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IU SCHOOL OF EDUCATION PROGRAMS OFFER LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCES
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Three hands-on programs offered to education students at the Indiana University School of Education are allowing participants to explore multiple questions about teaching and community through teaching assignments on a Navajo reservation, several countries abroad, or in the American Southwest.
These are life-changing programs, according to those who have taken part in the unique student-teaching experiences, which are offered through the IU School of Education's American Indian Reservation Project, Overseas Project and Bilingual/Bicultural Program.
"A day doesn't go by when I don't think of those students, of that place," said Dawn Whitehead, who participated in the American Indian Reservation Project in 1997. Whitehead, who teaches U.S. history, multicultural studies and world history at Pike High School in Indianapolis, Ind., said her life was transformed by her experiences at a Navajo boarding school in Aneth, Utah. She says she learned as much about herself as about Native American culture.
"During the orientation program before we went to the reservation, they had people come back to IU who said that it would change your life," said Whitehead. "We thought, 'Oh yeah, sure.' But it really does."
"The project gives students who want more than the conventional student teaching experience a chance to do so -- and really spread their wings," said Laura Stachowski, director of the Cultural Immersion Project, which includes the reservation and overseas projects. Carlos Ovando, professor of education, directs the bilingual/bicultural program.
According to Stachowski, the students are challenged to learn about other cultures through their experiences.
"Participants are eager to learn about other cultures and, through that new knowledge, to learn about our own," she said. "They end up examining their own values, and many report they find ways to incorporate the best of both worlds."
The Cultural Immersion project has been part of the student teaching experience for many students at IU since the mid-1970s. Stachowski participated in the project herself while a student during that time -- when the program included England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. She became director in 1994. Most recently, she added India to the list of countries where students can do student teaching through the Overseas Project. Work is under way to add Taiwan to the list for future students.
The Bilingual/Bicultural Program was created because of the growing need for teachers with specialized bilingual and multicultural training. The program, which focuses on the needs of Spanish-speaking children, allows students to receive bilingual and bicultural education endorsements through their student teaching work.
Whitehead chose to participate in the American Indian Reservation Project because of her long-term interest in Native American culture. She learned as a child that she has some Native American heritage, which she said prompted her to study that culture.
During the project, students teach on Navajo reservations in Arizona, New Mexico or Utah. They live free of charge in a dorm adjoining the school, in exchange for certain responsibilities.
"You live and work with the kids," she said. "You help make the food and tutor them. You really get to know people. It was very rewarding."
(Erik Novak, Office of Communications and Marketing, 812-855-0089 or 812-855-3911, enovak@indiana.edu)