Congratulations to the 10th group of TCLP exchange teachers on an incredibly busy and fulfilling year working toward mutual understanding and critical language learning at 23 schools across the United States!
After spending 10 months in the U.S., TCLP teachers have developed strong leadership skills in the classroom and stand poised to emerge fully as leaders in their school and communities in China and Egypt. The Spring Leadership Workshop was a culminating experience after teaching Arabic and Chinese language and culture in their host schools across the United States. With a virtual component and in-person sessions in Washington, DC May 11-13, it provided TCLP participants with an opportunity to reflect on their experiences as exchange teachers in the U.S. and prepare for their return home as educator leaders.
The teachers attended sessions on anticipating and surmounting reverse culture shock, alumni programing through the U.S. Department of State, global competence, and leadership during which they created action plans to share their TCLP experience upon their return to Egypt and China. TCLP teachers intend to apply instructional methods they adopted in the U.S. to their classrooms, provide professional training to colleagues, and establish connections between their home schools and their U.S. host schools. During the workshop, the teachers also discussed how their understanding of America has evolved over the course of the year and how they can share their first-hand experiences with their colleagues, students, and communities in Egypt and China.
At the closing ceremony exchange teachers met with Anthony Koliha, Director of the Office of Global Educational Programs from the U.S. Department of State, to discuss their achievements from the past year. This year’s TCLP teachers collectively taught over 5,300 students and reached an additional 17,000 students, teachers, parents, and community members by conducting close to 2,000 hours of outreach. Through these outreach activities, exchange teachers served as cultural ambassadors to their U.S. host communities in feeder schools, universities, senior centers, libraries, and community organizations.