... my job in Kalajoki is that of Assistant Teacher. This encompasses giving and assisting in lessons and various projects with schools in the area. I experienced giving my first International Studies lesson at Kalajoen Lukio today and, oh, what a lesson it was!

After a couple of games, I introduced the students to the one and only...MARMITE. If you’ve never heard of Marmite, I can tell you that it’s a British food spread (the best you can buy if you ask me). However, you should also probably know that people either love it...or hate it. Perhaps it’s due to the overly strong odour or the powerful hard-to-place flavour. Who knows?

Every student was handed a spoon and encouraged to have a little taste. The reactions: PRICELESS. Some simply nodded and (in a rather stoic manner) admitted, “That is very horrible.” Others were a little more vocal with their distaste and many scrunched up their faces in outright disgust. Don’t worry – they were rewarded for their Marmite bravery with truly delicious Cadburys chocolate fingers.

The class was so incredibly welcoming (akin to the rest of the school). Below, I've taken a photo of the wonderful poster they created as well as a couple of very thoughtful gifts they kindly presented to me. (Finnish chocolate is, by the way, truly SCRUMPTIOUS.)

Later on after class, I decided to have a little wander around the town and took a couple more photos. The river is now my new favourite place to hang out by, especially when the weather is as sunny as it is now (I am assured that the cold will soon come along though).

Overall, I can’t help but feel excited after my first full day in Kalajoki. Here’s to what is sure to be one fantastic adventure which you are of course welcome to join and read about...

Talking about Human Rights!

The new year started asking ourselves what are the actual rights of humans, how these could be categorised and what would be considered as modern slavery. The answers in these kind of questions are never simple. 

Employing technology, critical thinking and team work as tools to discover the real meaning behind these words,  the students created this schematic diagram in order to portray and explain these ideas!

This is how our whiteboard looked in the end!

Yet again nothing of this could have happened without.... food! Since we are an international studies class the best way to show how international we are is by sharing different traditions from around the world.  Taking this as an opportunity the students and I tried a Greek New Year's tradition, the so-called "vasilopita". A cace-pie that is traditionally served the first day of the year in honour of Saint Vasilis ( Santa Claus in Greek).

This is what it left....

Blogging in a blog! It's like "Inception"!

These are some of the blogs that our students created showing their interests:

• http://internationalstudies1-musicdancing.blogspot.fi/2014/12/information-about-music-and-dancing.html

• http://susa-savukoskiis.blogspot.fi/2014/12/just-us-and-our-pets.html

• http://is-gamingkalajoki.blogspot.fi/

German invasion in Kalajoki

Ok.. the title sounds really dramatic! I know! But that was the point! :P

Last week the I.S. groups had the opportunity to interact with another person from Europe apart from the usual ones (Greece and Ireland). A Greek-German friend came and talked to them about Germany and especially about Regensburg.... His home town!

 Here is another picture relevant to this topic!

Apart from learning about a new country, the students also discussed how it feels to be bilingual and how this affects everyday life! Some funny stories were also part of the equation regarding the later! All in all, we both learned and laughed! Mission accomplished!

The KALAJOKI experience!

Sooo blogging about my life in Kalajoki....well, before that I think I need to introduce myself first! My name is Magdalena but everyone calls me "Magda" or "Manioula"  (little Magda in Greek). Oh yes! I am Greek! So, for me (...and I hope for you) everything here is completely new! I feel like an explorer... or just clueless! I have studied English language and linguistics in Athens and then I did my master in inclusive and special education in Edinburgh. It is the second time that I am in Finland but during the first time I was a university student, so now it is completely different situation. I am working on something that I really love (education) in the best country that provides it ( Finland!). High standards, high expectations!!!

I am in Kalajoki now for almost a month and I have to admit that I am still in my "honeymoon period" with the place. I have to show you why....

These are my first photos from Kalajoki and trust me won't be the last! I am from Athens and I have never lived close to nature... so, for me it is really valuable being here!

This is another one from a day that I called "mystical day"! It looks like a fairytale!!!! ( I am a visual person so please bear with me... and as we know  "a picture is worth ten thousand words") Apart from the nature that I can't stop admire and I can go on and on what really fascinates me is my JOB! 

I am not saying this because it is my job... Well,  I am actually saying this because it is my job and the reason is that I love doing all this new, progressive activities that are introduced in this school! Let me give you an example (and again a photo):

This is an afternoon activity that the students did with their teachers in the forest!!!! I sound really excited but you have to understand where I come from.. This wouldn't happen in Greece even in 100 years (I hope things get better but.. )

Oh! and they use computers and tablets for educational reasons! Technology is not the enemy ( as I have seen so many teachers to discuss off the record) but it is a tool to bring closer places and ideas to the students! Students are going around countries  in educational projects (Latvia, Sweden, Japan etc.). This is a revolution!!! 

However, I still have not told you what I am doing to this amazing place ( I have really embraced my Alice in Wonderland persona)

I am a teacher assistant and I also participate in the "International Studies" classes. I am mostly in the English and sometimes in the special ed classes.  Let me write a little bit more about the "I.S." classes because they are the living example of all the things that I have learnt in a theoretical level during my studies, so:

1. English is the medium, not the purpose

(and I am putting this 1st because as an English teacher I know that this is a hot-debated issue)

  2. learning by doing ( I rest my case...)

3. Learner's autonomy

 (they will choose how they are going to do whatever they have to prepare)

4. Connecting life (and real life incidents) with the class 

(yesterday we discussed about the Nobel Prize Peace winner Malala Yousafzai)

And now is the time to tell me if I need to change my name from "Magda" to "Alice"!

The fruit that knocked the Finns?

Mr or Ms President?

The new year of the Kalajoki Upper Secondary High school International studies course has begun and with it new students with the desire and ability to learn about the world outside of Finland and its importance. The students have come to the class fully prepared, ready and willing to provide their opinions, use their minds and discuss about international issues using English as the primary method of communication.

This year we have a new addition to the course, well 6 of them to start with...this year the students in the course will be able to use the Samsung Galaxy tab as part of their learning process with the power and knowledge of the internet at their fingertips, well except for wikipedia, but that's another story!

The classes have settled down and Darwin would be proud as now the 3 new 1st year classes have really started to get used to the unusual, shall we say "Irish Style" of the course!

Just recently the students researched the good and bad points about Messrs Romney and Obama and the impact of the American election on the world and what these men bring to the international environment in which we all live.

Then the students had the chance to try to be president of a country for a while and outline their own wishes for the prefect place to live. Freedom of Speech, Equal rights for all, high and low tax rates, nuclear power or not the students worked together to provide some thought provoking topics all the time using the tablet computer as their books of knowledge with English as their only means of communicating.