#studyabroadspain

Image Description: Inside a restaurant and group of students is sitting on both sides of a very long table. The students are looking at the camera and smiling.

This study abroad program was an important part of my college experience. It offered me the opportunity to meet Deaf people, explore new places and their history, and develop strong relationships with my professors and other students. With my classmates, we shared our experiences of life in the U.S., school at Gallaudet University, and American culture with the Spanish Deaf people and they did the same for us. This was very important for my degree plan at Gallaudet and my future career because I learned how to approach international students, people, and employees by giving them respect, acceptance, appreciation, and treating them with equality and I learned how to work as a team with my classmates. This experience helped me to increase my academic awareness.

Image Description: A group of six sits on a concrete ledge with the city of Toledo behind them. Professor Pilar Pinar is on the far left and Juan is the third from the right. Everyone is smiling.

My classmates and I went to Toledo to explore their history, religion, and tradition. It was interesting to learn more about those topics. We learned about the history of these topics and I understood why it is good to analyze things like that. I enjoyed trying to uncover the mysteries I encountered. It helped me to increase my skill for analyzing new topics.

Image Description: Juan smiles on the left, next to him is one of his LSE professors, Sete, and then two of his classmates from the Madrid program. All are smiling.

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Gallaudet student Grace Kelleher shares her reflections on her month in Madrid!

I’ve been back home in the United States for about a week now. This past week at home has given me time to reflect and think about my time abroad. I recently did a study abroad program in Madrid, Spain for the month of June.

My study abroad program focused on learning “lengua de signos español or LSE”. The first two and a half weeks I struggled greatly in the LSE class. My brain was on overdrive for fours a day in class. I would see an LSE sign, then I’d have to figure out the Spanish word that corresponds with that sign. If I didn’t know what the Spanish word meant I had to look it up and find the English translation. Before I knew it LSE class as well as Spanish became a lot easier to understand. 

The second week into my study abroad we began a theatre class. The theatre class was an opportunity for us to show what we had learned earlier in the day in LSE class. I was most nervous for the theatre class because it was way out of my comfort zone. Not only did I have to act and stand up in front of a crowd; I also had to do it in a language that I had recently learned. The last day of the program we had a theatre showcase. We performed on a big stage at an actual theatre in Madrid. I was incredibly nervous to go on stage. Once the show began I pushed aside all of the challenges and stresses of the trip and decided to have fun with my role. Once I let go of all of the anxiety and negative thoughts, I was able to perform my best show yet. 

While in Madrid I was immersed in both the Spanish culture as well as the Spanish Deaf culture. These two cultures within Spain helped me to gain a better understanding of the country as a whole. Spaniards are incredibly personable and kind individuals. Anytime I would meet someone new they would greet me with a big hug and two kisses on the cheek. This simple gesture would instantly calm my nerves and make me feel comfortable. 

Felix Gonzalez is a Gallaudet undergraduate student who is currently studying abroad in Spain. He was awarded a scholarship from the Fund for Education Abroad. Learn more about Felix’s journey to Spain! Transcript below.

Transcription: Hello! There are just 4 days left until I go to Spain! The city in Spain I am visiting is Madrid. I am very excited as the day is soon approaching. Allow me to first introduce myself. My name is Felix Gonzalez, and I am DeafBlind. I am first generation Mexican-American/Chicano. I am from California, where I spent all of my life. The school I am attending is Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. It is a university that uses a bilingual approach, with American Sign Language and English reading and writing simultaneously. This is how deaf students there obtain their education. I am a junior there majoring in Information Technology (IT) and minoring in Spanish.

I am excited to share something with you about this project studying abroad in Madrid. The reason I am so excited to go to Madrid is because they provide access for DeafBlind people, such as interpreting services and environments that are visually informative. This is fantastic because it is barrier-free!

There are three main reasons why I want to go to Madrid: 1) to improve my Spanish reading and writing skills, 2) to be exposed to and delve into the culture of Madrid, and 3) to network and create new connections with people in Madrid who are Spanish speakers. This will open more doors for me in the future and provide me better opportunities.