Primary Source News - Primary Source

10 September 2010

Students, Teachers, and Business Leaders Make the Case for Global Education

On May 25, a group of dedicated global education supporters including, Marika Beaton, a member of Global Education Massachusetts; Jon Blachly, from EF Education; Deanne Moore, a Hingham High School teacher; and Liv Benger and Tommy Stack, two Hingham High students; presented to members of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The group spoke of the critical need for increased global education in Massachusetts classrooms, and also shared their own personal experiences of gaining global perspectives.

10 September 2010

juliaheadshot A Welcome Message from Executive Director Julia de la Torre

Dear Friends,

I am writing to let you know how pleased I am to begin my tenure as Executive Director of Primary Source. After nearly a decade as a teacher and school leader, and four years as a program director at Primary Source, I very much look forward to leading our organization forward.

20 July 2010

New Books from Charlesbridge and The Global Fund for Children

The Global Fund for Children has teamed up with Charlesbridge Publishers to distribute two new global education-related children's books—American Babies and Our Grandparents: A Global Album. The Primary Source Library recently received a generous donation of 14 titles from The Global Fund for Children in order to increase the number of global education books available to educators.

19 July 2010

Meet the Interns

Primary Source is delighted to have three interns working alongside our staff this summer. Read on for an introduction to each of our talented new hires.

16 July 2010

New Distance-Learning Partnerships Announced

Schools across the country now have a new way to take advantage of Primary Source's programs and resources for teachers. Since 2002, Primary Source has offered partnership packages of courses, study tours, and resources to schools in Massachusetts and New England. Through the new "21st Century Professional Development" partnerships, public school districts, and independent schools can access a suite of online courses and workshops on global topics.

10 June 2010

Study Tour Blends Service and Travel

In April 2010, 11 educators traveled with Primary Source to the Dominican Republic. The group, which included educators from a variety of grade levels and subject areas, visited both urban and rural parts of the island.

19 May 2010

Massachusetts Delegation Returns From China

chinaedleaders

Primary Source's Executive Director, Kathleen Ennis, recently led a group of 30 school leaders, including Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, Mitchell Chester, on a ten-day specialized tour of the Chinese educational system. The group, which was organized in collaboration with EF Education, also included 12 superintendents and assistant superintendents.

19 May 2010

New Resources Available From Boston-Area Consulates

In May 2009, Global Education Massachusetts hosted a panel, Creating Global Schools: A Conversation with the International Community, which brought leaders from the education, business, and policy communities together with members of the consular corps in the Boston area to discuss internationalizing the curriculum of New England schools.

13 May 2010

From the Desk of Deb Cunningham: Cultivating Historical Empathy Abroad

debbelgium

Deborah Cunningham is Primary Source's Senior Program Director. She recently traveled abroad to give a series of presentations to educators related to her own research on cultivating historical empathy in secondary students. Here, she summarizes her findings and shares her reflections on the experience.

During the first week of May I was invited to the University of Leuven in Belgium to give three presentations in their Department of Education. The university, founded in 1425, was the alma mater of thinkers like Erasmus, Mercator, and Vesalius, so it was a great honor for me to speak there! I met with groups of preservice and experienced history teachers from all over Flanders, and my topic was the relationship between past and present in the history classroom. This is a subject closely related to my PhD research on what secondary school teachers do to cultivate historical empathy in their students.

13 May 2010

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.