Success Stories

Lisa Quirke Teaches German School Kids About Canada

My experiences in Germany have been excellent so far. I've been living in Germany between July 2002 and December 2003 after finishing a BA at McGill in German and Economics.

A teaching assistantship through the PAD, a German exchange organization, gave me the chance to work as an English language assistant at a school in Mainz. It was incredible to see how languages are taught in Europe and the students' motivation was inspiring.

This fall I worked as an intern in the Public Affairs section of the Canadian Embassy in Berlin. I was in the unique position of being the only Canadian intern and was delighted to be able to take part in the creation of a digital map of Canada, now being produced for the new Embassy building in Berlin.

Through that and other duties here at the Embassy, including speech-writing, planning events, and answering general inquiries, I not only had the chance to refine my knowledge of German but to interact with a variety of fascinating individuals: the Ambassador, my co-workers, web designers, teachers and professors for Canadian Studies to name only a few.

As an intern at the Canadian Embassy, I went to more schools in Berlin and had a chance to introduce Canada to German school kids again.

For more information about teaching assistantships through PAD, check out the following links: PAD (Pedagogical Exchange Service) http://www.kmk.org/pad/home.htm (Available in German only)

By: Lisa Quirke