How I'm Preparing to Teach in Spain: Part One

Hello, there! My name is Sydney, and in two days I’m set to go to Spain as an auxiliar de conversación. This is my second time living abroad (I went to Buenos Aires, Argentina as part of CIEE’s Liberal Arts program) and I wanted to share how I’m preparing to live and work in Spain.

I’m Analyzing my Expectations

Culture shock is pretty much inevitable if you’re going abroad for more than a few days, but there’s a mindset you can have that will lessen the “shock” part of culture shock. It involves understanding that culture shock shows up when you have unmet expectations. 

They can be big, such as thinking that a lot of people speak English where you’re going. They can be small, like assuming that you can go to the bank at three o’clock in the afternoon. It’s when you find out that very few people speak English, or that the bank closed at two and won’t reopen until tomorrow, that you start feeling the whiplash. 

Then, you might feel homesick, frustrated, or like ‘we do it better back home’. Maybe all three at the same time. 

So how do we deal with this? I start by analyzing my expectations. I ask myself questions like What time do I think people should eat dinner? and What is polite behavior on the subway?

Then, I do my research. Since I’m headed to Madrid, I try to answer these questions like a madrileña might. Dinner is around 10 pm. People stare on the subway, and it’s fine. Forewarned is forearmed. 

I remind myself that it will be tricky. I’m jumping out of the waters I’ve swum in for most of my life, heading for currents unknown. It will be hard, but it will also be good. There will be days I’ll be homesick, and days I won’t want to leave Spain. 

Culture shock is difficult, but it also comes with opportunities. I can learn new things and become more empathetic. 

I’m Preparing My Reactions

It helps to navigate culture shock well if you consider your options ahead of time. 

What does that mean? It means realizing that when you come to a culture-shocking moment, you get to choose your attitude. You can either give in to the frustration and grumble, or you can put on your observer’s hat. 

This was so helpful for me in Argentina. I’d take a mental step back and tell myself, okay, this is how they seem to do X here. It’s not what I’m used to, but hey, I just learned something about the culture of Buenos Aires. From there, I could decide whether I was going to adopt the porteño way of doing X, or not. 

(It is okay to not adapt all your behavior to local customs. Having a late dinner seems to trigger acid reflux for me, so for the sake of my health I’ll probably end up eating earlier than most Spanish people.)

Next, ask yourself, which cultural values underlie this behavior? Is there anything I can appreciate? Maybe you’re annoyed because you have a work meeting that always starts late and goes overtime. That could be a sign that people from that culture aren’t stressed about time, unlike many Americans. It could mean that they really value everyone having an opportunity to speak. Give them the benefit of the doubt.  

End of Part One

These are some of the ways I’m preparing myself to teach in Spain. I have way more to write about this than I thought at first, so I’m going to divide it into three parts. 

Hasta pronto, amigos.