Goals, feelings, and maximizing my experience

Sarah Husi, TU Dortmund, Germany

goals:
One of my goals as a future educator is to experience as many different classrooms as I possibly can. I feel that I learn best by observing other teachers and settings. By different classrooms I mean a rural Title I school, an inner city school in a populated area, classrooms in many different countries, etc. I hope to take what I learn from experiencing other types of elementary school classes and implement them in my classroom. While I am in Germany I would love to see some classes in other European countries as well. I want to learn as much as I can about other countries' school systems, especially the successful ones, and eventually return to the States and share what I have found with other American teachers.
So my main goal in going abroad to complete my student teaching is to become the best teacher I can be. In addition, I hope to push myself to do things that would not normally be in my comfort zone. I know this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I do not want to waste it.

feelings:
I am so excited about this experience, but I am also very nervous. I know that the German classroom will be very different from what I am used to. I am also concerned about who my cooperating teacher will be and what he/she will be like. I will be spending a lot of time with the teacher who's classroom I will be in, so I really hope we get along. I am also nervous about how the parents of the children will respond to an American teaching their kids.

3 things to do to maximize my experience:
1. I really want to learn as much German as I can. I believe that will make a huge difference in my experience.
2. Travel as much as possible!
3. Write about my experiences everyday. Take really good notes in the classroom.