Tristan Tuttle

Overall Experience

My overall experience was a great one. I spent 2 months in New Zealand teaching in a small town with year 4-5, our 3rd graders, and it was such an amazing experience both as a teacher and as a person. I spent every weekend traveling around the South island with my classmates and trying and seeing things I never thought I would. I went bungee jumping in Queenstown, shark diving in Bluff, climbed waterfalls in the Catilins, and explored Milford Sound and swam in Lake Tekapo after hiking to Mt. Cook. All of these things I never thought I would get the chance to do and will forever cherish every single one of them. I learned more skills as a teacher and left a positive relationship with all of the students that I interacted with and even got asked to stay by many of the staff at the school and I would honestly do it if I could.

Learning experience

Throughout my time teaching and learning at The Terrace school, I learned a entirely new educational system and experienced how it works in both positive and less positive ways compared to the system we use in the US. I've broadened my skills and knowledge through this experience. I also learned how much of a issue a toxic work environment affects your mentality of what you are doing and how even just one person can be a major detriment to your learning and work depending on how often you have to interact with that person but you can always find someone to help and support you in a more positive way.

Memorable experience

I have a major fear of falling. And during my time in NZ, I had the opportunity to face my fear by bungee jumping in the Nevis Peak, the tallest bungee jump in New Zealand, the birthplace of bungee jumping by the way. I decided that when in Rome I should do as the Romans do, meaning to live in the moment and face my fear. I will never forget diving 134 meters straight down, the feeling of the air rushing past me, the view both below and around me and the adrenaline rushing through me as I dropped. Not only did I survive and conquer my fear, but I also have a newfound joy of it and want to actually bungee jump more in the future. Something I never thought I'd see myself say.

What did you not expect?

When I first started working at the school I was assigned, I had little experience or knowledge of the New Zealand teaching system, so I expected to have a hard time at first. What surprised me the most was the little support I got from my cooperating teacher but how much support I got from the other teachers around me. It helped me realize what can make a good and bad work dynamic and the proper company you should keep. Helping me gather a better understanding of what I want from my own teaching teams in the future.

What advice would you give?

Know that there will be struggles and strife no matter how prepared you think you are for any experience. It is a part of life and is only meant to make you a stronger and better person if you let it. Don't beat yourself up for struggling at first and don't be afraid to ask for help and advice, even if people aren't really willing to give it. You can push yourself to the limits and always improve. Don't forget how adaptable you can be!

How has this experience impacted your life?

I believe that this experience will be a positive influence and impact on me as a teacher and especially as a person. The experience itself has been an amazing lesson on personal adaptability, strife through challenging work environments, and just being able to accept that things aren't always going to go the way you want them to or be exactly what you wanted them to become. Before coming to New Zealand, I had a set view of how the rest of the world worked. That view had been adjusted with previous experiences overseas, but I had never spent so much time out of the country before. This trip became the challenge of my life – to see how well I can adapt to life in an entirely different culture, land, and environment.

How did you learn about this experience?

I learned about this experience through my orientation classes Freshman year and learned more the closer I got to student teaching.

International Connections