Three School Vists and a very long day! :)

Yesterday was an incredibly long day, starting with a ten minute walk at 7:15 to the university to pick up a small charter van for the day. We drove about two hours to get to the first school, a secondary school, which had a program for students interested in becoming teachers. We had a round table discussion with these students about teacher education programs in the States and how they differ from those in Poland. (Polish ones tend to be more theory based with less practical experience and internship time.) We've discovered that the students here have great pride in their schools, as many of them are quite historic, both as a school organization and in the buildings.

The second school was the one Stan attended as a student, so there were personal ties for him here. We talked about American culture with students here in their huge, historic auditorium. They all had many questions about our students and the program that they might become involved in. These particular students were ones who were studying English, so it was especially beneficial to them to be able to ask us questions. Some of them told us the history of their names and about family traditions. Others were greatly interested in American basketball and the sports teams that we were fans of. After our meeting with the students, we had a tour of the school and a lunch to discuss the project.

The last school we arrived at well after the end of the school day, only to find that several students had stayed to welcome us with tea, coffee, and cookies. This particular school was a secondary school that was like a magnet school that focused primarily on science and math. These students were interested in becoming engineers, scientists, or having a career in medicine. When we demonstrated Teleplace to them, they were quite excited to be able to talk with a colleague of ours at ASU who happened to be online at the time. Since there was a smaller group of students at this school, most of them had the opportunity to move the avatar around the space and talk with Ed if they wanted to. When we finished, they had to leave to meet their Danish exchange students, whom they were hosting. Students at this particular school seemed to have many more opportunities for international collaboration than some of the other schools.

After leaving the last school, we joined the faculty of this school for Teacher Appreciation Day at a local restaurant. This restaurant was quite elegant, with a DJ and ballroom dance floor. The meal was formally served and we were welcomed in they typical fashion. You can see some pictures of the fabulous food here, which included multiple types of potatoes, cabbage, and dumplings with bacon. There was also chicken, soup, and some salads. Dessert was a fabulous apple pie with icecream and fresh whipped cream. We stayed at dinner until well past 8:00, so we didn't get back to the hotel until after 10:00. A long day, but well worth it!

Leave some love in the comments! :)

Shopping and a School Visit (with tea and cake!)

This morning after breakfast, Sara and I headed back to the old town area to do some shopping, since it looked like it was the only time we might have. I found a lovely water color print and a traditional decorated egg that will make a beautiful ornament on the Christmas tree. Sara found some neat traditional toys for her kids and also purchased some of the decorated eggs. Then we hoofed it back to the hotel with five minutes to spare in order to meet Matheusz and Stan who were to take us to visit a school today.

The school was on the outskirts of the city and was much like Blowing Rock School, in that it was designed for multiple grade levels (1-9 grades, about ages 6/7-15) and was brightly colored on the interior. We found out that teachers were allowed to choose their paint colors, since the school was newly built in 2000. (They have already outgrown it, so they plan to add on in the near future.) This is one of the more affluent areas around the city, so students are very well motivated. The teaching style in this school, like much of Poland, is the more traditional lecture style where students simply memorize facts. You'll notice in the pictures that the classroom is arranged to be teacher centered, and very little group work occurs between students, even though they may share a table.

As has been typical, we received a warm welcome from the head teacher (she works as the administrator while also carrying a full teaching load; teachers in Poland often work two to three jobs in order to have enough money to live on, which is why there is great turnover in the profession here) and then toured the school. A lovely lunch was prepared for us (breaded chicken, potatoes, red cabbage (like what I loved in Germany), salad, and gurkin soup) by the cafeteria staff and we discussed the role of the cafeteria in the school while we ate. In Poland, students go to school from 8-2 at the elementary/middle school age, so the cafeteria is used for a 10:00 tea/snack time and for faculty, but does not serve a hot lunch to students, since lunch is eaten between 2-3 traditionally. So, the cafeteria is rather small and only staffs one or two cafeteria workers.

After lunch, we toured some more of the school and visited a class, where the teacher teaching was engaging the students using an interactive white board, much like a SmartBoard. Students were very willing to volunteer answers (though this may have been a show for us) and were very well behaved. This particular teacher was interested in partnering with us, so she came to our meeting after school to discuss the future of the project and where her classes might fit in. It is our hope to define a plan and structure for connecting students in Poland and NC before we leave on Sunday morning, so that the teachers know what to expect after we leave. During this discussion, we showed some of the activities we have designed in Teleplace and also discussed the support role of university faculty and doctoral students. The town mayor and vice mayor also joined us during this discussion, which was held over tea and cake.

When we finished the meeting, we took a few photographs of the group beside the statue of the patron of the school and town (a queen who championed education in the area well over 1000 years ago), and said our good byes, with expressions of how thankful we were and how much good we hope will come from the collaboration. Then, Matheusz took our small group to the petrol station (he'd ridden all the way there with the light on, which worried some of us) and then back to the hotel.

After changing clothes, several of us ventured out to the trolley to find another place for shopping, which ended up being a mall that Stan had suggested. Here, I found a pair of brown leather boots for about 70 zylotz, or about $25 dollars. I hadn't planned on coming back with another pair of shoes, but they were too comfortable to pass up. (The Polish women are all so fashionable... I don't think I've seen anyone wearing a sweatshirt and jeans looking like they just woke up. So, I had to come back with some fashionable piece.) I also found some rose hip jam, which reminded me of the dessert at the perogie restaurant. I think I'll make jam thumbprint cookies for Christmas with it. And I found some chocolate for my students (it's German, I think... but it'll still be from the area.)

The trolley ride back was uneventful and we ducked into a pizzeria a few minutes after returning for something that wasn't quite a meat and potatoes meal. We all ordered several smaller pizzas to share and ended up paying the equaivalent of about $5-$7 a piece for a wonderful dinner. (Sorry, no pics of the pizza... I forgot.) So, that pretty much wraps up our day. I'll do a little reading tonight, and then off to bed for an early morning tomorrow. We're leaving at 7:15 to tour three more schools.

Shopping, Schmoozing, and Livin' the Good Life (food, that is)

Today, I slept in a bit and was down for breakfast by 8:00. Breakfast was much the same as yesterday, with a few different meats and some Polish sausages (much like hot dogs). After breakfast, we had a few minutes to check email, catch up on work, or prepare for our lectures before meeting Gretchena.

Gretchena came at 10:00 to take us to go get a public transit ticket for the week and to do a little shopping downtown before our lectures to Stan's doctoral students and the dean of his department. We chatted with Gretchena along the walk and trolley ride and had the opportunity to see a few places we'll try to check out again before we leave. Gretchena took us to a department store, much like those in Germany, where there is a bakery, confectionery, and market in the basement. Upstairs, there were several shops, including a book shop, children's store, something similar to Pottery Barn, and even a Starbucks (yes, they truly are everywhere). I took advantage of the bookstore to purchase a copy of The Alchemist in Polish to share with my students and Doug. Gretchena explained, after I managed to describe the book to her, that Paulo Coelho is a very popular author here in Poland because of his views on independence and he writes a column for a women's magazine here each week. She had read The Alchemist (or Alchemik in Polish) and enjoyed it greatly. So, it will be fun to share this bit of information with my students when I return. Sara and I found several lovely scarves that street vendors were selling, but we managed to find some less expensive in another part of town that we will pick up tomorrow. We also browsed the jewelry stores, since Sara is a jewelry hound, and enjoyed the stocking and socks shops, where they have all the colors of the rainbow in all types of patterns. When we finished shopping, Gretchena surprised us with chocolates filled with buttery cookies and chocolate mousse... wonderful!

Then, she took us to the pedagogy building where we met Stan, his doctoral students, and the dean of his department. Here, we gave a lecture to these students to explain the basis of the project that we hope to build with them, demonstrate the program, and the pedagogical rationale behind it (my portion of the lecture). We are quickly discovering that students and professors/teachers in Poland are accustomed to lecture style lessons where students have very little discussion. The basis of ASU's social constructivist approach is very different, so meshing the two could prove to be a challenge. Stan seems dedicated to doing what is best for his students, and does not seem to want or need to climb the career ladder at the university, so that bodes well for the success of the project. Matheusz and Gretchena also seem to see the drawbacks of their traditional approach and are open to incorporating new ideas and a more social constructivist model to their teaching. (Both were teachers in public schools here prior to entering the doctoral program, which is not the norm here. So, they explained that it is tough to learn how to teach from someone who does little more than lecture. They are truly excited to learn from us and want to do what will be best for their future students.)

After the lectures, we went with the dean to a traditional Polish restaurant where we had borscht, a soup of chicken and beet broth with meat filled dumplings. Gretchena explained that this is a traditional holiday soup, and at Christmas, it is served with wild mushroom filled dumplings, rather than meat. After the soup, we had breaded pork chops with sauted mushrooms, saurkraut, and boiled potatoes. (Are you seeing a theme here? I'm beginning to crave a salad! Though it's all quite tasty.) Dessert was cheesecake or a chocolate and poppyseed roll (much like a pumpkin roll with cream cheese). (Again, since we were with the dean, it seemed too formal an occasion to take pictures of the food.) Coffee was served at the end of the meal to finish things off in a traditional manner.

From here, we went to meet with some of Stan's colleagues for an informal discussion. For this, Gretchena's mother had made a traditional apple cake, which was sooo tasty. (I asked for the recipe, so hopefully I can get it!) It had a bottom layer of cake like a short bread, then a layer of apples, almost like apple butter, and then a layer of buttery crumbly goodness. (Like my favorite pastry in Germany.) They also served hot tea and coffee with this, so we all opted to skip dinner tonight, since the late lunch was so heavy. Sara and I had an excellent conversation with Matheusz and Gretchena about their program, interests, family, and professional goals. We were also able to help answer some questions for Matheusz about the program we've been using for virtual collaboration and have developed an outline for him to use with his students in the space. We'll create that space for him tonight and try to help him get comfortable in the space before we leave. Since has has a graphic design background, learning Google Sketchup should be no problem for him, so I think he'll excel with using the program with his students.

(As a side note, the weather has been unusually warm, Matheusz says, and we're seeing the beginnings of the Polish "golden autumn" as the trees turn a brilliant golden yellow. The temperature did drop significantly throughout the day today, and we had a sprinkling of rain, but overall, it's been nice. It sounds like we may get rain tomorrow and some snow later in the week.)

After the dessert and tea/coffee, we took a short walk back to the hotel for the evening. We passed a bakery and a small convenience market on the way, so we may visit the bakery sometime before we leave. It would be nice to have something to take to the airport for the return flight. For the rest of the night, I'll listen to a Radio Lab podcast or NPR via the web, work on some National Boards stuff, and turn in relatively early. Tomorrow promises to be another filled day.

Getting Acquainted

Today started out with breakfast at our hotel/dorm, where we had a choice of several breads, tomato slices, cottage cheese, luncheon meats and sliced cheeses, cereal, juice, hot tea, and coffee. There was also butter and several jams to go on the breads. I was sure to eat a good breakfast, since we'd been warned that the Polish people don't eat lunch until around 2:00 in the afternoon.

At 10:00 am, two doctoral students, Mateusz (pronounced Mattheus) and Gretchena, came to take us by tram/trolley to the university. There we checked the facilities for the conference and made sure that our program would run on their computers. We also had a leisurely cappuccino at the cafe in the science building while we waited for the lab operator to open the lab. Here, we learned a bit more about their university system and how it greatly differs from ours. There are essentially different campuses around the city for different areas of study, so the science campus is at the edge of the city, while the literature and humanities campus is in the city center. Each "faculty" (department, we would call it) has it's own library, rather than there being a central library for the entire university. Here is a view from the physics building, where the conference will be held at the end of the week. (Sorry for the glare of the flash.)

After setting up the lab, we went to the biology building where we had lunch. We checked our coats (an expectation here in most any public building; we think it helps to keep the buildings cleaner in the winters and is a courtesy since winter wear is often so bulky here), and followed Mateusz and Gretchena to the cafeteria area, where we had a traditional Polish lunch, similar to the dinner I had last night. After lunch, we popped into the biology dept. library to see what it looked like (tons of historic reference books and still using a card catalog) and were on our way to meet the vice rector.

At tea with the vice rector, we discussed our plans and visions for the project and enjoyed a wonderful cheesecake and coffee or tea. The cheesecake was very light and fluffy with a chocolate layer on top. I opted not to take a picture, since we were in the vice rector's private dining room and it seemed too formal of an occasion to play the part of a tourist. He was very interested in the project, and his English was excellent since he had studied some in Britain as a student of English literature. So, it's encouraging to Stan (our Polish university collaborator) that he has the "blessing" of the vice rector.

After tea, Stan and Mateusz took us (in their cars after a short trolley ride) to a small lake, which was beautiful at sunset. We then went to dinner at a perogie restaurant, where Stan ordered a variety of vegetable, meat, and even dessert perogies. The vegetable and meat ones were served with a yogurt sauce with chives, and the dessert ones had a sugary streusel-like topping and were served with a sweetened yogurt sauce. We enjoyed lively dinner conversation and managed to shut the place down, staying until after 8:00 (they closed at 7:00). In typical European fashion, the manager and lone waitress did not hurry us along, but allowed us to take our time. She even brought us a wonderful rose hip biscuit (with a dough and sugar topping much like a tea cake or sand dab) as a thank you for being such a wonderful group to serve for the evening.

Pretty much, that was the day, with an evening meeting at the hotel after dinner for us to plan for tomorrow. It's getting close to midnight here in Poland, and I have to plan for a presentation for doctoral students in the morning, so I'm hitting the sack for tonight. Pictures will come once I get fresh batteries for the camera tomorrow. Leave some love in the comments!

Arrived in Poznon

So, after a 9 hour flight from Charlotte to Munich, one cancelled and rescheduled flight from Munich to Poznan, and a 30 minute taxi ride, I finally arrived at our hotel/dorm. (With very retro style, as you can see from the pics.) The hotel we're staying at is actually a floor of a dorm that's used as a hotel for university guests. If you're directionally challenged, like I often am, then you might find this map of Poland helpful in locating where I am in the world this week.

After arriving, we had a few minutes to settle in before meeting with our team to plan tomorrow's session with the chancellor of the university and getting the computer labs all set for our sessions later in the week for graduate students, faculty, and local teachers. At 4:00 local time (10:00 am east coast time), we met Marta, a lovely and welcoming friend of the university who had agreed to give us a tour of old town and take us to find a bite to eat for dinner. Marta is a local high school teacher who teaches English as a foreign language here, so her English was perfect and she was a wonderful guide. We saw much of the traditional architecture in old town, though some of it was recreated after the war. As to be expected, much of the architecture has a look similar to what I saw in Germany, with intricate detailing, frescoes, and mosaic work on the exterior facade. Check out the rest of the pics from our old town tour today.

We found a fabulous restaurant for dinner and I had the most wonderful pork chop I've ever eaten. The pork was breaded and covered with sauteed mushrooms. There were yummy buttery potatoes and warm saurkraut with sausage cooked in with it. After dinner, we took a pleasant walk back, bundled in our coats and scarves. (There's a possibility of snow flurries later this week, we're told.) Marta pointed out a few places I might be able to find some local art later in the week, so that will be fun to add to our collection.

Tonight, I'm going to turn in early, since I didn't get much sleep on the plane. There will likely be a more detailed post tomorrow, after I'm more well rested.

Preparing for Takeoff

So, I leave for Poland on Saturday. For those who don't know, here's the basic lowdown on how I found myself being a world traveler this fall.

In May, one of my professors contacted me to see if I was interested in a online collaboration with Polish schools. Of course, I was all over it. Then, I found out that I was to be on the planning committee for this project, which meant that a grant written by some university faculty would be funding my trip to Poland in October. For a week. Right after the first marking period. When grades are due. So, I weighed the options, we prayed about it, I talked with my colleagues and principal... and then I was reminded of my other blog, and my frugal ways, and how I love to travel when someone else is footing the bill...and here I am.

My lesson plans will get made tomorrow during our work day, in and around parent conferences about report cards. I'll finalize my presentations for our conference in Poland for the educators there, and make sure I have the digital camera to be able to share pictures and blog posts with my kiddos back here in the High Country. The cool thing about doing this during the year is that the kids are super excited about it. They want to see the Polish schools (which we'll tour four of) and anything else I can take pictures of. And of course, they asked for souvenirs... chocolate, being the main one. So, I'll see if I can find this "famed" Polish chocolate they all seem to be obsessed with... though I've never heard of such. But, it wouldn't be the first time I'm wrong! :)

Tomorrow evening and Saturday morning, I'll get all my things packed into my carry-on luggage... no checked bags for this girlie. One lost bag was enough to cure me of that for a while. Hey, if I did a month in Germany with no checked luggage, I can do a week in Poland with just the carry-on stuff. The schedule is pretty flexible right now, so I'm not sure exactly what we'll be doing while we're there, outside of the professional schmoozing that seems expected (this will be tough for me... the university faculty seem much better adept at this).

So, this blog is where you'll be able to check in on me. I'm told there's internet in our hotel, even in the rooms, so it should be fairly easy for me to do daily posts. So, please check back often and leave me some love in the comments!