Washington, DC (PRWEB) February 02, 2015
The NEA Foundation and Berlitz U.S. today announced a partnership to promote global cultural competence and language education as essential tools for public school educators. Berlitz U.S. is joining the NEA Foundation in recognizing, rewarding, and promoting excellence in education by supporting the NEA Foundation’s Global Learning Fellows, all recipients of the NEA Foundation’s Award for Teaching Excellence, with language learning software. In addition, Berlitz U.S. will also conduct an interactive workshop to prepare the Fellows for their trip to Peru by focusing on ways to recognize communication styles and differences, identify how culture influences behavior, and provide strategies for success when traveling abroad.
“To thrive as global citizens, today’s students need to be taught how to investigate the world, recognize perspectives, communicate ideas, and take action. In order to be taught these new global skills, teachers must be supported with comprehensive professional learning focused on authentically integrating these skills into classroom instruction,” said Harriet Sanford, President and CEO of the NEA Foundation. “Language is the road map to other cultures and is therefore an important tool for building global understanding. We are delighted that we can provide our Fellows with online language learning, thanks to our partnership with Berlitz U.S.”
“Berlitz U.S. is proud to partner with the NEA Foundation to support its mission, and help prepare the Global Learning Fellows through our passion, expertise and dedication to communication through cultural awareness and language learning,” said Anne-Marie Salmon, Director of Operations, Berlitz U.S. “Our CyberTeachers’ platform will provide each of the NEA Foundation Fellows with personalized lessons based on each Fellow’s level and needs, and our interactive workshop will incorporate the importance of cultural awareness toward understanding and building successful relationships.”
The NEA Foundation’s Global Learning Fellowship equips educators with the knowledge, skills and disposition to bring an international perspective to their students, associations, and districts. Through robust professional development opportunities, collaboration with outstanding educators across the globe, an international field study, and sharing newly-created global curricula, teaching and learning is transformed in their classrooms, empowering their students as global citizens.
The Fellowship provides a structured and collaborative learning experience that supports educators as they acquire global competence skills. Over the course of one year, Fellows are supported by the NEA Foundation staff, partners, and other field experts, as they work through the following:
1) Online coursework on effectively integrating global content into core instruction;
2) Online resource guide, and webinar, comprised of country specific concepts;
3) Introductory language learning;
4) A two-day educator professional development workshop in Washington, DC with sessions led by leaders in global competency and country-specific knowledge; and
5) An international field study designed to focus on the themes of global competence, education (both practice and issues of international, national, and state policy) and economics.
By the end of the Fellowship, each educator will have created at least four lessons or unit plans integrated with global competency skills. All lesson plans will be shared with educators around the world via BetterLesson.com, an open source platform, contributing to an increasing field of knowledge on this topic and encouraging other educators to authentically integrate global content into their own classrooms.
Names and photos of the 2015 NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellows are posted on the NEA Foundation’s website. Find other details about the Fellowship.
About the NEA Foundation
The NEA Foundation is a public charity supported by contributions from educators' dues, corporate sponsors, and others who support public education initiatives. We support student success by helping public school educators work with key partners to build strong systems of shared responsibility. Visit neafoundation.org for more information.
About Berlitz U.S.
Recognized as the world’s premier provider of language training and cross-cultural services, Berlitz, a Benesse Company, is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey with more than 550 locations in over 70 countries and 40 million clients worldwide.
Berlitz offers a comprehensive portfolio for consumers (adults and children), businesses and the public sector, including language learning, diversity and inclusion, global leadership, communications skills, mobility, speaking, listening and writing testing and assessment, translation, and customized dynamic solutions for cultural competency through a variety of platforms ‒ in person, online self-paced, and online with a live instructor.