Earlier this year Chinese educators invited American educators to conduct an in-service training session for teachers in the Yuhang School District in Hangzhou, China.
Lon Gruesbeck, Washington International Student Experience (WISE) director, and David Morgan, Blue Mountain Academy (Hamburg, Pa.) principal, co-presented this teacher in-service Sept. 22–26.
“This was a fantastic opportunity and an honor to be able to share with colleagues in another country,” says Gruesbeck.
Gruesbeck and Morgan presented practical, hands-on training to more than 200 elementary, middle and high school teachers on topics such as “Moving Students Outside the Box” and “The Soul of Education … Mindset, Attitudes and Methods.” The presentations included short videos and PowerPoint presentations. Eighty-five high school students also joined the training.
“We discovered that students and teachers in China are very much like students and teachers here in America,” says Gruesbeck. “Teachers in China have some of the same desires and passions for their students as American teachers. The challenge for teachers in China is they are not allowed to get out of the proverbial box. One teacher even stated, ‘How can we move our students outside the box when we ourselves are not allowed out of the box?’”
Four student ambassadors — Brenden Gay and Ashley Hunte from Blue Mountain Academy and Paris Altman and Connor Hubin from Auburn Adventist Academy — participated in an education exchange.
The students lived in homes with students their own age and attended classes with their host students at Yuhang No. 2 High School.
“Our students had a wonderful learning experience,” says Gruesbeck, “and so many opportunities to share with their fellow students in China.”
Chinese educators greet American educators and thank them for coming to present a teacher in-service program in China.
Lon Gruesbeck, WISE director, talks with Chinese teachers about learning styles.
Lon Gruesbeck discovers the similarities between students and teachers in China and America.
Chinese educators in the Yuhang School District in Hangzhou, China, learn about the "Soul of Education" and how to move students "outside the box."
Lon Gruesbeck and David Morgan listen, train and dialogue with teachers in China.
Chinese teachers participate in a group learning activity.
While Chinese teachers and American presenters participate in training sessions, four student ambassadors from America made new friends with their peers in China.
