How are They Different?

Collegi Reial Monestir De Santa Isabel, is a Catholic Charter School, in Barcelona Spain.

Setting: City

Population of Surrounding Area: 5.515 million

Population of School: Over 4,000 students

Diversity in the School: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian (and many others)

Dress Code: Uniforms

Student:Teacher Ratio: TBD

Languages Taught: Catalan, Spanish, and English (required) German and French (optional)

School Hours: 9:00 am - 5 pm

American schools and Spanish schools are very similar in some ways, and very different in others. In the Spanish school I am in, the teachers transfer classes instead of the students. The teachers do have their own classroom, but they are not in it for a large portion of the day. To me, this seems like it would be hard to stay organized and personalize your space, because any school I have been in at home makes the students do the transitioning. I have mixed feelings about it. While it could give the students a sense of structure, it could also not give them enough moving around time.

Spanish students are much more vocal than American students, and are given more freedom at school. Sometimes when I am walking down the staircase, and I pass a group of students, the noise is deafening! No one else seems to mind, and I think it is just a part of the school culture. Students are given much more freedom to walk around and talk to their peers during class time. It is taking time to get used to it!

The students wear uniforms every day, and the younger students wear smocks over them so they don't get them dirty. I have heard that students in public schools, do however, wear street clothes. In that way they are very similar to the United States.

One big difference with Spanish schools is how they learn multiple languages in the classroom. Most Spanish schools teach English from the first year (at varying degrees). They feel that learning English will open more doors for their children than attending a University. You will rarely find a school in America that teaches a foreign language starting in pre-school. If the students here in Spain can learn multiple languages, I know that American students have the same capacity for learning.

The school day starts later here but they also do not end until five o'clock. The students get an hour for lunch, at which time they are free to go home and eat. I can't imagine American schools being able to do that with all the safety precautions they have in place! After trying both, I do believe I would like to have fewer breaks and go home earlier.

You will see very young students walking to school alone. They know how to navigate the city streets and get to school on their own. In the States, children would not even know what to do if they were told to walk themselves to school and navigate busy streets! Spain does have a very convenient setup for walking everywhere, and you will never have to cross a street without a crosswalk.

One thing that I am still adjusting to is mealtimes. Breakfast is served to the teachers from 10-12 and lunch is served from 1-3. The Spaniards do not eat supper until at least 8 pm, and some don't eat until 10. The teachers do have their own lunchroom and the school has a meal service contracted out. We get one main dish, two sides, and a dessert! If you skip lunch at school you will be very hungry by the time you eat again. Baskets of bread, and olive oil for dipping, are on the table at all times. The bread is my favorite part of the meal.

I have noticed that my students and the host families children have not had very much homework. I don't know if that is true of all schools or not. I imagine that the students do not have much time for homework by the time they get home!

Sports in Spanish schools are not nearly as important as they are in American schools. My host family even told me that no Universities in Spain have a sports team. That blows my mind since the sports teams in America are so valued even at the elementary level.