UT has opened its doors to Brazilian teachers and undergraduate students who are here to improve their English and learn more about the United States.
Twenty-four teachers arrived at UT earlier this month and will stay until February 21. In addition to their other studies, the teachers will be honing their teaching skills.
Curriculum for the Brazilian teachers is being coordinated by the English Language Institute (ELI) and the Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.
Associate Professor Clara Lee Brown is overseeing instruction in teaching methods and assessment, and Assistant Professor Dorothy Hendricks is overseeing history instruction. Both are from the Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.
The Brazilian teachers will make several visits to Lenoir City Schools, where they will observe classes, including English as a Second Language classes, and meet with teachers and administrators. Several Knoxville-area teachers will serve as mentors to the Brazilian teachers during their stay. The program will include field trips to Cherokee, N.C.; the Great Smoky Mountains National Park; and Atlanta. The field trips are designed to complement the U.S. history portion of the program.
UT is one of eighteen universities chosen to host the new program, which is a collaboration between the Institute of International Education; CAPES, a foundation within the Ministry of Education in Brazil which strives to improve the quality of Brazil’s faculty and staff in higher education through grant programs; the US Fulbright Commission in Brazil; and the U.S. Embassy in Brazil.
The Brazilian teachers were selected through a competitive process and come from all regions of their country. For most, this is their first opportunity to travel abroad.
At the same time, UT is hosting an institute where twenty Brazilian undergraduates will learn more about US history, politics, economics, religions, and culture. The students also arrived earlier this month. They will stay in Knoxville until February 10 and then embark on a six-day study tour to New York City and Washington, D.C.
Faculty members from UT’s departments of history, English, sociology, religious studies, law, Africana studies, and geography are involved.
Jim Hamrick, ELI director, is managing the institute. History Professor Ernest Freeberg is coordinating the institute’s academic sessions, and Cheryl Barksdale, a lecturer in the College of Business Administration, is coordinating the leadership development component.
Participating students were selected from among hundreds of applicants by the US Fulbright Commission in Brazil. The Institute is funded by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It is offered in cooperation with the Institute for Training and Development of Amherst, Massachusetts.
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C O N T A C T :
Jim Hamrick (974- 3404, hamrickj@utk.edu)
Amy Blakely (974-5034, ablakely@utk.edu)