Global Education Massachusetts Update

On May 11, 2010, members of Global Education Massachusetts (GEM) met at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston to discuss local and state-wide initiatives in global education.

Guest speaker Margo Glew of Michigan State University presented best practices for internationalizing teacher preparation programs, based upon her own institution's experience with its Global Initiative Forum for Future Teachers and Global Educators Cohort Program. MSU seeks to cultivate global literacy for all pre-service teachers by integrating global content into courses and internationalizing required course.

Rachel Krebs of the United Nations Association of Greater Boston shared the results of a year-long effort, in collaboration with Primary Source, to collect resources for educators from consulates in Boston. A packet titled "International Education Resources," will soon be made available online and in-person from UNA-GB and Primary Source for interested educators and administrators.

The highlight of the meeting was a set of three presentations from the 2009 GEM grant awardees, representing three school districts who have used the mini-grants for new globally-themed initiatives. Nancy Mirra and Todd Maguire presented Masconomet's new Global Education Diploma Program, which involves a 5-semester foreign language requirement and specific coursework in global economics, global cultural literacy, and global ethics. Students are also required to have an out-of-country travel experience and a local cultural experience, as well as do a senior project or internship and do a portfolio presentation in two languages. Many students have expressed interest in this program.

Momodou Sarr and Bruce Penniman presented Amherst Regional High School's African Scholars program, which has also benefited from a 2009 GEM grant. The African Scholars program is dedicated to improving students' understanding and appreciation of modern Africa by infusing African studies into all aspects of curriculum and eventually doing an exchange program with Senegal and the Gambia.

The mini-grant was used to develop and pilot an African studies course. Fourteen students enrolled last fall and studied the history, geography, language, arts, and anthropology of Senegal and the Gambia. Students went on a field trip to Harlem and visited the African market there. The African Studies course culminated with a Western Africa Dinner Program where there was food, entertainment, and a presentation of student projects. The next steps are to maintain the African studies course, and raise funds to make a trip to Senegal and the Gambia to plan the eventual student exchange.

Matt Holzer and Robby Chisholm of the Boston Public Schools shared a Global Literacy Project, the purpose of which is to cultivate students' skills in analytical and persuasive writing, critical thinking, and effective communication. Currently, the BPS team is working to gather a cohort of teachers to review the existing common writing assignment, examine the current writing prompts that are used, and develop writing prompts related to the world history curriculum standards. This district-wide project is expected to have an impact on 15,000 students per year.

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