1) Please introduce yourself briefly.
My name is Eliza Zimmerman and I am the American foreign language assistant this year at JWG Torgau. I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. I have also lived part of my life off of the coast of Maine on a small island. Both of these places have beautiful nature and I really appreciate the access to the outdoors I had growing up — it’s not so common in the USA. For university, I attended Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland (near Washington D.C.). There, I studied sociology and creative writing. I also worked a lot on research about prisons and race in the USA. My hobbies are reading, writing, bouldering, running, and printmaking.

2) Why are you here? And for how long?
I am here at JWG Torgau because after university, I wanted to move abroad and see more of the world. Because I’d taken a bit of German in university, I was able to qualify for a Fulbright grant to be an English Teaching Assistant. Last year I lived in Dresden and worked at a Berufsschulzentrum. I really enjoyed that job but for my second year, I knew I wanted to teach a larger age range of students and live closer to Leipzig, so Torgau was the perfect spot for me. I will be working here until June.

3) What tasks do you take on here?
As a teaching assistant, I am both learning how to be a teacher and am also a support for the teachers already working at the school. I work with teachers in the English department to either support their lesson plans — for example, sometimes I present on a particular topic in the context of America, or lead an activity for them — or I create mini lesson plans of my own during part of their class time. I have also started an English club after school on Thursdays for students who want to practice speaking outside of the classroom.

4) What was your first impression of our school?
My first impression of your school was that the students were enthusiastic and curious, and that the teachers were very welcoming. I felt comfortable in the classrooms and found it easy to work with whomever was leading the class to find my role within their teaching style. It’s been a really lovely environment to learn and teach in (because I get to do both here). Also the building itself is really pretty (maybe it’s strange to say, but from an American perspective, there’s a lot of light inside).

5) What are your plans for the future?
I’m not totally sure! I do eventually want to move back to the USA, but for the near future I would like to continue living in Leipzig and working in schools near/around Leipzig. I find the work very fulfilling and I think the German school system is healthier for both students and teachers than the school system in the US. If I move back to the US, I’m not sure I would teach there. Perhaps I would become a therapist or a lawyer instead. I find living in Germany very enjoyable though, so I want to stay here as long as it makes sense for me.