I can never mention the orientation period without thinking about the unforgettable experience I had from International Exhibit and International Talent Show. Today as I am writing my report, I still hear the wonderful music and songs of different rhythms and languages. We, strangers from all over the world, began to know one another after these two events because we saw, we heard personally. the images are still before our eyes vividly, the music, the folk dances and the song of Teachers Exchange Program will remain in my ears forever. All On September 17, the visiting teachers were ready to begin travel to their places of assignment at selected college and university centers. By September 19, the college and university programs were under way. At these training cen ters, the teachers followed academic and extracurricular activities especially arranged for the groups. Each program consisted of two parts. The first centered mainly on the campus with several related aspects: (1) auditing of two or more courses of the teacher's choice; (2) intensive educational seminars on American educational philosophy, objectives, curriculum, problems, and current trends in elementary, secondary, and vocational education; courses in the methods and materials of teaching English as a second language, including phonetics and phonemics, composition, and speech correction; and seminars in American Civilization, emphasizing American literature, history, geography, art, music, and education; (3) special assistance with related interests through conferences with specialists; and (4) planned visits to public, private, and parochial schools. The second part emphasized community and extracurricular activities designed to help the teachers to understand better the culture in which American schools operate. There were visits to representative American industries. There were visits to places of historic and cultural interest, and many opportunities were afforded the teachers to meet Americans and to visit in American homes. At each of the 11 university training centers, special programs lasting either 13 weeks or one semester were arranged for the particular group assigned there. The program directors later prepared detailed reports. An example of the special programs is the one developed in science education at the University of Pittsburgh. This science-education program was directed by Dr. Shepherd L. Witman, coordinator of the group and Director of the University's Office of Cultural and Educational Exchange. Helping Dr. Witman were the following: Mr. C. Scott Kelly (his assistant); Dean Paul Masoner, School of Education; Dean Max Lauffer, Director of Natural Sciences; and Dr. George Crouch, Chairman of the Department of English. A coordinating committee that assisted in planning the program was composed of the following: Paul L. Maxwell.... President, District Superin tendents' Association of Eugene F. Peckman.. Senior Supervisor, Science and Theodore T. Polk... Coordinator, Graduate Study in The first days, September 19-25, were set aside for course counseling, guidance and reciprocal discussions about the program planned and the additional interests of the participants. Initially, each teacher was assigned a faculty advisor. Intensive conversational English instruction was provided. The class met two hours each day for two weeks. Attendance was optional, although two-thirds of the group chose to enroll. The basic course schedule consisted of two 2-hour seminars each week and a once-a-week science lecture given by a leading scientist in a particular research area. The format of the seminars was designed to include an approximately equal measure of subject presentation and informal discussion. The teachers thus had the opportunity to study both general American pedagogical methods and those in use in their specific field of concentration and to learn about some research being done on the new frontiers of science. The two seminars and the subjects they covered are described below: American Education (The School of Education) The Scope, Diversity, and Complexity of American Education The Administrative Structure of American Education Field Trip: Lawrence Park High School Social Change and Educational Response Field Trip: Gateway Union Senior High School, Monroe ville (Pa.) The Curriculum of the American Public School State and Federal Relationships in American Education Educational Effects of the Mass Media and the Common Culture Competing Philosophies in American Education American Education in Comparative Perspective Science Education (The School of Education) Orientation to Seminar Concepts of Science Education in Secondary Schools Today The Professional Competence and Advancement of the Science Teacher Methods and Procedures of Instruction in Science Education (including evaluation, demonstration, audio-visual aids, and laboratory instructions) Resources and Materials of Instruction in Science Education The Concept of Unit Planning in Science Education The Science Curriculum in Elementary and Secondary Schools The Adaptation of Science Education as Observed in the United States to Situations Faced by the Grantees in Their Countries Science Lectures (Division of the Natural Sciences) Structure of Water Development of Tissue Culture Defects in Solids Photosynthesis New Applications to the Study of Behavior Structure of the Tobacco Mosaic Virus Nuclear Structure The teachers also were able to audit courses of special interest. Individual schedules were worked out under the supervision of the faculty advisers. Approval was given by the English, modern language, education and science departments for the teachers to audit any of their courses. Each visitor was asked to inform the teacher of the course to be audited and of his intention to attend class sessions. For courses in the other University departments, divisions and schools, arrangements were made individually by the program coordinator. The Office of Cultural and Educational Exchange of the University of Pittsburgh augmented the academic program for the visiting teachers with a special 3-day seminar on American institutions early in the program. Each Thursday morning a group meeting was held which fulfilled a variety of needs. Most important, perhaps, the seminar served as a point of focus for the entire project permitting the teachers to think out together what they had accomplished during the week. At the same time, it provided a means to the coordinator to maintain a continuing appraisal of the program's suitability or need for modification. Second, the seminar solidified the identity of the teachers as a group, aiding them in developing a remarkably fine esprit de corps. Further, it gave the coordinator the opportunity to add to the following week's calendar any special events or program changes that had arisen. Finally, it provided a setting for certain special events. For example, the coordinator invited Dr. Grzegorz L. Seidler, Rector of the State University of Lublin, Poland, to address the group, during his 2-week stay at the University. In the teacher group, two countries, Japan and Iran, were strongly represented, having 11 and 8 participants, respectively. Two Thursdays were set aside to permit each group to present a many-sided picture of its country and its public education system. The staff conceived of the project as intended not merely to give the teachers an overview of American education but also to permit them to learn from each other. Because the program had its built-in emphasis on secondary school science education, the staff felt it would not have done its job thoroughly had it not made an effort to present to the group other aspects basic to an understanding of American life. To fulfill this need, the Office's seminar coordinator planned a special seminar, November 3-5, for the group on The Individual in Society, The Individual in Political Processes, and The United States in World Affairs. The teachers were divided into two groups, each having its own sessions on the three subjects listed above. The division was made to permit a maximum amount of individual participation. In all, 21 Americans who by their professions, interests, or abilities were expert in discussing the subjects scheduled were brought in to share in the conversations with the teachers. The program included cultural opportunities arranged regularly for members of the group. The teachers were guests of the Pitt Players for the opening night performance of one of America's modem classics, "The Time of Your Life" by William Saroyan, and for the party that followed the performance. Many of the group attended the midday series at the Student Union, where they had the opportunity of hearing a concert by the Hungarian Quartet and lectures by Aldous Huxley, Malcolm Muggeridge, and John Mason Brown. Many also visited Symphony Hall, the Carnegie Museum, the Mellon Institute, and Forbes Field. Community activities were designed to provide the teachers with the opportunity to observe and to formulate for themselves a true image of America. Arrangements were made for the teachers to be lodged as a group, temporarily, at a hotel just across the street from the University. During the initial days, it was thought best to keep them together while they were undergoing necessary orientation to the University and the city. Within a week, however, the teachers moved out of the hotel into private lodgings in Oakland, the academic "quarter" of Pittsburgh. The staff and other members of the University gave assistance and suggestions to ease the difficulty of finding rooms. Some of the group preferred individual quarters, while others took apartments in private homes. Hospitality in private homes was made available through the Pittsburgh Council for International Visitors, a nonprofit organization supported by businesses, industry, service clubs, and private persons in Pittsburgh. Every teacher was invited out for the weekend of October 1-2, and again at Thanksgiving. In addition, they all had an opportunity at least once a week to take dinner and spend an evening in an American home. In many cases, after a teacher had been invited into a home, he was invited back several times. Besides home hospitality in the city, the teachers had at least two opportunities to spend weekends in the country. In early October, they were the guests of families in Erie. After dinner their hosts took them to an amateur production of the play, "Life With Father." On November 12-13, they were invited to the farming community of Somerset. There they were the guests of the local chapter of the Grange, each member having two of the teachers at his home for the weekend. The value of the hospitality program in enhancing the total value of the stay in Pittsburgh cannot be overestimated. The lasting friendships the visitors made with their hosts resulted in a far deeper and wider understanding of American life than is often possible. The teachers were fortunate in being able to observe a Presidential election campaign. They observed the first Kennedy-Nixon debate on a classroom television set. In succeeding weeks. Republican Vice-Presidential candidate Henry Cabot Lodge and Senator Wayne Morse addressed themselves to the political situation in the midday lecture series at the University of Pittsburgh's Student Union. The city played host in the last days of the campaign to President Eisenhower, former President Truman, Vice-President Nixon and Senator Kennedy. The teachers were thus able to familiarize themselves with the issues of the campaign. On election day, members of the Oakland chapter of the League of Women Voters escorted the teachers in pairs to the polls to observe the voting process. In addition to the activities carried out by the group as a whole, there was a wide variety of individual experiences-academic, extracurricular, and social. The differing backgrounds and interests of the teachers accounted for the expression of individual desires, which were fulfilled whenever feasible. Visits to schools were considered an integral part of the program, both to permit the teachers to acquaint themselves with American schools, teachers, and students and to give as many Americans as possible opportunities to meet and talk with teachers from other lands. During the month of October, four initial, exploratory group visits introduced the teachers to our country's public school system. Schools visited included Fifth Avenue High School, Pittsburgh, October 3; Lawrence Park High School, Lawrence Park, October 7; Gateway Union Senior High School, Monroeville, October 14; and Peabody High School, Pittsburgh, October 25. Once the teachers were familiar with the general operations of the public school system, they were ready for on-the-scene observations of science teaching. For this purpose, the program included visits in small groups to a variety of schools to attend sessions of science classes. In order to broaden their experiences and obtain the cooperation of the entire public school system, the program planning committee included representatives of the Pittsburgh public schools, the Allegheny County public schools, and the independent school districts. Eighteen schools were selected in order that the group might get a representative picture of the area's facilities. Each teacher was assigned to visit five schools during the month of November in the company of others within the same science specialization. Field trips and special events were provided to complement both the academic and extracurricular phases of the project. Like the entire program, the schedule detailed below was designed not only to add to the visitor's academic knowledge and his understanding of American life, but also to afford Americans a glimpse of the visitor's interests and beliefs. October 5-8 Western Pennsylvania Education Conference, University of Pittsburgh (tour of exhibits of educational materials). October 8 Visit to the University of Pittsburgh's Biological Field Station, Lake Pymatuning, Linesville, conducted by Dr. Tryon and Dr. Hartman of the Division of Natural Sciences. (Chartered bus) October 12 Visit to the Alcoa Building and the Gulf Building, Pittsburgh. October 19 Visit to the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh Plant. Address: Wayne E. Chambers, Resident Representative, Westinghouse Electric International Company; guided tour of plant. (Chartered taxis) October 28 Visit to the Pennsylvania State Capitol and State Department of Education, Harrisburg. (Chartered bus) October 31 Visit to the Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science, Pittsburgh: Biology Lecture in the company of 50 junior high school students. Sky Show. |