Two FWCS staff members start the year with tales from China
Record Number: 5274 Displayed from: Aug 26 2009 12:00AM, until: Sep 26 2009 12:00AM Two Fort Wayne Community Schools staff members are starting the school year with interesting stories of
what they did over summer. For them, it wasn't a week at the beach or a trip to an amusement park; it was
an experience that will enrich the district's new Global Studies/World Languages Program of Study at North
Side High School.
Susan Boesch, language arts teacher at North Side, and Nancy Stansberry, assistant principal at North Side,
spent 10 days traveling to China. They were among 400 U.S. educators on the trip sponsored by the College
Board, which oversees Advanced Placement classes and ACT testing, and the Hanban/Confucius Institute
Headquarters, an agency dedicated to making the Chinese language and culture teaching resources and services
available to the world.
The trip was designed to provide educators with knowledge about and personal experiences with Chinese
culture and language and establish relationships between U.S. and Chinese education institutions. For Fort
Wayne Community Schools, the trip also offered information on starting and expanding Chinese programs in the
school district. This was especially important for the two North Side staff members as the school begins its
Global Studies/World Languages program. FWCS offers Chinese language classes at North Side and Elmhurst with a
total of 267 students enrolled.
"With Chinese being the most widely spoken first language in the world, it is critical that we offer
our students the opportunity to study the language and learn more about the Chinese culture," Stansberry
said. "The trip gave us access to many resources to strengthen what we are offering through the Global
Studies/World Languages program."
During the trip, Boesch, Stansberry and the other educators had the opportunity to meet with Chinese
education leaders, build sister school and city ties and network with other U.S. school leaders who are
bringing Chinese programs to their schools. Delegates visited Beijing and traveled in small groups to other
cities and provinces to meeting with local education commissions.
© Fort Wayne Community Schools | May 25th 2013