Well, any of you who have been reading my blog or who have spoken to me at all about my experience here in Madrid know about Global Classrooms. Global Classrooms is the Model UN Conference for which Noel and I have been preparing out third-year students (14-15 year olds) for the past few months. We have worked extremely hard getting them ready for the conference, teaching them about public speaking, articulating coherent arguments, seeing the nuances of complicated issues, having confidence, and listening to the arguments of others. And the kids rose to the challenge, working hard and getting quite excited about the debate. Well, while it seemed like March 2nd, the day of the actual conference, would never come, it has indeed come and went and I must say, I am truly proud of my students!
I had high expectations for my students going in, because I knew that they could perform well and really challenge themselves, if they put in the effort. And, what makes me very proud as a teacher, is that they exceeded my expectations. In the end, they ALL worked really hard, they all participated during the conference, and what's more, they all had a great time on March 2nd, which to me, is what is most important.
Regardless of whether or not they won awards, they were all outspoken in their committees and they all showed that they have matured and learned a lot through the process. They have shown tremendous maturity and self-confidence, two skills that will serve them well in the future. And, while the prizes are certainly not the most important part of the experience, I must, as a very proud teacher, take a moment to brag. The delegations from my school won 6 awards, more than any other participating school! We had 11 delegations, so more than half of our delgations were formally recognized for their achievements. Out of 5 committees, 3 of the "best delegation" awards went to my students :) I couldn't be happier about how the day went!! And whats more...all of my students thanked us for our hard work and for helping them succeed, which really means a lot to me.
As I have mentioned previously, teaching can sometimes be a frustrating job, when the recognition and proud moments sometimes seem few and far between. But, it's moments like this one that make the job totally worth it. So, despite the long, tiring hours put into this project, and the feeling that it would never come to and end, I'm actually going to miss working with my kids on GC, now that it is finally over. I think this is an experience I will always remember, regardless of the careers that I pursue in the future.
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