The Polish School System

Week 5 – Professional Observations – 24^th March 2011

This week has been another routine week. I have met new challenges with polish grammar, I have continued to experiment in the kitchen and I have been able to enjoy general good fun with my friends here in Poznań.

This week I got talking to some fellow trainee teachers that are on my volleyball team. As I was still very ignorant to the details of the educational system here I decided to ask them about general education here in Poland. We had a great discussion regarding the similarities and differences between both students and teachers here in Poland in comparison to the UK.

I discovered that children in Poland start education at the age of 6 and it is compulsory until the age of eighteen. When children are six years old they spend one year at pre-school where they learn fundamental polish and mathematics. Pupils from ages seven to twelve attend primary school. Primary education is similar to Northern Ireland where they have two ‘cycles’ like our two key stages. The first ‘cycle’ is comparable to Northern Ireland primary schools. Each class would have their own class teacher who would educate them all areas of learning within the Polish Curriculum. During the second three years at primary school each subject has a different teacher and typically pupils change classroom for each subject. At the end of primary school the children sit an examination which is similar to the new transfer assessment in Northern Ireland. This decides what middle school, known as gymnasium, they will attend. This period lasts for three years and at the end pupils sit another test to decide which secondary school they will attend until they are 18. This system in Polish schools is reminiscent of the Dixon plan used in several schools in the Craigavon area in Northern Ireland. It has the advantage that children are assessed at more than one stage in their education to determine the school they will attend. After secondary education students have the opportunity to go directly into employment or to study at university. As university fees are free in Poland, a huge difference from in the UK, most individuals avail of this option and study to obtain a bachelor’s degree in three years or a master’s degree in five years.

Unfortunately I have been unable to experience the education system here in Poland first hand, but I am glad I am now more aware of the educational system in this country. I have fortunately been informed today that I can visit an international primary school next Tuesday. I am looking forward to observing the school and experiencing teaching here in Poland and I hope that although it is an international school it will still show me what teaching is like here in Poland in comparison to at home in Northern Ireland.

From Poznan to Berlin!

Week 4 – Personal Realisations – 18^th March 2011

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit Berlin. After being in Poznań for three weeks we felt it was time we started to travel, and really make the most of living in central Europe. We set off on the train on Friday evening and it only took 3 hours to get to Berlin. Throughout the weekend we had the opportunity to visit a few museums, take a tour of the city, and experience some of the night life.

As I have never been to Berlin I did not know what to expect, but I have heard countless good reports. Berlin was beyond my expectations. I had an incredible time in this city. The weather was fantastic and there was so much to see. Also, there are a few things that I noticed about Berlin that surprised me.

The first thing that I noticed about Berlin was the cost of living. Just from looking at our accommodation and the price of food it seemed very expensive. I only came to this conclusion as I was comparing the prices to prices in Poznań but when I contrasted with costs in Northern Ireland it was quite similar. This really highlighted for me the economic situation in Poland where the cost of living is a lot less than in Berlin and at home in Northern Ireland.

Berlin Wall

Being in Berlin has made me realise how important languages are. As I learnt the basics of the polish language before leaving for Erasmus, I had few difficulties exploring Poland, asking for directions, or buying thing. Even knowing the fundamentals of a language can be so valuable and rewarding. As I learnt no German before travelling to Berlin I found it difficult communicating in shops or restaurants. This has really made me realise how beneficial it can be to know another language and now I am more determined to work hard at my Polish language. With Northern Ireland society becoming increasingly multicultural everyday it would be excellent for me to develop enough Polish language so that, if a Polish child came into my future classroom I will be able to communicate adequately with them to help them to learn the English language.

Berlin is such a beautiful city with so much history. On our tour I learnt so much that I didn’t already know, and it was fascinating. The history of Germany, the war, Berlin and the Berlin Wall is captivating and I really enjoyed learning about German history.  We also had the opportunity to visit the memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe. It is so emotive to hear the number of Jews that were murdered in the past. Looking at, and moving through, the monument gave me the opportunity to contemplate what I had heard. This weekend has really opened my eyes to how fascinating European history is and I just want to learn more and more. I am excited about what else I can learn about Europe, and especially Poland and I enjoy this Erasmus experience.

Until next time,

Jeff

Volleyball or Siatkowka???

Week 3 - Friday 11^th March 2011

Poznań is just beautiful! I love it! Spring has arrived, it’s getting warmer, and I know it won’t be long until seeing me in shorts is a daily occurrence for the people of Poznań. I just don’t understand why everybody doesn’t do Erasmus! Before I came here I had only ever heard good reports about Erasmus, but I was worried that maybe I would be the exception. I have loved every minute! I have met so many interesting people, been to so many interesting places, even learnt the basics of so many interesting languages and this is only week three!! Anyway ... for all my keen readers (who I appreciate) the past week has been another good one!

In my blog last week I mentioned that I was planning to go to a bible study on Saturday night. So off I set, bible in hand, and I was able to meet some fantastic people. Unfortunately the guy that takes the study was unable to attend, but instead we played games, ate pizza and got to know each other. It was held in a coffee shop called ‘Sweet Surrender’ and is run by two Christian couples. They were incredibly nice, friendly and welcoming and I definitely plan to go back and hopefully get to know them all better.



Poker



This week I have kept myself busy with a number of small adventures. Sunday involved Matteo and I going for another explore in the city centre. Fortunately for us the city was bustling and full of life as there was a lovely little market that had been set up. We met up with Aleksandra and her friend Laura, from Spain, looked around for a bit, took a lot of photos and tried some polish cheese (it was salty, and rubbery, but still edible.) This week we also organised a game of Poker in our flat. We didn’t play for money so when I inevitably won I didn’t end up with a small fortune. I have won something even better though. Bragging right! And I plan to use them as much as possible until we play again! I have not done much in the evenings this week because I have had too many early morning classes but I have enjoyed a lot of fine dining, thanks to Matteo and his impeccable Italian cuisine. We also visited a simple and understated Portuguese bar with the Portuguese guys. There were not many there, just a few other students from AMU, but we quickly got to know them!

Morasko Sports Hall

Anyway, after two weeks of no sport at all I was starting to get frustrated! I had to do something sporty to keep myself fit (and sane.) So when Miguel and Miguel invited me to try out the nearby gym I jump at the opportunity. I worked quite hard and felt very refreshed after. Later that day I went to the sports hall to try, yet again, to play some volleyball. This time I was in luck. I was allowed to join in and I loved it! I was training the university’s second team.  The guys that I was training with were all of a very good standard and it was really enjoyable training at such a high level, something I am not really used to in Northern Ireland. They were also so friendly and welcoming. Some of them did not speak much English, but tried what they could and all the guys that could speak English chatted away to me. It was so nice to be finally playing volleyball again, and volleyball at such a high standard. They talked about the possibility of me playing for the university team, a possibility that I really hope happens! After the training a few of the guys went to the gym, I went with them to ensure that I gave off the impression that I was also a hard lad, but I didn’t last too long. Two gym sessions and two and a half hours of volleyball training is too much for one day! Muscles that I didn’t realise I had are still sore now, four days later!

Eating a Zapiekanka

This evening I plan to really branch out; to make the most of Erasmus and begin the first, of hopefully many, trips. I am heading off to Berlin with Matteo and Gabriele to meet up with the Portuguese guys as they are already there! I have heard so many good reports about Berlin and I am very excited about seeing this city for the first time! You will be able to read all about it this time next week!

Do Widzenia (this means goodbye),

Jeff

Week 3- Cultural Differences – 11^th March 2011

Sport is such an important aspect of any Country’s culture! Morgan & Summers (2005) agree with this statement when they argue that ‘Sport has been defined as a cultural phenomenon. Like music and the arts, sport has been a part of the history of every culture in the world and continues to be a contemporary vehicle for cultural definition.’ Therefore I feel that it is imperative that I address this aspect of the polish culture within my reflective blog.

Poland does not have a national sport, but has two very popular sports. The first of these sports, like in Northern Ireland, is football. The polish football league is strong within Europe and is popular both in terms of participation but also as a spectator sport. I am currently making plans to see Lech Poznań, a popular local team, play in Poznań’s Stadium. You may have heard of this team as they competed against Manchester City in November as part of the Europa League. Also Poland, along with Ukraine will host the UEFA European Football Championships in 2012. Poznań is one of the host cities, and is counting down the days until this competition on a screen in the city centre.

The other popular sport in Poland is Volleyball. As a volleyball player I have been attempting to get involved in a club here, with the hope that I will improve my performance, learn more about polish volleyball and hopefully observe some high quality matches. After much searching, this week I was finally able to participate in some volleyball training.

I was immediately able to see the difference in standard between volleyball in Northern Ireland compared to Poland. I was training with the university’s second team, who compete in the fifth highest league in Poland, however this team would effortlessly beat Northern Ireland’s National team. Another immense difference from Northern Ireland is the spectator numbers. I was informed that the team would have roughly one hundred spectators at each home match. The players are dissatisfied with this and anticipate that it will increase as people become aware of the new venue.  My club team, which compete in the top league in Northern Ireland, would be exceptionally happy with more than twenty spectators at a home fixture! I was also informed that the university’s first team is competing in the third highest league in Poland. This is a semi-professional league. They were shocked when I informed them that all Northern Ireland leagues are completely amateur.

I am delighted with the opportunity to get involved with this club, and the prospect of playing competitive games for this team. The guys that I trained with are all polish and are exceptionally welcoming. Only a few of them speak English. This will be challenging but I believe it will be a great opportunity to make polish friends, to practice my polish language and also learn more about how this sport contributes to the polish culture.

References : Morgan, M.J., and Summers, J., 2005, Sports Marketing. Australia: Cengage Learning

Two Weeks with No Food Poisoning!

Week 2- Personal Developments – 5^th March 2011

After an extremely hectic first week in Poznan things are truly starting to fall into place. Now that I have done everything once I have found my second week to be a little easier and more relaxed allowing me additional time to focus on both my language studies and also building new relationships.



Enjoying Portuguese Cuisine



I would like to say that I am quite an independent person and I believe being prepared to participate in the Erasmus Programme in Poznań by myself has demonstrated this. Unfortunately before now I have had little opportunity to prove this. I have truly enjoyed staying in Stranmillis’s catered halls just one hour from my hometown in Northern Ireland, but until now I have never actually had to worry about cooking, laundry or even shopping for myself, a challenge that I have really started to take pleasure in. When I was leaving for Poland I feel my parents were slightly apprehensive regarding whether or not I would be eating properly but as I really really really love my food so I was never going to let that happen. Since I have arrived in Poznan I have started to enjoy not just doing my own shopping but also cooking for myself and others. I have experimented with potatoes, French toast, boiled and fried rice, soups and pastas, all with a variety of meats. I know none of these are excessively complicated but I feel it’s a great start. (I’ll be the next James Martin by the time I get home! Sorry, I mean the next Jamie Oliver.) This week Matteo and I got our first laundry slot. We both were slightly uncertain of what to do but our clothes now smell considerably fresher and are the same sizes and colours as when we started! I am calling that a job well done!



My Polish Class



This week because of my classes I have met many new people, from a wide range of backgrounds. On Erasmus I find it exceedingly easy talking to new people. There is so much to discuss with people from different countries with different cultures, religions and languages. This week I have really enjoyed meeting countless new people and I know that I am making friends that will last not just for four months but hopefully they are relationships that will last a lifetime. From being on Erasmus I have realised how small Northern Ireland actually is. I have always loved Northern Ireland. The Northern Irish culture is so comfortable and familiar however I am glad that I have thrown myself out of my comfort zone as there is so much to learn about this world we live in and the people in it. I have absolutely loved everything that I have learnt so far.

Over the past week I have been very busy not just with my class but also busy just having fun. This week a few of the highlights have been going ice skating with Gabriele, Matteo and Aleckandra, Matteo’s buddy. It was relatively inexpensive and although the ice rink was not as good as some at home I really enjoyed just watching the Italian boy’s struggle to make it round the rink. (not that I was much better.) On Tuesday night I was invited to a Christian concert. The music was provided by a gospel choir and it reminded me of the typical African-American choirs that you see on TV! I loved it. After this they all invited us back to a coffee shop for run by a Christian organisation. I got talking to an American couple who have just moved over here to do mission work and have started to run a bible study on Saturday nights, they invited me to come along. I plan to go this evening. Last night Matteo, João and I headed into the centre to finally try some typical Polish Dumplings. On the menu they looked very cheap so we all order large portions, of course I ate them all but it was way too much! I think we will stick to small next time. Basically dumplings are just small pastries filled with whatever you like. They are very tasty and I will definitely be ordering it again. After dinner we went for a walk and found a fantastic little café called Misja Café. They without a doubt have the best hot chocolate in the entire world! No Exaggeration!

Last Sunday I set off to find a church. There is an International Church in Poznań, exactly what I am looking for! I had been giving directions to the church which was close by. The service was at ten o’clock and as it was my first time going I decided to leave at twenty past nine, allowing plenty of time to find it. I took off on the tram got off at the next stop and followed the directions perfectly. Unfortunately I did not find a church! My polish classes have been very helpful so far but I am still very much a beginner when it comes to the Polish language. Fortunately I have learnt to say ‘Excuse me, where is.....?’ So I found a stranger and asked them this question and they knew where it was, Perfect! As they started to give me directions I realised I didn’t have a notion what they were saying, but being too proud to let on that I wasn’t actually Polish I nodded along, occasionally saying tak (which means yes). When they were finished I would say thank-you and goodbye (In Polish of course) and head in the general direction they were pointing. In total I did this process at least seven times but eventually found the church. By this time it was ten to eleven. It had taken me an hour and a half to find the church and I was fifty minutes late for an hour long service, but the last ten minutes were very good and I now know where I am going so I will be returning again tomorrow morning!

This week I started my Statistics course, this was a subject that I was really looking forward to as I am quite a fan of all aspects of Mathematics. In the lecture we started off with a summary of the basics of Statistics, fortunately something I was aware of due to my mathematical background. Immediately after this we moved into the seminar. This is a seminar based on the computers with a lot of calculation work done in ‘excel’. We were given a big long list of numbers and asked to find the mean, median, max, min, quartiles and finally the standard deviation. Some of these I was unfamiliar with doing on normal excel, what made it slightly harder was the fact that the excel we were using was completely in Polish!!! Fortunately after much trial and error I finally got the answers the lecturer was looking for. I can tell this class could be quite challenging but I really enjoyed it this week and I am looking forward to the challenge.

Poznan's Tram System

I have been here for two weeks now and feel it is only right to mention the transport system of Poznań. I feel the transport system here is exceptional. There are many buses and tram running throughout both the day, and through the night. Everywhere that you go you need to take a tram and I would easily say I travel on an average of 6-8 trams every day. The nearest tram stop is about five minutes from Zybszko (my halls) and the trams come every three minutes. Also to get a student pass to use the trams and buses for a month it costs forty zlotys which work out at just less than nine British pounds! BARGAIN! Although I use trams every day the novelty has yet to wear off! I love them! The only thing that could possibly make trams even better would be if there were parties on them, which leads me smoothly onto my next point. On Thursday night our Erasmus Student Network organised a Tram Party for us. Basically they hired out a tram for us and allowed us to just enjoy a trip round the city at night where we could get to know other Erasmus students while they played music through the overhead system. Like any party dancing was permitted but as it was slightly crowded and it was a moving tram most people decided wait and ‘make some shapes’ at another time. Fortunately on Thursday night I was also able to meet my ‘buddy’ for the first time. Her name is Anna and she is very good at English and spent a few years in England working so she has no problems understanding my accent. Although I have only met her she seems very nice and very willing to help me if I need anything.



At the TRAM PARTY!



Overall my Erasmus experience been getting better and better now that I am really starting to get to know other people and develop friendships. Unfortunately I have yet to receive word about getting into schools and seeing the educational system here in Poland but I received an email yesterday telling me that I will be sorted very shortly. As my colleagues start teaching practice at home I hope that I will get some of the same experiences that they have but in this culturally different educational system.

Also I have nothing more to report on the volleyball front, two weeks and no volleyball but I will hopefully have something to report by the time I write my next blog! Well, let’s hope so! I thought that after my first blog I would run out of this to say but I think this one is even longer. Sorry for making you read so much but I have so much to say. I would promise that it won’t be as long as this next week but I know that’s a promise that I doubt I would be able to keep.

Until next time,

Jeff