Hello!

I am Àgata, a 4th-year student of the degree Primary Education, given by the UAB.

During these 4 years I have gained deep understanding about the meaning of teaching and learning: the different theories and practices of education and tools for their holistic and effective implementation.

I am passionate about languages. How they work and the endless possibilities they offer amaze me. I would like to pass this interest on to my students, who, as a matter of fact, will face the need to be competent in them. That is why I am specialising in the teaching of English as a second language to non-native speakers.

My background

I am Àgata Gasulla i Ferrer and I am 21 years old. I am studying to become an Primary-School English and CLIL teacher.

Education and Training

I studied in a state-assisted school in Barcelona, where I did all my compulsory education and post-compulsory education. In parallel, I attended music lessons and French and English lessons.

I am currently on the fourth year of the degree Primary Education given by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. In this fourth year, I am specialising on the teaching of English as a second language and the teaching of content subjects in English following the CLIL methodology.

I have also taken 2 online courses on Short Film in Language Teaching and English in Early Childhood.

In addition to Catalan and Spanish, my native languages, I am fluent in English, and I hold some knowledge of French and Portuguese.

I have been formally learning English for a while, now, starting at the age of 4 at school. Since then, I have taken lessons in Primary, Secondary and High school, in a language school, and in specific courses abroad. These lessons have provided me with a very strong grammatical base on the language. Having had the chance to travel, work and live abroad for 6 months has given me the opportunity to learn and use English in different ways and for different more communicative purposes.

Experience

As part of the teaching practice, I have carried out 2 internships in two schools located in Rubí and in Barcelona, respectively. The first allowed me to gain good understanding of the elements that take place and condition the learning process. During the second one I designed, implemented and evaluated a Teaching Unit linked to several areas of knowledge with a strong scientific backbone. It was conducted in English, following the principles of CLIL.

I have also taken part in a project carried out in a school in Terrassa with children in their first year of secondary education. It aimed to combine the teaching of mathematics, Catalan and English through a series of projects.

Doing an Erasmus stay in The Netherlands granted me the opportunity of carrying out an internship at a Dalton school in Zwolle. There I prepared, implemented and evaluated a project following the school's view on teaching and learning. I implemented short English activities and created what I called "The Spanish Club". Students aged 7 to 12 could join the club after finishing their compulsory tasks to do different games and activities.

I have been volunteering in an Esplai for 2 years now. I am a monitor of non-formal education of children aged 4 to 17 years old. I carry out leisure-time activities every Saturday afternoon, Easter holidays and summer camps.

In addition, I have participated in 2 workcamps, one in Germany and the other one in Belgium. The first one, respectively, aimed to prepare games and playful activities for children. During the second one, I participated in a summer camp. I, together with other volunteers, prepared activities for children with learning disorders.

Finally, I have been giving private lessons to children aged 15 to 19 for 2 years.

All these experiences have allowed me to broaden my mind about the meaning of education and the world of possibilities this field has to offer. I look forward to keeping learning about teaching and enriching my practice!

My interests and goals as a teacher

Having taken the degree in Primary Education has made me grow more curious about education and everything it entails. However, the vast complexity that this field embraces is such that, inevitably, I have come to develop further interests for some of its areas of concern.

In particular, I am fond of languages and extremely curious about how we learn them and what we can do to make their learning more engaging and effective. That is why I would like to know more about the learning of foreign language:

The learning of a second language in very young children
The CLIL approach as a means to develop both language and content
Free voluntary reading as the means to acquire a language
Differentiation in the classroom
Storytelling and drama in the English classroom
Introduction of new (technological) tools in the classroom as means to engage learners

However, I am also very interested in cultural competence, social-emotional learning, teaching strategies and educational theories and practices.