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IN THIS ISSUE Newsletter/Publications Newsletter: Publications:
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Partnership
News South
East Asia Brought to Area Classrooms Six months after touring Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand in the summer of 2001, Arlene and nine other local teachers found themselves sitting on the floor of the Cambodian Buddhist Temple at the Peace Pagoda in Leverett being blessed by Venerable Monk Maha Gosananda. This .visit, arranged by Amherst teacher Sokhen Mao, brought back vivid memories of field trips to temples during the tour. Two months later, they were listening to Dr. Lucy Nguyen, a specialist in Vietnamese literature at the University of Massachusetts, talk about the power and relevance of folktales and legends in Vietnamese culture. Her conversation with the teachers about other aspects of Vietnamese life "here and there" continued over dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant in Springfield. The last session before summer vacation enabled the teachers to view documentary videos shown by Dr. Peter Kiang from Umass Boston about transnational ties to homeland in Southeast Asian communities in America. These scenarios are typical of the thirty plus hours of professional development activities incorporated into a graduate course and made available to the teachers from Amherst, Hadley, Northampton, and Springfield who participated in the SE Asia study tour. The UMass course, taught by the project's co-directors, Dr. James A. Hafner and Dr. Sally Habana-Hafner, provided a mechanism for the teachers to continue to address the original goals of the project: a better understanding of globalization, diaspora, and transnationalism, and to problem solve about how these issues might be brought into the classroom curriculum. "The working sessions have served as stimulants to new thoughts and ideas regarding curriculum development and in some instances instructional ideas as well," reflected Clifford "Kip" Fonsh, a Social Studies teacher at Amherst High, who has had 25 years experience of teaching Asian Studies. Hoa Truong, an ESL teacher in Springfield agreed with what fellow ESL teacher Ilene Freedman had to say. "These activities have given me a chance to debrief and take in what I learned during our tour; they have added to a deeper understanding and knowledge of the issues and cultures of the countries we visited." Referring to the goals of the Fulbright Hays grant, Dr. Hafner emphasized, "Beyond the tour, we wanted the group to reflect on their experience, to deepen their understanding and knowledge of Southeast Asia, and to access "living resources" in the local Southeast Asian communities". As part of their class assignment, each teacher developed a curriculum unit, appropriate for their own grade level, and began testing these out in their own classrooms. Currently, the curriculum units are being reviewed and organized by a working group led by Dr. Habana-Hafner into a curriculum guide which will be published and made available to other K-12 teachers. In addition, they began sharing their newfound knowledge with other teachers through professional development seminars. In August of this year, Belle Barnack-Guzman, who teaches World History at the High School of Science and Technology, joined colleagues Linda (Commerce High School) and Arlene (JFK Middle, Northampton) to conduct a two-day workshop for Springfield teachers as part of their annual in-service training program. Equipped with power point and video-clips, they presented facts, told stories, shared experiences and employed sample exercises in a room-filled with artifacts, clothing, books, posters, and photos. Comments from participants were similar to the reactions from teachers who attended a shorter and less elaborate workshop sponsored by Global Horizons: "We liked the way it was presented by teachers for teachers and their stories were powerful."
The personal
and professional growth of the teacher participants in this project
has been perhaps, its most important outcome. Their participation
has had beneficial impacts on their perspectives about the people
and societies of Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. This has also been
translated into new curricula materials, and an enthusiasm and interest
in incorporating this content knowledge into their classroom activities.
When asked how the study tour changed her, Linda Levister replied,
" I am not the same person, I am a better teacher, and I am
inspired and awed. My friends have taught me so very much, shared
so many experiences and given me so many gifts that my students
benefit from the person and professional I have become." To learn more about the trip, view photos, and to download lesson plans click here. Silk and Northampton:
Threads of History FREE
workshop for teachers. Register early! Registration
Form (PDF) Download and fax. The Northampton Silk Project, a collaborative adventure in recapturing the history and impact of the silk industry on the city and surrounding communities, cordially invites you to participate in a professional development workshop. (For more information on this project contact Marilyn Smith 413-585-2154.) Silk
and Northampton: Threads of History From quixotic beginnings in the mulberry craze of the 1830's, through the valiant efforts of the Northampton Association for Education and Industry, to the invention of silk sewing machine thread, Northampton silk manufacturers dragged an industry from cottage to factory. The thousands of dollars Isaac Singer paid Samuel Hill for sewing machine thread fueled the company's rapid expansion. After the Civil War, Hill's Nonotuck Silk Company, internationally known for its Corticelli brand of threads, grew to be one of Northampton's largest employers, a magnet for immigrants and a way of life for generations of Northampton families. Today a gnarled old mulberry tree on the corner of Nonotuck and Corticelli Streets, in Florence, bears witness to a remarkable but largely forgotten past. The
Northampton Silk Project has been active since 1996
Upcoming Events The
Northampton Silk Project culminates this academic year with
the following events to be previewed (or reviewed) during
the workshop Fall
2002 Spring
2003 With Silk and Northampton: Threads of History, we offer area educators an opportunity to preview material and prepare curriculum to enhance classroom appreciation of the many public events occurring this, the Silk Year in Northampton. Workshop Schedule November
5, 2002 11:30-12:30 Lunch break. Bag in the lobby of McConnell science building or lunch on your own. 12:30-1:30 A guided bus tour of silk sites in Northampton and Florence, our local "silk road." 1:30-3:30
Presentation of curriculum developed for English, Science
and Social Studies by Northampton and area teachers. The workshop
concludes with an open discussion among presenters and workshop
participants. The discussion may focus on ways to use the
silk material presented over the course of the day within
the classroom. It is hoped that participants will want to
brainstorm fundable curriculum development proposals.
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Last
summer, soon after she returned from a month long study tour of
Southeast Asia, Arlene Kowal, a Social Studies teacher, put together
a display of artifacts, clothing, books, and art collected during
her trip. When her students returned to Northampton's JFK Middle
School, the new display welcomed them, making special connections
for the SE Asian students and encouraging questions by all. One
month later, she was busy preparing a presentation about SE Asia
for a regional conference of international educators at U Mass Amherst
with fellow-teachers Linda Levister, History teacher at High School
of Commerce in Springfield, and Sara Bernstein, Social Studies teacher
at Hopkins Academy in Hadley. Since then, she has been using the
new knowledge and resources gained from the trip in her classroom
activities, putting them in an integrated curriculum for her school,
and sharing them with teachers in other districts. "My life
has changed after the study tour as I feel more enriched; the tremendous
resources have been invaluable in my classroom. It inspires me and
I am eager to teach my classes." 
Outreach
activities have also engaged the teachers with the larger community.
Sara Bernstein took her students for a field trip to the Cambodian
Buddhist Temple while Gale Kuhn's students cleaned and planted flowers
in the temple surroundings. Sue Routhier, an Art teacher from JFK
Middle School and Beth Warren, an elementary teacher from Northampton,
gave presentations to community organizations such as the Lions
Club and Girl Scouts. Both reported how much they enjoyed sharing
their stories, and as Sue said, "The presentations I have given
have kept me attached to the memories and experience on the trip."
