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SPFHS Students To Travel To Spain In Exchange Program

Students will attend high school, reside with families in Barcelona in February 2013.

After spending 20 minutes describing with detail and enthusiasm their recent experience hosting a group of exchange students from Barcelona, a dozen Spanish students and their friends and family had just one thing to say to the members of the Board of Education:

Gracias.

The board emphatically and unanimously passed a motion approving the group’s request to return the favor to their new Spanish friends and complete the Spain/U.S.A. Exchange Program 2012. Thanks to the approval, the SPFHS students will attend Sagrada Familia High School in Barcelona from February 13 through February 22, 2013. During that time, they will also reside with host families and seek to immerse themselves in Spanish-speaking culture.

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“Nothing can truly compare to an authentic student exchange program,” SPF World Language Suprvisor Linda Materna said.

Spanish teacher Marie Concepcion, who coordinated the program, said that “the teacher-student relationship was turned around” during the experience because the students taught her so much that they learned from their Spanish guests.

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At Thursday's Board of Ed meeting, six students addressed the board and detailed what they had valued most from their time hosting an exchange student. The lessons learned ranged from a greater knowledge of the Spanish political situation to a wider appreciation for global sports.

Students said they were able to compare and contrast their life stories with their peers and build friendships both from their similarities and differences. Others said having a peer stay with them for a month prepared them for their upcoming college experience.

Overall, the students stressed the confidence they gained in speaking the language of their visitors, with many saying that the experience has made them more comfortable and less inhibited when speaking Spanish. Many said they would use Facebook, Skype and other technologies to keep in touch with their new friends from Europe until they visit them next winter.

About 19 students took part in this year’s inaugural exchange program, which took place during March. The SPFHS students and their families hosted Barcelona students, held barbeques for them, took them to professional sporting events and gave them at least a little taste of American culture. The Spanish students also took field trips to New York and Washington D.C. during their time on this side of the Atlantic. 

The exchange program was just one part of a greater district goal at increasing the global awareness of students, adjusting the curriculum to account for the gap that sometimes exists between students in America and the rest of the world.

“Tonight, my students are inviting us all to close this gap,” Concepcion said.

Fittingly, last night’s meeting also included a brief presentation by Noel Baxter, supervisor of social studies, on the district’s global perspective initiative. Baxter presented the BOE a draft of a document that seeks to define what having a global perspective will mean and how it will be implemented into the curriculum.

According to Baxter's presentation, the dimensions of the global perspective will focus on:

  • perspective consciousness 
  • cross-cultural awareness and interactions
  •  state of the planet awareness and global issues
  •  knowledge of global dynamics
  • awareness of human choices 

Baxter said the initiative will encompass all subjects and should expand beyond the hours students are in school.

The Board expressed gratitude for the information Baxter assembled and presented to them, and Superintendent Margaret Hayes said the research is already translating into exciting educational prospects for district students.

“That synergy is creating great opportunities for our students,” she said.

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