The first time I saw my Global Summers Academy group was at Pearson Airport, but the first time we really came together was at the Humberto Delgado Airport in Lisbon, Portugal. We gathered together as a class for the first time after baggage claim, and went on to have our first History lesson in the warm shade, sprawled around a statue between the Lisbon streets. It was almost hypnotizing to be immersed in so much excitement and eagerness to learn, something that felt refreshing, or almost revitalizing to me. We were getting inspired. Our early course material prompted us to reflect on our lives and share about ourselves, and I found myself resurfacing old memories to a group of people I hadn’t met even 36 hours ago. I associate Lisbon with the blooming and beauty of new connections. We learned to keep track of one another in the sprawling heat, pick lunch spots to go to during class break, and help each other up the steep, stony streets of Lisbon.
From then on, I learned that anywhere can be a classroom. We’d learn by the poolside, on a hotel rooftop, or at a local cafe, totally immersing ourselves in the unique surroundings and culture of each city. If we were near the water, like in Majorca, we’d have beach breaks between classes. If we were downtown, like Madrid, we would take advantage of the cool shops and attractions. And if we were travelling between locations, we would use that time to catch up on assignments and fit in some extra studying, which is what we did on the ferry to Barcelona. All of these opportunities didn’t take away from our education, they enhanced it. For me, it never felt so easy and natural to learn. I found student-teacher communication so accessible and supportive. There was an intimate and dynamic learning environment rich with opportunities to ask questions and figure out what learning method works best.
Benefits like this also expanded past the classrooms. The time I would spend with my classmates extended out of lesson time and allowed me to form such deep connections, and I met people that I might not have had the opportunity to due to catchment areas and long distance. We would bond over assignments and help each other with challenges when we could, which made schoolwork come and go so comfortably. Not only were the class sizes small, but the learning environment felt intimate and intriguing. This is a learning environment I have yet to see paralleled elsewhere, and one that I am incredibly grateful to have experienced.
Thank you to Student Ambassador Abigail M. for writing this blog post!
