Broadening Teaching

Perspectives: Teacher

Exchange Programs

“ We cannot hold a torch to light another’s path without brightening our own”

-Ben Sweetland

To become a global teacher, you need to broaden your teaching perspective. Expanding your experiences beyond the confines of your classroom to the wider learning environment of the world is one of the many avenues in order to achieve a level of global competitiveness.

Introduction

1. Visiting International Faculty Program (VIF)The Visiting International Faculty Program is

the United States’ largest program for teachers and schools. It is dedicated to transforming lives through international exchange of teachers.

A. VIF Purposes and BeliefsIt is the intention of the VIF to ensure that

students, educators and communities worldwide reap the benefits of international education.

Let us take a closer look the to program to increase the perspective of teachers

The Program believes in the following principles:a. all schools should have at least one international exchange teacher.

b. all students should be exposed to variety of exchange teachers during their academic careers.

c. all communities should have an equal opportunity to develop globally literate citizens to help build a foundation for success in the global market place.

B. History of Visiting International Faculty Program

The program started 19 years ago. It was founded in 1987 and began accepting teachers from other countries of the world to teach Kindergarten up to grade 12 in 1989. this project is in cooperation with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

2. Fulbright Teacher Exchange ProgramSince 1946, the Fulbright Teacher Exchange

Program has helped nearly 23,000 teachers and school administrators to promote mutual understanding between the United States and countries around the world.

3. Inter-African Teacher ExchangeThe objectives of this program are to provide

opportunity for African teachers to learn from teaching environment in other African countries and also aimed to extend experiences and widen the horizon of African teachers by encouraging exchange visits to countries outside the Africa as well.

4. Canadian Educators ExchangeThe Canadian Education Exchange Foundation

is a non-profit foundation which handles both student and educator exchanges. International educational exchanges offer educators and their students an opportunity to broaden their understanding of one another’s cultures, customs and languages.

5. Global Teachers Millennium AwardsAlthough this program is limited only to

participating countries, it is important to learn that the Global Teacher Exchange program contributes to the quality of teachers worldwide.

The Global Teacher Exchange Program commits to improving the quality of Education in South Africa, Ghana, Uganda, and the UK and to promote partnership between the North and South African countries. The program aims to:

a. change the lives of UK educators, personally, and professionally by encouraging them to fulfill their aspiration and use their talents in innovative ways;b. ensure benefits for staff and pupils of UK schools and their local communities through the dissemination of innovative development education.c. support the aims and activities of Link’s educational programs in South Africa, Ghana, and Uganda.d. set a standard and develop a model for other similar scheme.

It is the intent of the program to achieve learning outcomes among the target partners of the UK in terms of:

a. increased knowledge of people and life in developing countries.

b. better understanding of how UK is linked with other countries.

c. more positive attitudes towards people and life in developing countries-challenging stereotypes and beliefs in shared humanity.

d. more positive towards multicellular nature of UK society-challenging of stereotypes and embracing of diversity.

A Global Teacher in this program is described as someone who:

a. thinks and act both locally and globally;

b. embraces the world’s rich variety of ways of life’

c. understand how world is interconnected.

d. is committed to making the world a more equitable place;

e. believes in education for sustainable development

f. has professional and personal skills to share and to learn;

g. brings the world into their classroom, school and community;h. encourages dialogue and partnership between the North and the South

i. can inspire others to act as Global teachers.

The various activities of the Global Teacher Exchange Program have provided learning experiences to the participating teachers in the development of their personal and professional lives. The main changes which resulted from the program are summarized by the following statements of the teacher participants:

“ As a result of the participating in the scheme, I have developed my ability to mentor students and staff and have developed a more consultative leadership style in my school”

“ the best thing I have ever done. I have come back a different person-more understanding, more sensitive to the needs of the others. The impact of this Award will stay with me forever.”

It is interesting to note that these programs give teachers the opportunity to live their personal and professional lives in another context, in another setting, in another country, thus strengthening their skills in understanding diversity and multiculturalism.