Spring Break
Education students become teachers in Ecuador come fall
Sasha Dantzler
Issue date: 5/13/09 Section: News
Early childhood education students can now travel to Cuenca, Ecuador for their final fall semester at UW-Whitewater due to an exchange agreement signed April 21.
The agreement was signed between Jeff Barnett, dean of the College of Education, and Ximena Velez-Calvo, founder and director of Centro de Estudios Interamericano, a bilingual school for children ages 2 through 10. Student teachers will assign classrooms and grades with the HELP of the Director of the school and the university supervisor.
Simone DeVore, assistant professor in special education and advisor for student teachers traveling to Ecuador said seven students will travel to Cuenca from Oct. 10 through Nov. 21.
"They will stay with host families and teach at CEDEI School during the six weeks," DeVore said. "They will take a class on the People and Culture of Ecuador while they are in Cuenca and during the class, they will have many opportunities to discuss their experiences, travel, and complete service learning as well as student teaching while immersing themselves in the culture and interacting with people who live in the Andes Mountains."
Senior and student teacher Kelli Slowey said there are children at CEDEI with special needs, the area of teaching she's most interested in.
"I'm really excited to get the chance to experience a more diverse school setting than Wisconsin and to receive and opportunity to further my background knowledge on teaching," she said. "We don't know where we will be placed in the school at the present time, but my preference is working in special education because it's what I've enjoyed the most and what I have the most experience in."
Based on the responses from the students Barnett said himself and other university representatives of the agreement will modify the program accordingly.
"It's the first time we've have done partnership with an institution in South America and so many students have desired to partake on such an opportunity," he said. "We have done past partnerships with Sweden, Jamaica, Australia, and Mexico and hope to have future partnership with China and Thailand."
The agreement was signed between Jeff Barnett, dean of the College of Education, and Ximena Velez-Calvo, founder and director of Centro de Estudios Interamericano, a bilingual school for children ages 2 through 10. Student teachers will assign classrooms and grades with the HELP of the Director of the school and the university supervisor.
Simone DeVore, assistant professor in special education and advisor for student teachers traveling to Ecuador said seven students will travel to Cuenca from Oct. 10 through Nov. 21.
"They will stay with host families and teach at CEDEI School during the six weeks," DeVore said. "They will take a class on the People and Culture of Ecuador while they are in Cuenca and during the class, they will have many opportunities to discuss their experiences, travel, and complete service learning as well as student teaching while immersing themselves in the culture and interacting with people who live in the Andes Mountains."
Senior and student teacher Kelli Slowey said there are children at CEDEI with special needs, the area of teaching she's most interested in.
"I'm really excited to get the chance to experience a more diverse school setting than Wisconsin and to receive and opportunity to further my background knowledge on teaching," she said. "We don't know where we will be placed in the school at the present time, but my preference is working in special education because it's what I've enjoyed the most and what I have the most experience in."
Based on the responses from the students Barnett said himself and other university representatives of the agreement will modify the program accordingly.
"It's the first time we've have done partnership with an institution in South America and so many students have desired to partake on such an opportunity," he said. "We have done past partnerships with Sweden, Jamaica, Australia, and Mexico and hope to have future partnership with China and Thailand."
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