Rylan Diaz, el nostre auxiliar de conversa, curs 2019-2020
Bon dia!
I am Rylan, the current auxiliar de conversación of CEIP Lo Romero for this school year. I come from the opposite side of the world, the Philippines, which shares strong historical and cultural roots with Spain being one of its colonies hundreds of years ago. Therefore, please accept my warm greetings from the tropical and “Latin country of Asia,” mabuhay!
Prior to being assigned to this wonderful school, I was once part of that “group” of unemployed university students, recently graduated and confused on what to do with their lives. I graduated in October of 2018 from De La Salle University-Manila, with a degree on International Studies. I then found an opportunity to be part of the research team of the American Chamber, so I spent my time there until reality slapped me with the real question: What do you want to do now?
I have thought about this for years as I studied in university, but I never knew that assisting in an English class in a school in a foreign country would be one of the choices I’d end up for now. I still have my dreams of working in non-governmental organizations (NGOs), or even in bigger intergovernmental organizations. I even earned a verified certificate for Humanitarian Response from HarvardX to equip myself with what I might need in the future.
However, my deep interests in language and culture had persuaded me to look further and introduced me to other options; one of which is to do this program. Without any hesitation, I applied immediately. After all, I am qualified, and am even certified by the Instituto Cervantes to have a basic level of Spanish as one of my qualified foreign languages.
Receiving my carta de nombramiento from the Conselleria and the Generalitat was one of the most memorable moments I’ve had in 2019—probably the best news I’ve heard that year. Indeed, taking a huge leap to move to Spain as a 20-year old was not just a simple decision to digest. This forms the next chapters of my life, and I am off to live my life, away from my family that stood by my side all throughout the two decades of my existence.
I am very happy and content with my responsibilities given to me by the school. I have met some of the most wonderful and amazing people of my life in Lo Romero. My ability to connect with the kids has been greatly improved, and I am impressed on how I get to communicate and get along well with them through our shared interests not just through English. Furthermore, I have discovered how education has inspired me to delve deeper on what I can do more in life, especially in the future.
This introduction turned out to be a short autobiography, but it seemed appropriate for the type of person that I am, as the English language assistant of the school. Do you need English-related help? Catch me at the sala de mestres, and let’s see how we can reach your language goals!
See you there!
Immerse Yourself! 