Greetings from Germany - Fulbright Scholarship Recipient Joshua Correia

I am Joshua Correia from the graduating class of 2024 and I received my Bachelor of Science in Psychology and English, with a German minor. I received the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship scholarship for the 2024-2025 school year and am now working at the Michael-Ende-Gymnasium in Tönisvorst in Nordrhein-Westfalen as a foreign language assistant.
My work with English learners at my school is not only fulfilling but enriching. When I work with the Oberstufe, I am able to dive deeper into complex topics with the students through presentations and associated discussion sections. With the younger students, I provide accent exercises and play games with them so that they can have fun at the start of their journey with English.
The didactic process allows me to delve deeper into the German language every day and to learn from my students at the same time. My German proficiency has vastly improved since moving here and every day I am able to apply the skills I learned at UMass as well as the vocabulary I encounter daily.
The diversity of languages, accents, cultures, and backgrounds that I encounter here in NRW on a daily basis is astounding and personally impactful. This is my first chance to spend time outside of the US, and I deeply appreciate this opportunity to meet new people and learn from their perspectives on the world.
Outside of the classroom, I am learning to engage with my hobbies through a new linguistic and cultural perspective. I am a member of a local climbing gym, I play video games with other people from my area, and I visit the nearby cities for local events. All the while, I continue to study the German language in my free time through reading German novels, online lessons, and consuming German media. On weekends, I travel around Germany as much as possible and in just the last 5 months, I have been able to adventure through over 30 cities in Germany as well as a few in the Netherlands.