Study Abroad and Other Exchange Programs

Recently my son and I were discussing opportunities being offered by his college for summer internship and study abroad programs. Of course, given that I have gushed so often over the years about the value I placed on my own student travel abroad experience, I had nothing to offer but encouragement, with the necessary caution of course.

The last few decades of the 20th century and thereafter have seen the world growing smaller and smaller, with international travel and internet communication bringing people from all countries, of varied cultures, colours and classes together. This international congregation has been just phenomenal, sensitizing people to the similarities and differences of neighbors.

How then can we not support programs that continue this global love affair? At the rate that economies are shrinking and growing, it has become imperative that students experience foreign travel, learn to speak a foreign language and understand how to communicate in a cross-cultural way.

If you take a glance around colleges and universities you will note the growth and development of diversity programs, international scholar/student services and other such initiatives which pay homage to the globalization trends. These have given rise to new job titles ranging from visa specialist to global studies advisor. And despite the hassle of international travel, there is every indication that the trends will continue.

There are all kinds of work/study abroad programs. Some like Princeton in Spain focus on enhancing foreign language skills, others like the American Field Service teach about the benefits of  intercultural study and still others offer internship and volunteer opportunities.

Students, you should give serious thought to grabbing the opportunity to live abroad. It will provide you with a deeper understanding of your international friends and surprisingly you may learn a lot more about your own culture and yourself. Finally, your resume will thank you for it.

Early Childhood Learning - The Best Time for Bilingual Education

Kathleen Thomas of Primrose Schools contacted me about a topic which I find intriguing: teaching children one or more foreign languages. I am a certified ESL instructor myself and am a huge supporter of the total immersion method.
Here's what Kathleen and her co-writer Emily have to say.

Of course, nobody knows what the future will hold – but if current trends continue, your child will grow up to enter a workforce in which the competition for decent-paying jobs will be nothing short of cut-throat. Despite the calls for greater co-operation and "interdependence," human nature being what it is, it's a good bet that the economy of the the future will operate according to the Law of the Jungle. It goes without saying that a good education is one of the best ways to prepare that child for survival in that economic jungle of the future.

The Bilingual Future

One of the future trends that has become certain is the existence of a diverse, global society. Nowhere is this more true than in the United States. Almost from the beginning, the U.S. has been a land of immigrants, and while the "melting pot" has been an interesting theory, it has not happened in practice. On the contrary, most major U.S. population centers have become more of an ethnic and linguistic checkerboard; Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese and Chinese speakers represent some of the fastest-growing segments of the immigrant U.S. population.

In addition, with the rise of China, English may very well lose its preeminence as the international language of business; at best, it will have to share that top status with Mandarin in decades to come.

Getting Ready

Traditional wisdom has been to start teaching a second language in middle school, or even high school. Yet numerous research studies clearly demonstrate that the optimal period in a child's life for multilingual education is during the preschool years – at exactly the same time they are learning their first language. Yes, it is possible to learn a second and third language later in life, but it is more difficult, because that neurological "window of opportunity" – when the brain is most malleable – has passed.

According to Dr. Fred Genessee, Professor of Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, it's as easy for young children to learn two or three languages as it is for them to learn one. He's not alone; educators throughout the world (in countries that often have two or even three official languages) have understood this for decades.

The way a child learns a second language is by actually speaking it in a total immersion environment. You may recall an episode of the animated series The Simpsons in which young Bart gets trapped on a farm in France – and by the end of the episode, finds he's actually speaking the language. While this was a fictional scenario, the phenomenon is real; anyone who has taken young children abroad to stay with relatives in a foreign country for any length of time has observed this happening.

Enrollment in a preschool program that offers immersion in other languages is the best way to get your child started. This investment will make him/her much more competitive in the job market later on.

Co-written by Emily Patterson and Kathleen Thomas

Emily and Kathleen are Communications Coordinators for the Atlanta day care facility, a member of the AdvancED® accredited family of Primrose Schools (located in 16 states throughout the U.S.) and part of the network of day care preschools delivering progressive, early childhood, Balanced Learning® curriculum.