School children to go on Jamaican exchange programme
WHILE we are bracing ourselves for freezing temperatures and inches of snow next week, two Humberston teachers will be heading for the tropics.
Pupils at Humberston C of E school will be swapping teachers with a school in Jamaica for a sweet slice of Caribbean culture in an international exchange programme.
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Wish you were here: Headteacher Richard Dawson and international language teacher Vicky Johnson, from Humberston C of E School, are heading to a school in Jamaica. Picture: Jon Corken. Buy this photo at www.thisisphoto sales.co.uk/grimsby or by calling 08444 060910.
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pleasure beach: An aerial view of one of the many beaches in Jamaica.
Two of their teachers are heading to Jamaica for nine days – where temperatures next week are expected to be in the eighties – in a national exchange programme run by the Council of Britain, an organisation which connects people with learning opportunities in the UK.
Headteacher Richard Dawson and international language teacher Vicky Johnson will head to the Caribbean tomorrow, where they will spend six days teaching at a local school.
And then in June, two Jamaican teachers will come to Humberston and hope to impress upon English children.
Teachers say that they are looking forward to "going back to basics" at a school which doesn't even have the internet – worlds away from Humberston where pupils learn with computers and iPods every day.
However, despite the school being decades behind technologically, Mr Dawson insists that there is plenty to learn from their Jamaican colleagues.
He said: "Our aim is to find something that is beneficial to both schools – this is not just a charity exercise.
"The school is in the blue mountain region where they grow the best coffee in the world so we are considering some kind of growing project."
The teachers and pupils have already made a calendar together by making pictures for alternative months. Jamaican teachers e-mailed the pictures from their home addresses and use Facebook to talk to teachers as the school has no online facility.
Language teacher Miss Johnson said: "I am a little nervous but I am also fascinated about the phonetics of how they teach languages.
"We have so much in British schools but they have very little. Going back to basics might teach us how to make the best of everything we have here."
The Humberston school places a great deal of emphasis on learning about the rest of the world. They constantly learn about other cultures and have partner schools in France, with whom they hold weekly video-conferences.
Mr Dawson, who volunteered in Jamaica once before, in 1975, said that it is important children are "globally aware".
He added: "When I was a child, India and China were third world countries and now they are some of the biggest economies on the globe.
"Kids need to learn about other cultures and languages and be encouraged to look beyond our little island for opportunities in the future.
"It is also important for us as teachers to always try to find new methods."
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10 Comments
by HectorIrwin
Saturday, February 04 2012, 10:57AM
“The headline does them no favours and publishing the report before the trip does them no favours as it suggests a jolly, rather than publishing the report after the trip with concrete facts about how and why the trip was educationally successful e.g. the chance to develop resources or schemes of work on Caribbean poetry and music, geography etc. Jamaica does seem an odd choice for a linguist, why not francophone Africa for example or a trip to China to learn some of the basics of Mandarin? Or a country that tops the PISA ratings for language acquisition or reading skills? It would help them if it had been mentioned in the article that they paid for the bulk of the trip, but I assume that's flights etc. and not the cost of supply cover whilst they are away? Do Jamaica's term dates dovetail so neatly with ours that they couldn't go in their own time e.g. during our half term or the Easter holidays, but during Jamaica's term time? I hope they have an educationally and professionally beneficial trip and a follow up article would make interesting reading...”
by sako243
Saturday, February 04 2012, 9:47AM
“Another couple of mindless cynics, who have nothing better to do than dump on peoples hard work. This is something that can clearly be beneficial to both of the countries schools. Look at the bigger picture morons.
The school can't help it if the government are making it increasingly difficult for you to get by on your benefits.
Try a career in schooling, plenty of traveling! (I think not) :0)
Oh and I don't see how GT's error in getting the headline wrong is their fault either.”
by delft
Thursday, February 02 2012, 5:45PM
“"stupid" what on earth did they think people where going to say and as for getting facts straight headline was totally misleading it is a totally different culture to ours so whatever they learn about teaching over there probably won't be able to put into practise here and they should not have gone to telegraph if they didn't want to hear peoples opinions”
by shazrk
Thursday, February 02 2012, 2:22PM
“These teachers will be working in the Jamaican School while there. The majority of the exchange has been funded by the teachers personally. This is not a jolly as you all seem to think. Get your facts straight before you make stupid comments.”
by delft
Thursday, February 02 2012, 2:04PM
“i think they might find that they can still use corporal punishment there”
by porcelainblak
Wednesday, February 01 2012, 8:38PM
“You couldn't make it up could you?
Local authorities and families in dire financial straits and they're sending staff on a jolly!
Why do they need to go swanning off thousands of miles away on a fact finding mission about education methods elsewhere? They keep telling us that the WWW is the gateway to all knowledge - why can't they just type HOW ARE CHILDREN EDUCATED IN JAMAICA into Google?
Complete farce - just think of the heaps of classroom resources you could buy with the money!”
by delft
Wednesday, February 01 2012, 7:40PM
“the headlines are misleading there arn't any children going only 2 teachers off on a jolly do we need to know about their holidays the only thing i want to know who is paying ?”
by kaitanbreeze
Wednesday, February 01 2012, 10:29AM
“Surely it would cost the taxpayer a great deal less,if these teachers were to do an exchange with two teachers from Croydon, Brixton or Tottenham ?”
by plumduff10
Wednesday, February 01 2012, 9:49AM
“So the children aren't going-as the headline says-the teachers are going.”
by kev1ntaylor
Wednesday, February 01 2012, 9:43AM
“Why do they need an international language speaker to go on a Jamaican holiday,sorry school trip?As far as I know they speak English there,unless she is fluent in Patois!”