Standards Post #1

2.  Communication and Collaboration

Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, across the global community, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.  Students:

C. Engage with learners from other cultures to develop cultural understanding and global awareness.

This past school year, my students and I were lucky to have a student from China in our class.  Yichi was a rascally little boy who was as smart as a whip.  I spent as much time trying to tame him as I did trying to teach him.  Whenever I turned my back he would pull shades and snap them up to the ceiling, 

draw pictures endlessly, cut paper or make tapping noises on his desk with his ruler. At recess he would kick children when they didn't do what he wanted. As the year progressed, I realized that he was learning rapidly.  He was soon able to share his mathematical thinking.  He wrote phenomenal stories! He created amazing artwork! Then one day it was time for him to go back to China.  My students and I were devastated! This little whippersnapper, whom we had all grown to love, was leaving us!

My first inclination was to have every student get a gmail account so that we could all email him.  I realized the amount of work that would be and the problems with parent permission, etc.  Then I wanted to use some sort of skye or digital camera to communicate with him.  I was frustrated with my limited skills.  What a valuable experience it would have been to have our class and his class be able to share in our school, classroom and home life.  This experience would have been life changing.  I still think about Yichi, and continue to communicate with him.  I have not given up hope that my class of students, both past and present, will be able to engage with Yichi, his friends, family and community to develop cultural understanding and awareness.