Good Vibes Only: From Spain to the Sun City: New teachers at Tippin Elementary
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — This academic school year, four educators from Spain are calling El Paso home. They are teaching dual language classes at campuses across the El Paso Independent School District. It’s part of the Texas-Spain Visiting International Teacher Program.
ABC-7 caught up with two of the educators who are teaching at Tippin Elementary School.
This summer, Miguel Sansano and Sandra Ramirez packed their bags and traveled thousands of miles to teach in the Sun City. Sansano is originally from the eastern portion of the country, and Ramirez is from the southern area of Spain.
Adventurers at heart, both said this seemed like the perfect experience to take part in!
Now they are integrating their culture in the classroom with their 1st and 2nd graders. They said their students are very curious about their nationalities and culture.
"They know about the Spanish culture. They know where I came from. They, I explained to them, they are learning a lot about my country,” Ramirez said.
"They are so curious about me; they always ask me some questions about my country or my city. What? Where do you live? Or something like this? And they always learn a lot of words,” Sansano explained.
They told ABC-7 that it had been a learning curve adjusting to the American culture and education methods, but they have enjoyed all El Paso had to offer, including the food.
"Ah, the food here is amazing. I always try to taste all the types of foods I like spicy so much. And here, you have a lot of spicy,” Sansano said.
Ramirez added that she had already tried tacos and burritos and was pleasantly surprised. She likes Mexican food!
They’re eager to keep exploring El Paso and the surrounding areas. Sansano said he had already visited to Juarez and loved it. They are excited to bring a piece of Spain to El Paso.
Sansano said it’s been positive sharing his culture with his students and teaching them new ways to express themselves.
“Growing both professionally and personally. I feel very, very happy here,” Ramirez added.
Both said they are grateful to El Paso ISD and and the staff at Tippin Elementary for giving them a warm welcome. Sansano and Ramirez said they would like to teach in El Paso for a few years.
