I learned a lot of things while I was in Spain. The memories I take with me from that trip will stay with me forever, and I am honestly a better person because of it.
I love learning! I try to learn new things every day, which is why I chose education for my research project. Education is an important staple in any successful society, and I was intrigued to find out how the Spanish education system differed from our own. We did not learn a whole lot about the education system while we were in Spain, but we did get to visit the Universities of Salamanca and Barcelona!
I knew very little about Spanish education before, besides hat it was rather inexpensive. I had assumed that it was almost the same as ours!
Spain had a huge surge in education after Franco's dictatorship ended, because his strict education system only allowed for certain amounts of schooling and was mostly military based (also mostly excluded women!) So Spain underwent a large education reform. Since Spanish youths new little of their Spanish pasts and little of the civil war, there was a focus on old Spanish history and less current events were being taught as Spain tried to dig up the past that Franco had buried. Learning a second language besides Castilian is also very important in Spain, mainly due to the Spanish being forced to conform to one language over Franco.
Higher education is very important in Spain, but there is an issue with schools being oversubscribed, so not everyone can get an education. There are about 1.6 million youths currently studying in Spain, which is higher than the EU average, although due to the oversubscription, many students can't study their first choice in school and a large portion of students drop out after their first year as a result. There are a lot of hoops to jump through to get in to a university; a bachillerato must be completed as well as the selectividad entrance exam.
The university of Barcelona was established in 1450, which means they have been enriching the minds of Spaniards for a long time! It educates over 64,000 students and is ranked the 83rd university in the world! It has over 145 diferent graduates programs and is the top school in Spain. The campus is beautiful and the ancient architecture mixed with modern elements makes it a site to se!
The university of Salamanca (where the magnificent Profe studied!) is the oldest school in Spain (it is thought to have been established for religious teaching as far back as 1118 until it was charted officially by the Pope in 1214!) The way the school is run is very old fashioned, and it is also home to the story of the Salamanca frog! It has absolutely astounding architecture and the facade with the Frog was one of my favorite things I saw in Spain! The bar in the old basement of the school was so cool, I wish we had something like that at Carthage! We ran into a young man from the states who lived in Boston and was studying Spanish at the university; He said he loved it so much and that it was such an amazing experience to live and study in Spain! Wow!
I learned lot about the education system of Spain, and I would like to learn more, maybe by actually studying abroad in Spain! After al, they say the best way to learn something is to experience it! I really admire how Spain is trying so hard to fix the things that were wrong with the education system under Franco, and I can't wait to see just how far it can go!
This is your opportunity to share your experiences and observations about Spanish culture and discover the ones of your fellow classmates. Enjoy the experience!