Global Teachers Germany 2017: Day Three

Orientation | Day One | Day Two | Day Three | Day Four | Day Five | Day Six | Day Seven | Day Eight | Day Nine | Follow-Up

Day Three

On the third day of the program, the delegation got to get back into the classroom, visiting the John F. Kennedy School in Berlin, a German and American community school founded in 1960 that covers K-12. The school’s bilingual approach is part of their mission to create “responsible and democratic global citizens.” Click here to read a 2016-2017 profile of the school. While at the school, the teachers got to observe classes and talk to students and teachers.

One standout of the visit: the lunch at JFK School!

A visit in the afternoon to Humboldt University gave the teachers insight into the university system in Germany as well as the integration of refugees into the educational system. The increased intake of refugees and the immigration policy has been a controversial issue within the country and across the European Union. Since Chancellor Angela Merkel’s announcement that Germany would open its borders to refugees, the country took in more than one million immigrants.

Amanda Soldner, a third grade dual-language teacher at Carrboro Elementary School, reflected on the differences between German and North Carolina schools.

There were many, many differences between the JFK School and our North Carolina schools. One thing that really stood out to me was how independent the children are, even in the elementary school. The students go between classes on their own, they go to recess on their own, and they clean up after lunch on their own. When a teacher is out of school for some reason, rather than having a dedicated substitute, other teachers absorb the absent teacher’s students, or the teacher can just cancel class, and the children will occupy themselves for that class period.

Teacher Tina Platek shares her thoughts on their three days in Berlin.

Day 3’s summary from Anthony Johnson.